US Open Coverage - USA Table Tennis

US OPEN
15
Junior
Events
by Richard McAfee
IN HIS TWO PREVIOUS US OPEN
APPEARANCES, INDIA’S KAMAL HAD
WON FIVE MATCHES AND LOST TWO
— BUT HIS THIRD TRY WAS A CHARM
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USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
Age Event
Coverage
2010 US Open
THROUGH THE LENS
KAMAL’S CURTAIN CALL
GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan. Achanta Sharath Kamal
had played in four tournaments in the United States
since 2005. In those four events, he was a combined nine
wins to four losses -- with no titles.
But the 28-year-old Kamal is still improving, and
2010 has been his best professional year. At this year’s
Open when he faced adversity, he lifted his game. In the
semifinals against Chen Hao, Kamal won the first three
games. But then the momentum changed and Chen Hao
won three in a row. The final game of the match was Kamal’s strongest, keeping pressure on his opponent from
the start and winning easily 11-5.
In the final against Thomas Keinath, Kamal fell behind 3-1. But he was able to turn the tide and win three
straight games to close out the match.
Kamal’s story doesn’t end at the US Open. He left
Grand Rapids for Cairo where he competed in the
Egypt Open the following week. He continued his
winning streak, upsetting Li Ching (World No. 20) of
Hong Kong 4-0 to become the first player from India
to win an ITTF Pro Tour singles event. Kamal’s World
Ranking has moved from No.73 in January to No.39 in
the latest rankings.
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More than 700 players from 15 countries took part in this year’s
US Open. Strong international delegations from Canada, India,
Philippines, Japan, and China provided a great atmosphere for the
event. This, along with the doubling of prize money and excellent
playing conditions, made this the best US Open in recent memory.
Once again I had the pleasure of working with the production
team from USOC Broadcasting. I also had the pleasure of
working with Michael Boot. Michael did his usual great job
covering the play-by-play and I served as the color commentator. This was the same crew that filmed last year’s US National Championships and that experience allowed them to do
an even better job for this event. This time our broadcast of
the final matches went out live. Another first for the event was
the four large video boards hung in a square inside the arena
which allowed everyone in the playing hall to follow the action.
Women’s Doubles Final
This was our first match for the live broadcast and it featured the strong Japanese team of Midori Ito and Megumi Abe
who played against Ge Jie Mai and Jiaqi Zheng from California. While the US pair of Mai and Zheng seemed just as
strong as the Japanese pair, Ito and Abe looked to be the more
experienced team. This especially showed itself in the excellent footwork that allowed them to quickly bring their powerful forehands into play. Mai and Zheng won a close first
game, but then Ito and Abe ran out the match -13, 7, 8, 3, 7.
Men’s Doubles Final
The Doubles Final featured Hao Chen and Xin Zhou from
China playing against Subhajit Saha and Achanta Sharath Kamal from India. This was an interesting match as the team from
China was very balanced with both players able to score points
with strong attacks while on the other side, Kamal clearly had
to finish the points for his team to win. In the end, the balance
attack of Chen and Zhou won out in six games 9, -8, 9, -5, 9, 4.
Photos: Achanta Sharath Kamal,
Richard McAfee, and Thomas
Keinath by Steve Hopkins
20
Hardbat
Event
22
Interview and
Articles
With this change in
strategy,
Georgina
took the next four
games and the match
-8, -9, 7, 9, 8, 9.
Women’s Singles Semifinals - Midori Ito (JPN) - Minami Doi
(JPN)
On paper, Ito, with a world ranking of No. 170, was the clear
favorite to win this match over the younger Doi ranked at
No. 333. However, matches are not played on paper and this
turned out to be a bad style match-up for Ito. Doi is a quick
off-the-bounce, two-winged, shakehands looper. While she
does not have great power, she is very consistent and able to
put her opponent’s under a lot of time pressure. The taller and
more powerful Ito was simply not able to play at her opponents
speed or find a way to slow Doi down. After winning a close
first game, Ito loses quickly in four straight games -8, 9, 9 ,9, 9.
