Hayata, Zhu Yuling lead controlled starts at WTT Zagreb opener
Hayata and Polcanova were clinical, but Zhu Yuling’s 14-12, 13-11 squeeze over He Zhuojia looked like the opener that mattered most.
Hina Hayata, Sofia Polcanova and Zhu Yuling all cleared the first hurdle in Zagreb with 3-1 wins, but not all opening-round victories carried the same weight. Hayata looked the sharpest on the scoreboard, Polcanova stayed in full control, and Zhu was the one who had to answer pressure in the tightest games, turning a test into the clearest early signal that the women’s draw could still run through her.
At Arena Zagreb, Hayata beat Qin Yuxuan 11-2, 11-8, 11-2, 11-7, a clean start for the world No. 12 in the week 24 ITTF rankings. Polcanova followed with an equally composed 11-8, 11-6, 11-8, 11-8 win over Kim Nayeong, never letting the match get loose enough to create doubt.
Zhu Yuling’s opening was different. The world No. 4 had to manage a 14-12 first game and then close out a 13-11 fourth against He Zhuojia, after dropping the second game 7-11, to win 14-12, 7-11, 11-7, 13-11. That kind of scoreline does more than advance a seed. It shows a player can survive the first real squeeze of a main draw and still land the decisive points when the margins narrow.
That is why Zhu’s result looked like the most credible deep-run indicator, not just a routine march into the next round. Hayata’s win said she was supposed to be there. Polcanova’s win said the same. Zhu’s win said she could absorb a swing, stay patient, and still finish the job against a dangerous opponent. In a field that had already drawn extra attention in qualifying, with Tin-Tin Ho and Connor Green both trying to reach the main draw for Table Tennis England, the opener quickly separated straightforward progression from a player making a statement.
The men’s side delivered its own early pressure points. Hiroto Shinozuka beat Mizuki Oikawa 11-9, 11-6, 12-14, 11-0, a match that flipped from a lost third game into a fourth-game shutout. Chen Junsong outlasted Yuta Tanaka 11-8, 4-11, 12-10, 11-8, 11-7 in one of the day’s toughest battles, while Lee Eunhye fought back from two games down to beat Xiaoxin Yang 6-11, 5-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-6. The opening round in Zagreb was already doing what a deep tournament should do, exposing who was simply advancing and who was sending a message to the rest of the draw.
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