S. Korean men, women reach quarterfinals at table tennis worlds
Lim Jong-hoon of South Korea celebrates a point against Sharath Kamal Achanta of India during the teams' round of 16 match at the International Table Tennis Federation World Team Table Tennis Championships at the Busan Exhibition and Convention Center in the southeastern city of Busan on Feb. 21. Yonhap
The host country South Korea advanced to the quarterfinals in both the men's and women's tournaments at the ongoing world table tennis championships Wednesday, securing Olympic berths in the process.
The South Korean men beat India 3-0 in the round of 16 in the men's competition at the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Team Table Tennis Championships in Busan.
Earlier Wednesday in the women's competition, South Korea defeated Brazil 3-1 in the round of 16.
By qualifying for the quarterfinals, both men's and women's teams have secured a spot in the Paris Olympics for this summer.
In the team tournament, each match is made up of up to five singles matches in a best-of-five format. Teams are each carrying five players, but only three players can play in each match. If a match goes the distance, two players will each play twice.
In the men's match, South Korea beat India for the second time this week, after getting past the same opponent 3-0 during the group stage Monday.
As he had done so on Monday, world No. 14 Jang Woo-jin defeated Harmeet Desai 3-0 (12-10, 13-11, 11-7).
In the first game, Jang blew a 10-7 lead to let Desai pull even at 10-10, before winning the next two points. (Yonhap)