Men’s Singles Semifinals - Hao Chen (CHN) - Achanta
Sharath Kamal (IND)
The number No. 2 seed, Kamal came into this event with a
world ranking of No. 79. Not much was known about his opponent Hao Chen. Chen did play in last year’s Baltimore Team
Championships compiling a 10-2 record with a win over David
Zhuang. Chen plays a shakehands two-winged looping game and
showed his strength in defeating top Canadian, Eugene Wang,
in the quarterfinals. The taller Sharath, who is the India’s num-
Women’s Singles Semifinals – Georgina Pota (Hun) - Wang,
Huijing (USA)
Georgina Pota came into this event seeded No. 1 with a world
ranking of No. 49. Her opponent, Wang, Huijing formerly from
China, but now living and coaching in Texas, was seeded No. 6
with a USATT Rating of 2582. This match turned out to be Pota’s only real threat of the tournament as Wang took the first two
games at 11-8, 11-9. Wang played a traditional penhold looping
game with strong forehand loops and excellent backhand punch
blocks. She continually was able to pivot and use her strong forehand from her backhand side and once she took forehand control,
she won most of those points. For the first two games, Georgina
seemed content to play a countering game rarely using her own
strong topspin game. However, after some smart coaching advice
from Killerspin’s Llija Lupulesku, Pota began to play the ball
quickly out wide to Wang’s forehand side. The result was Wang’s
attacks from her wide forehand were not as strong and Pota then
could counterattack the next ball into Wang’s open backhand.
USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
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ber one player, is known for his powerful forehand kill shot.
For the first three games it seemed that this match would be a blowout for Kamal. His superior short game and heavy opening forehand topspins completely took Chen out of the fast game he wanted
to play. Kamal easily won the first three games at 11-7, 11-6, 11-5.
However, Chen pulled out the fourth game at 11-9 and
gained some much needed confidence. At the same point
in the match, Kamal began to lose some focus and a major comeback for Chen began. Chen, now playing better,
won the next two games to level the match at three games all.
Kamal, now clearly upset with his play, started the deciding game by returning back to the successful strategy of playing the short game and, when attacking, focusing more on
producing a heavy topspin rather than speed on the first attack. Once again the plan worked as he raced to an early lead and won the game and match, 7, 6, 5, -9, -6, -8, 5.
Men’s Singles Semifinals - Thomas Keinath, (SVK) – Masato Shiono (JPN)
Defending US Open Champion, Thomas Keinath came
into the match determined to again reach his third straight
US Open final. The roadblock in his way was the stylish chopper Shiono Masato, world ranked No. 185. Masato
was rumored to be the hot player of this tournament. Shiono had not lost a single game in reaching the semifinals.
Shiono continued his unbeaten streak by winning the first game
11-6 when Thomas, trying to force every ball, made mistake after mistake against Shiono’s varying chop returns. Keinath likes
to play fast and end points as quickly as possible-- but he had
to rein in that urge in order to win the second game; this meant
adding in drop shots and also changing the speed and spin on his
loops. He took game two at 11-5. Soon after that win Thomas
fell back into his first game pattern of going for quick winners
and again made too many errors. Shiono won the game at 11-8.
Thomas, having learned his lesson, started out game four playing
more patiently and won the game 11-4 to even the match at 2-games
all. The next three games were played at a very high level from both
players. The spectators were treated to a classic match between
an all-out attacker and a great chopper who could also attack with
strong forehand loops of his own. Points were long, and very
exciting, but in the end, Thomas’s determination and power won
out. Keinath reached his third US Open Finals at, -6, 5, -8, 4, 9,
-7, 5. Thomas won the match, but everyone watching will remember the beautiful play of Shiono Masato for many years to come.
Women’s Singles Finals – Georgina Pota (Hun) - Minami
Doi (JPN)
Doi, while a big underdog in this match, had played well to make
the finals. Her two-winged off-the-bounce style of play is very
fluid and exciting to watch. In previous matches she had great success in putting her opponents under a lot of time pressure. While
many of the top women today play a quick countering game, Doi
plays a similar style but uses shorter looping strokes off both sides.
In watching Pota out on the practice tables, she appeared to
be more of the typical “Hungarian Looper” that her country is famous for producing. However, during the matches, she too played a more conservative countering game.
The first game of the match was mostly a feeling out affair. Doi
had some early success as Pota had problems adjusting to the
quickness of Doi’s returns. However, when she needed points,
Pota had a much better serve and attack game and pulled out
the first game 11-9. After winning the first game, Pota seemed
to loosen up and she became much more comfortable with the
quick pace of Doi’s game. In addition, Pota came to open up
with stronger backhand topspins that Doi found very difficult
to attack off-the-bounce. Second game went to Pota at 11-5.
Game three saw Doi start off strong as she started attacking Pota’s mid-point (right elbow) with some success. Once
again, Pota took a step back to give herself more time and
turned up her power to pull out a close 13-11 game. This
was the best played game of the match and the spectators en14
USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
joyed many high level exchanges between the two champions.
