Xu Xin, Ma Long win men's doubles gold at ITTF Qatar Open
Doha, March 8, 2020-China's Ma Long and Xu Xin claimed the gold medal of men's doubles event at ITTF Qatar Open on Saturday.
In the final they beat England's Paul Drinkhall and Liam Pitchford (11-8, 8-11, 11-1, 11-6), the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallists.
It was the first time an English pair had ever reached the final of a men's doubles event on either the ITTF World Tour or at an ITTF Challenge Series tournament.
A fourth appearance in an ITTF World Tour women's doubles final and a second success as a pair; China's Wang Manyu and Zhu Yuling, the no.2 seeds, beat Japanese teenagers Miyuu Kihara and Miyu Nagasaki, the top seeds (11-4, 7-11, 11-8, 11-9) to arrest the title.
Previously in 2018 Wang Manyu and Zhu Yuling had been runners up in the Korea Republic and in 2019 in China, before winning in the German city of Bremen.
Meanwhile for Miyuu Kihara and Miyu Nagasaki the run came to an end; last October they had won in Austria prior to succeeding at the Grand Finals.
Top seeds, Japan's Jun Mizutani and Mima Ito secured mixed doubles gold; in the final they beat China's Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha, the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games mixed team gold medallists. They won in four games (11-8, 7-11, 11-4, 15-13).
It was their eighth ITTF World Tour mixed doubles final since joining forces in early July last year in the Korea Republic but it only their second title. In 2019 they won in Bulgaria, before being the runners up in the Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden, Germany and at the Grand Finals; earlier this year they were again the runners up, second place was their lot once more in Germany.
Meanwhile for Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha it was their second appearance in an ITTF World Tour mixed doubles final; in 2018 they were the silver medallists in the Korea Republic.
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