Hangzhou Havoc as Wong Clears World No.3 Hurdle

Thursday’s action delivered drama at Linping Sports Center as underdog hopes soared and title favorites fell on at the Vibrant Linping Hangzhou Open 2025.

Wong Sends Garnett Packing

Hong Kit Wong produced the biggest upset of the day, dismantling PPA Tour No.3-ranked Connor Garnett 2-0 (11-4, 11-3) in the Men’s Singles. The Hong Kong, China star gave Garnett nothing to work with, racing through both games with a flurry of finesse and fleet-footed shotmaking. Wong now books a clash with Hien Truong in what is the Asian number one’s fifth semifinal of the seasons.

Vietnamese Pair Finally Break Through

Hien Truong and Quan Do have pushed big names in recent PPA Tour Asia showdowns, having pushed the likes of Ben Johns and Christian Alshon at the Panas Malaysia Cup. But the breakthrough has always eluded them. Not anymore. The underdog duo stunned second seeds Connor Garnett and Blaine Hovenier 2-0 (11-6, 11-2) in Men’s Doubles, delivering a statement performance to reach the semifinals.

Meanwhile Federico Staksrud put a stop to the shocks on the men’s front. The Argentinian navigated safely through the chaos and remains alive in all three events. The World Championship gold medalist continues his hunt for a triple crown to close out the PPA Tour Asia season.

_{Smiles from Alix Truong (left) and Federico Staksrud (right) as they rolled in to the Mixed Doubles semifinals.}

Top Seeds Cruise in Women’s Singles

The women’s draw played largely to script, with the top three seeds powering into the semifinals without dropping a game. Chao Yi Wang, Sahra Dennehy and Yufei Long all looked sharp heading into Friday’s action. Chinese Taipei’s Wang also remains in contention for a hat-trick of titles, still alive across all three events alongside Staksrud on the men’s side.

The lone singles upset came from Nicola Schoeman, who knocked off fourth seed Ting Chieh Wei 2-1 (6-11, 13-11, 11-4). The MB Malaysia Open silver medalist showed composure to fight back after dropping the opener as she looks to get back on the singles podium.

Nailbiter Closes Out the Night

The final match of the day went down to the wire. Nok Yiu Tang and Eunggwon Kim saved match points and produced near-magic shot-making with their backs against the wall to edge out fourth seeds Yufei Long and Blaine Hovenier 2-1 (11-4, 9-11, 14-12) in Mixed Doubles, to break the hearts of the local crowd.

Action resumes Friday at 9:00 (GMT+8) with all semifinals headed to Championship Court.