Leading three games to zero, Georgina may have started thinking
about holding the trophy a little too soon and played what can only
be described as a sloppy game losing at 4-11. However, after a little
positive reinforcement from her coach, she returned back to form
and completely dominate the fifth game, winning the game and the
match 11-5. Doi had fought hard and played well, but in the end,
the lack of any big power stroke was too much to overcome. Pota is
definitely a world top 50 player and for this tournament she was the
class of the field. This class showed not only in her play but also in
her sportsmanship and great smile. Everyone watching this match
went away feeling they had watched a young woman destined to
win many more titles and a very deserving US Open Champion.
Men’s Singles Finals - Thomas Keinath, (SVK) - Kamal,
Achanta Sharath (IND)
For the first time in some years, the number No. 1 and number No. 2 seeds met in the finals. On paper, this was an even
match: Thomas ranked No.78 and Kamal ranked No. 79. They
had split their previous six encounters and before the match
Thomas told me that they, “always play a very close match.”
In his usual style, Keinath game out swinging in game one
and took an early lead. However, a few late unforced errors
cost him the game at 9-11. For the next three games, Keinath
looked on his way to successfully defending his title. He won
those games at 11-5, 11-8, 11-9. Thomas was on fire and the audience was treated to many amazing winners from both players.
Thomas plays a very unique game with the ability to play the ball
very early on the backhand as well as create big angles with his
forehand loops. To his credit, Sharath never gave up and never stopped looking to make adjustments to his game. Finally,
in game five, he found a tactic that began to work. Kamal began to focus more on varying the spin and heights of his topspin returns trying to upset the quick timing of Keinath. Also,
Kamal began to look to bring his strong forehand more into
play, often pivoting to use his forehand from his backhand corner. Little by little, Kamal fought his way back into the match
winning games five and six at 11-8, 11-5. Everything now rested on one final game to determine the US Open Men’s Singles
Champion and who would receive the $10,000 first place prize.
On Thomas’s first serve of the final game, Sharath quickly
pivoted into his backhand corner and ripped a forehand winner
down-the-line. On the second point he ripped another forehand
winner, this time off a strong opening loop by Keinath. Every
point of this final game was a battle between the quickness of
Keinath and the forehand power of Sharath. It was clear that Kamal intended to use his forehand on every ball possible and he
was able to hold his early two point lead until 7-5. At this juncture the point of the tournament occurred. Keinath forced Kamal
back from the table with a series of killing forehands only to have
Kamal lob his way back into the point. After exchanging a series of exciting counter forehand loops, Thomas was finally able
to sidespin loop Sharath into the side barrier and then, showing
amazing touch, blocked Sharath’s return short back to the other
side of the table for the winner. The crowd went wild and started
rhythmic clapping to show their appreciation for the amazing play.
Thomas continued to fight his way back to even the game at
nine all. The excitement within the arena was amazing. As he
had throughout the whole match, Sharath again showed his determination to “go for it” in the critical moments of the game
as he ripped two quick forehand winners to win the match. He
swung so hard on the last ball that his follow-through put him on
his knees, and then the floor, as he realized he was the new US
Open Men’s Singles Champion. This was one of the best played
and most exciting US Open Finals in the history of the event and
everyone fortunate enough to be there will long remember it.
On a final note, this was one of the best US Open’s in recent
memory. A great deal of credit needs to go to the local organizing
committee in Grand Rapids who did an outstanding job. A special
thank you also needs to be given to all the officials, staff, and volunteers who gave so much of their time to put on this great event.
Junior Events
JUNIOR AND CADET BOYS
A year ago at the US Open, India’s Junior and Cadet teams had a major effect on both Junior
and Cadet events. This year, it was the Canadian participants that made deep runs into these
events. In the end, however, it was the American players who came out on top in both the Junior
and Cadet Boys events.
In the Junior event, Peter Li of Maryland had a relatively easy time in his first three matches
(winning 3-0 in each). He then defeated US National Champion Michael Landers of New York
(3-2) in the Quarterfinals, Yahao Zhang of Colorado (3-1) in the semifinals, and Canada’s PierreLuc Theriault (4-1) in the Finals. Peter Li was 15-2 in three events at the Open (and 7-2 in the
North American Championship event that was also held in Grand Rapids).
In the Cadet event, Andrew Chen of Texas didn’t lose a game in his first three matches. He then
faced three Canadians on his way to taking the title; defeating Jeff Decary (3-1), Jeremy Lau (3-1)
and Mathieu Theriault (3-2)
JUNIOR AND CADET GIRLS
Li Ma of New York was the top story in the Girls events. She entered the tournament rated 2217
and then proceeded to win 13 of 15 matches, collecting the titles in the Junior Girls and Cadet
Girls events (her losses were both in the Women’s Singles event). Li Ma’s rating jumped up to
2423.
The runner-up in the Junior event was Natalie Sun of California. Sun defeated Anne Deng of
Texas in the Quarterfinals, and Xiyao Song of D.C in the Semifinals. Sun also finished second
in the North American Championship Cadet girls event, losing to Ariel Hsing in the Final (3-2).
The runner-up in the Cadet event was De-Rong Chih of Texas. De-Rong did not lose a game
on her road to the Final. In fact, she also lead Li Ma 2-0 in the Final before losing the final three
games of their very close match (-5,-7,10,10,7).
Junior Boy Winner, Peter Li, photo by Steve Hopkins
U.S. National Junior Girls Team Qualifies
for the World Junior Championships
By Lily Yip, USA Junior Team Coach
In the North American Championships (during the 2010 US Open)
Team USA defeated Team Canada in a hard-fought but increasingly
dominant match-up 3 - 0. As the US Junior Team Coach, I used Lily Zhang
as our number one seed with Erica Wu as our number two. (Ariel Hsing had
just flown back from Shanghai, China that same day.) I had confidence in
my selection, and Lily and Erica performed very well. Congratulations to
our Junior Girls for their excellent performance. The USA Team has booked
their spot at the World Junior Championships to be held in Bratislava,
Slovakia on December 4-11.
In other news, it was a great honor for Hsing to be invited to play as
one of the two junior girls on the Junior World Team against China in the
2010 Volkswagen China vs. World Team Challenge. She and South Korea’s
Ha-eun Yang (WR10 in U-18) teamed up against China’s formidable duo
of Cheng Meng and Gu Yuting (WR 5 in U-18). All four players were
very comfortable in the international spotlight. Although China won 5-0
and displayed sheer class, the challengers had their moments of glory.
For example, Hsing (WR 44 in U-18) stunned a nervous Meng (WR 11)
to take the opening game of the match. And in doubles, the Chinese had
to overcome a two game deficit to finally best the Challengers 3-2. So even
though defeated, Hsing represented the World with dignity, composure, and
class, thus reinforcing her image as a future international to be reckoned
with. Hsing was wonderfully supported by her family and coached
by Michael Hsing, her dad. She returned to the USA seemingly mentally
stronger than ever and ready to play. This is another stepping-stone for our US Team members, and their hard
work, perseverance, and preparation was amply rewarded. Congratulations
to all the US Team members and their families, their local coaches and
TT Clubs, and to the USATT Coaches and Board Members who continue
their excellent support system for our USATT Junior Teams. All USATT
members can be proud of the progress we are making in the area of Junior
Development. We look forward to the World Junior Championships with the
belief that the best of our US Junior Girls is surely yet to come.
USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
15
2010 US Open
Age Events (Over 30 and up)
by Tim Boggan
There were 15 Over 30 through 80 events in this year’s U.S. Open , and
thanks to Dell Sweeris the prize money soared from $2,650 listed on the entry
blank to $8.000 at tournament time. That’s an historically unprecedented 11thhour boon to the players.
Over 30 Men’s Singles
In the top half of the Men’s Over 30’s, Defending Champion (and Defending Men’s Champion as well) Thomas Keinath (pronounced, according to his
friend Ross Brown, KEIN-not, though chances are, since Thomas has lost
85% of his hearing, he can’t tell, unless he’s looking at your lips, whether
you’re saying his name correctly) had an uneventful four-round advance to the
final. Though Keinath plays in his native Germany for a club near Frankfurt,
he’s become a Slovakian citizen and hopes to represent his new country in the
next Olympics. No, he didn’t come to Moscow—because, ohh, down came
something heavy on his foot, and, as Ross says, he felt even more the weight
of the World’s on him.
Best pre-semi’s matches: Avishy Schmidt, before losing to Thomas, over,
first, the strong Nigerian player now out of Indiana, Olawole Ayangade (from
down 2-0), 11-9 in the fifth, then over New York’s Jonathan Chu, 8, 10, -9,
5. Also, Ilya Tankov over expatriate Brit Mike Levine, 11-9 in the fifth. And
two-wing looper Kim Valeri, before losing to longtime Canadian International
Xavier Therien, over Barry Dattel, -8, 11, -9, 8, 9, as of this match no longer
using Japanese rubber no matter who recommends it to him. In the semi’s,
Keinath stopped U.S. Team member Niraj Oak in straight games, and Therien
did the same to Scott Endicott who’d advanced with a default win over Michael Hyatt
This Keinath vs.Therien final was a replay of last year’s match in which
Xavier had Thomas double match point down but couldn’t get the clincher.
Keinath has got to be in great shape. Ross Brown says Keinath’s normal eighthour day is as follows: three hours on the table in the morning, then lunch,
then three hours more on court, and one hour in the weight room, and one hour
on the road. Therien has been kept busy with his full-time IBM computer job,
his two boys, age three and one, and of course his evening and weekend hours
at the Ottawa Training Center—especially now with the Canadian Championships coming up in two weeks. This year’s Over 30 winner? Keinath again,
15-13 in the fourth, after Xavier had been up 10-8, double game point.
Over 30 Women’s Singles
Surely West Virginia’s Sunny Savant (1445), armed with such a surname,
knew what she was getting into, so, though beaten 2, 3, 6, she kept up a sunny
disposition—the more so no doubt because the woman who’d beaten her was
four-time (1992-95) U.S. National Champion Amy Feng. Amy in turn was
(2402), uh, not at her best, for in her semi’s she got back what she’d given—
lost to Killerspin’s Biljana “Biba” Golic (2313), 2, 7, 3. It was fun for Amy to
play, was it? Anyway, she certainly got to exercise her forehand. Biba herself
was far from invincible (word was she’d been in bed for a day and a half nursing a bad back)—she dropped her opening game to Charlene Liu before her
300-point advantage glaringly showed. Not that Biba herself was glaring—
in fact, she often smiled to herself on missing shots. Down 5-1 in the third
against Charlene, she went up 9-7, then won that game at 8 and the next at 5.
In the other half of the draw, plucky Li Tzu-Ying (1962), up against Texasbased Wang Huijing (2582), though 5, 6, 2 losing games as you’d expect,
nevertheless managed not an upsetting win, but an 11-4 third-game win over
Wang. After that, the #1 seed went on her no nonsense way to down Heather
Wang, 2, 4, 3, in the semi’s, and Biba, also in straight games, 7, 7, 9, in the
final.
Over 40 Men’s Singles
Best pre-quarter’s matches in the 64-entry Men’s 40’s: Wong Wai over Dana
Hanson, -10, 4, 9, 9. Dennis Cobb, Sr. over Don Hayes, -7, 12, 7, 4. George
Cooper over Jim McQueen, 12-10 in the fifth. Larry Bavly over Steve Gonzales in five. Ty Hoff over Mark Johnson, 11-9 in the fifth. Steve Hochman over
Mike Levine in five. Adrien Dombey over Nafez Baker, 6, -15, -7, 7, 8. And
tennis pro Donny Flowers over Barry Dattel, 4, -3, 10, 8 (see young Donny’s
1975 belly-button photo in Vol. VIII of my History).
Ilya Lupulesku, #1 seed, and Danny Seemiller, #2 seed, were not extended
in the quarter’s—“Lupi” winning 1, 2, 8, and Danny with a strange 1, 14, 3
win over a second-game-fast-attack-inspired Gregg Robertshaw. Niraj Oak
USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
16
wouldn’t (7, 11, 12) allow Avishy Schmidt a chance to get loose. And multilingual translator Thor Truelson kept giving opponents Jorge Herrera and Alex
Li the same “You’ve lost the game” message whether the translation was (as
with Jorge) 11-9, 14-12, 11-6, or (as with Alex) 12-10, 16-14, 11-9.
No semi’s problem for Danny over Thor, but Lupi, who earlier had complained of a sore neck, had a trying (-9, 5, 10, 6) moment or two against Niraj.
In the final, Danny was 3, 3, 3 helpless. It wasn’t just that he’d played with
Sriver for so long and now was determined to go with today’s new rubber. He
just didn’t know where Lupi’s ball was going. And because Lupi was returning Seemiller’s serves so beautifully, Danny couldn’t follow them up, couldn’t
get his vaunted loop attack into play. Whereas Lupi, as one fellow watching
said, “can play a best of seven match and not use the same service twice—thus
had quite an attacking advantage” True or not, the point is that against Danny
Lupi’s ball kept going in, hitting the corners.
dropped a game to many-time Michigan Champion Mike Veillette who, now
54, as a teenager in 1975 was arrested at gun point with Danny and his brother
Ricky in the hills of Ljubljana when at the Yugoslav Open they’d strayed away
from the playing hall for a scene with a view and, oh!, a viewpoint. Schmidt,
showing more power of late, flip-returning serves well, had beaten Seemiller
at Olga and Stan Kahan’s big bucks Meiklejohn tournament several weeks
earlier (“Biggest win of my career,” said Avy who back in 1988 had won the
U.S. Closed U-2100’s). But he fell in this final, also with more than a few
bucks changing hands, to a fired-up Danny (who was often successfully serving not just from his backhand but from his forehand), three straight.
Over 60 Doubles
Sweeris and Sakai took the $200 first-prize 60 Doubles in an embarrassing 3,
4, 6 and 2, 4, 3 overwhelming manner. Runner-ups Bill U and Jim McQueen
survived a pesky, wouldn’t quit 10, 4, -12, 8 semi’s against Hank McCoullum/
Morris Jackson (he’s Marcus’s father). In the first game, Morris misserved
twice in the first 10 points, then was having trouble handling Jim’s twisting
backhand serves. However, in the close third game, Morris’s clutch returns
of those serves allowed him and Hank to prolong the match into a contested
fourth. Hank, I might add, is now a rising star in academia. You can still find
him at Penn State—only now he’s not Mr. McCoullum, or Professor McCoullum, but Dean McCoullum of the College of Science.
Over 40 Women’s Singles
It goes without saying that Amy Feng, though teaching at Richard Lee’s Joola Club, was anything but tournament tough, and that her quarter’s and semi’s
matches—against Canada’s Wendy Chen (4, 5, 6) and Florida’s Monelie June
Sturm (3,3,3)—didn’t do much to raise her competitive fires. However, in the
final she was able to (6. 10, -10, 9) withstand Charlene Liu’s outpouring of
points, and so take home the $250 first prize. For playing just that one ninepoint match Sturm (and Julian Tsung in the other semi’s) came off court $100
richer. Surely an incentive to get more women into the event.
Women’s Over 60 Winner Donna Sakai, photo by Mal Anderson
Over 50 Doubles
Danny Seemiller and Dave Sakai have been our National Champions in the
Over 50 Doubles since 2006, so why shouldn’t they beat Avishy Schmidt and
Barry Dattel in this Championship as well? A three-zip rhetorical question.
What won’t be in doubt either, if they’re awarded it in Rotterdam next year,
is Danny and Dave’s success at running the World’s Veterans Championship
in 2014 in Washington, D.C. The five-star 2,000-room Gaylord Resort Hotel
near the Potomac that connects with the Convention Center’s first-rate playing
hall ought to please everyone. A capital tournament indeed
Men’s Over 60 Winner David Sakai, photo by Mal Anderson
Under 1800 Over 40 Singles
Forty-one-year-old software engineer David Yu (1597), after upsetting the #1
seed, Illinois’s Jacek Wisniewski (1797), went on to defeat 68-year-old North
Carolina body shop owner Ray Filz (1625), 19 in the third, and so won the
45-entry U-1800 Over 40 Singles. Though born in China, David didn’t play
table tennis there, but, starting in 2007, first in the Bay area, then in Florida, he
became interested in the Game. So much so that he brought to Grand Rapids
maybe 20 different rackets and until this last-day’s event had been playing every match with a different blade. As for Ray, who’d knocked out fellow North
Carolinian Vincent Green (1719) in the semi’s, he considered himself lucky,
after recent rotator cuff surgery, to be here playing with any blade.
Over 40 Doubles
Danny Seemiller and fellow coach Mark Nordby earned an easy $150 each
by not dropping a game in winning the Over 40 Doubles. But the best match
of the event was runner-up Larry Hodges/Mike Levine’s -10, -8, 7, 6, 5 comefrom-behind win over the analyzable-to-Larry Michigan team of Vivek Singh/
Bill Thompson
Over 50 Men’s Singles
Best early-round matches in the 43-entry Men’s Over 50’s: Sergey Puzynev,
from down 2-0 and at 13-all in the fourth, over Randy Nedrow, winner of the
B Doubles with Mark DaVee in the U.S. Open 32 years ago. Gregg Robertshaw, 11-9 in the fifth, over Puzynev. Jay Turberville over Robert Clyde in
five. Mike Veillette over Jim McQueen, 1, -11, 13, 9, then over Turberville,
8, 12, -9, 6. Ben Bednarz over Dave Fortney in five. Wai Wong over Larry
Goldfarb who, though he was up 2-0, I can’t say had stamina problems since
he looks to be, and is, a very fit and accomplished marathon runner. And Barry
Dattel over Brian Bartley—after Barry had been down 1-0 and 6-1 in the second before running10 straight.
In the one semi’s, Avishy Schmidt, up 1-0 but down 6-1, did to Dattel what
Barry had done to Bartley—scored a bunch, 8 out of 9 to be precise, whereupon Barry calmly put his bat on the floor and….surprise, didn’t stomp it to
death, just let it lie there for a while composing itself, then calmly picked it
up and played on to lose three straight. In the other semi’s, Danny Seemiller
Over 50 Women’s Singles
Charlene Liu breezed to the final with 1, 3, 5 first round and 3, 1, 1 second
round wins. That player who got only five points, think she was mortified? I
doubt it—the first-round match she won was worth $50. It’s almost as if some
of these players, regardless of their strength, got appearance money. But after
all these years, why not? In the semi’s, Sakai and Suzuki were at it again. But
this time, though Chiyako lost the first game at 10, and then the second (to
make a total of five straight games lost to Donna), it was as if she suddenly
began remembering tips Coach Tawny Banh had given her. She shockingly
turned the match around, dominating Donna 4 and 5, and forcing her into the
fifth. Here Donna recovered—only to lose in four to Liu in the final.
Over 60 Men’s Singles
In the Men’s Over 60’s (last-minute prize money for this event went from $0
to $1,000), Dave Sakai had little trouble getting to the final, dropping but one
game to Hank McCoullum (“The only guy over 60 who has good serves, and
can backhand or forehand follow them for point winners,” said Dave)—then
fending off Chanpang Duan, 14-12 in the third, after Chanpang had stopped
Jim McQueen and his bothersome forehand pips play, 12-10 in the fourth.
Duan who’d gone to the World Veterans Championships in Mongolia, described his involvement in table tennis (perhaps in no significant order) as,
“I coach, I watch, I play.” Sakai had him 2-0, then twice had match point, but
Chanpang twice got stubborn forehands in. Finally, though, at 12-all, Duan
failed again to return Dave’s heavily loaded topspin serve, then blocked off.
On coming out to meet Saaki, Dell Sweeris struggled—first, from down 2-1
and at 10-all in the fourth with ex-Iranian star Hossein Sharifi, then in an 11-9
in the fifth semi’s with Richard McAfee. Richard, needing a knee replacement,
walks with a cane, but out there at the table he stands strong. In two of their
three games Dell was beaten soundly, 3 and 5. But the big third game went to
Dell, 10-9, when Richard took the right shot, a hard-hit forehand that missed.
In the fifth game, Dell seemed to have a comfortable 9-4 lead, but then, making errors, lost five in a row. Again—was it the right shot this time?—Richard
opted to smack a forehand and again it missed, and this time he not only lost
the game but the match. “Oh well,” waxed Big Mac outwardly, philosophically, “it’s just one more loss in a 40-year string of losses to Dell.” In the final,
played before Dell’s father and a host of well-wishers, Dell, as happened last
year, couldn’t beat Dave, but he sure tried hard, losing the last two games
16-14 (down game point, Dell served into the net) and (after catching Dave
at 9-all from 8-4 down) 12-10. This exciting local color match was the subject of a feature article in the Grand Rapids Press which, unlike newspapers
from other U.S. Open sites, deserves praise for giving the Sport exposure with
daily write-ups and photos. A publicity incentive it’s hoped for next year’s U.S
Open organizers at Milwaukee.
Over 60 Women’s Singles
The 60 Women’s final between Maryland’s Donna Sakai (1841) and California’s Chiyako Suzuki (1862) produced an unexpected 6, 3, 4 rout for Sakai
and not just the expected entry-blank “A” for Award, but a startling $250 first
prize. This was the first time Chiyako had played Donna, and when she met
her again in the Over 50’s their rematch, as their ratings suggest, would prove
to be quite a contest.
Over 65 Singles
In 2007 and 2008, Bill U (mercifully short for Ukapatayasakul) was runnerup in this 65 Singles event, and as the second seed to Dell Sweeris this year
he was again runner-up, losing to Dell in four, in opening and closing 11-9
games. Bill, who played in the recent World Veterans Championship in Hohhot, Mongolia, often just sort of pats the ball into play, short and to the middle, urging you to do something so that he can react to his advantage. Sweeris
was happy not to have had to go into the fifth with him.
Over 70 Singles
In the 70’s, there was some very competitive round robin preliminary play.
Top seed Primo Madrigal (1925) held off Al Miller (1653), 4, 10, -4, 9, but, after being two games up, was upset by Marty Theil (1652) who, blitzing Miller,
advanced to the single elimination semi’s. Second seed Billy Neely (sporting a
7/4 1776 rating) was also upset, -10, 6, -15, -6), by low-key Hoosier wit Jerry
Marcum who outlasted Venezuela’s Nestor Prato, -9, 10, 9, -6, 9. Third seed
Chao Lin (1773) was upset too—by Florida’s Jose Borges (1705), -10, -3, 9, 8,
-9. Only Canada’s Jim Huang (1759) came through unscathed. Best match in
Jim’s group: Chase Kleinsteker’s two-games-up unsuccessful try at upsetting
George Aitken, a 350-point favorite.
Huang continued his advance by not dropping a game or even a point in his
semi’s. He was awarded a default over ex-firefighter Theil who neglected to
tell the Conflict Desk he was involved in another match. In the other semi’s,
Borges, who plays at his Sunrise Club in Clearwater a couple of times a week,
beat Marcum handily, though losing one game at 11. Jerry’s analysis of his
loss? “He hit, I missed.” In the final, spinner Huang took down hitter Borges,
3-0.
Over 75 Singles
In the 11-entry Over 75’s, the two top seeds, Billy Neely (1776) and Mark
Shapiro (1726), advanced—with Neely besting Dick Peregrine, and Shapiro
getting the best of Al Miller. Some serve of Mark’s I saw: he served into his
own back table edge, the ball went high up, carried over the net, and quickly
spun back, of course untouched by the opponent. Some exhibition point that
would have been! At the 2008 National’s, Mark had won the 75 title from
Billy, but this time it was Billy’s turn, though up triple match point he almost
didn’t take it, winning 11-9 in the fifth. Shapiro’s strategy had been to serve
dead balls short to Neely’s forehand, then follow with aggressive backhand
play. This time Billy didn’t allow Mark that initial advantage; instead, he pipattacked those short serves with cross-court forehands.
Over 80 Singles
Dick Peregrine, though having trouble breathing—he has emphysema, the
result of once being a heavy smoker—upset Al Miller, 11-9 in the fifth, to take
the Over 80’s. Perhaps it was the pain of losing—even 80-year-olds feel it—
but Al’s loss prompted him to tell me how at another tournament he’d slipped
on water he hadn’t seen and hadn’t expected on a gym floor, fell hard, lost
consciousness, and was taken by ambulance to a hospital in pain with a torn
hamstring. It was four weeks before the pain lessened and nine weeks before
he could get back to whacking in forehands. Hey, Table Tennis is a sport, and,
young or old, if you play sports, sooner or later you get hurt.
USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
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US Open Profile: MICHAEL TRAN
W
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ae
by Tim Boggan
You know, the Under 1350 winner at this year’s U.S. Open.
You don’t know?
C’mon, you must have seen him—everybody was watching him.
Why? -- Because he’s only seven years old!
h
c
i
M
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photos by Steve Hopkins
Huh? Well, m’god, how’d this little kid get so good so fast? He’d gone to China?
After Morris Jackson, who of course has seen his son Marcus become a great success, put me on to young Michael, I talked
with the boy’s father. Nope, Michael hadn’t gone to China. He got encouragement from his mother An, and played in the family
basement with his father Hoang. They played a lot for a seven-year-old—an hour or two five times a week—though, no offense,
but if the truth be told, his father’s a relatively weak player.
Of course Michael’s had outside training. Living up there in Rochester, MN, he’d taken a helpful lesson from Mitch Seidenfeld
once a month. And since his father thought he had potential and was ambitious for him, he sent him to Oregon--to Portland to
spend three days with Coach Sean O’Neill, and to Salem to Stellan Bengtsson’s five-day camp. Moreover, helped by the support
he received from Rochester Club members and especially Club President Kiswanto Thayib, and by his Junior Olympic gold
medals and successes in the recent St. Joe Valley and Highland Park, Indiana tournaments, well, no wonder he was improving
by leaps and bounds.
Yes, but he’s only seven. To win an Under 9 tournament, or an Under 1000 or even Under1200 regional event, major accomplishment though that is, is one thing, but to beat adults at a U.S. Open Under 1350 event, with very limited professional training,
is quite another.
There must be other factors involved that help to explain why this kid has so much promise.
There are. Naturally he’s smart. He’s in the second grade—in a “gifted program,” and within two weeks of the start of school
had finished all his YEAR’S homework, and was off to third grade work. No surprise, then, he’s a quick learner. Watches t.t.
video clips, sees and hears what a coach says, and, with regard to what that coach says, say, about a shoulder turn or a foot movement, grasps the instruction immediately. And he shows versatility—if an opponent’s forehand is getting the better of him, he
can change his game so as to deflect that advantage. Also, says his father, the boy has focus. He can be very emotional on losing
an important point, but immediately his concentration returns.
Like a normal second grader he watches cartoons, but his favorite turn-on is the Discovery channel, for he loves science shows.
Also, he’s an avid reader—finishes a good-sized story book in a day or two. O.K., so he’s not just a normal kid. He’s very interactive with people, very popular at school. Indeed, his teacher said of him, “He’s going to be a great leader.”
And word is from coaches Danny Seemiller and Lily Yip he’s going to be, uh, is, a pretty good table tennis player too.
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USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
USA TABLE TENNIS MAGAZINE • Sep/Oct 2010
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