WTT Macao kicks off, Finals set for the weekend

The World Table Tennis (WTT) Champions Macao 2025 kicked off yesterday and will continue through Sunday. The tournament, which offers USD800,000 (MOP6.42 million) in prize money, is making a return, bringing some of the sport’s best to Macau once again.

This year’s WTT Champions Macao will feature 32 spots in the men’s and women’s singles, bringing the world’s top table tennis players to compete for the coveted titles.

The men’s field is led by top seed and current world No. 1 Lin Shidong (China), world No. 2 Wang Chuqin (China), reigning ITTF Men’s World Cup Macao 2025 champion Hugo Calderano (Brazil), Tomokazu Harimoto (Japan), Lin Yun-Ju (Chinese Taipei), and Darko Jorgi (Slovenia).

The women’s singles promise equally fierce competition. Top seed and current world No. 1 Sun Yingsha (China), who also won the ITTF Women’s World Cup Macao 2025, is joined by world No. 2 Wang Manyu (China) and local star Zhu Yuling, who won the 2025 WTT U.S. Grand Slam.

The field is completed by Japanese stars Miwa Harimoto, Mima Ito, and Satsuki Odo. Local athletes He Chon Fai and Kuan Cheok Lam will also make their debut in the WTT Champions series.

Day 1 kicked off with hometown favorite Zhu Yuling setting the tone with a ruthless 3–0 victory over Sreeja Akula (11-5, 11-1, 11-6), reminding everyone why the former World No. 1 is one of 2025’s must-watch stories.

Hugo Calderano maintained his perfect record against An Jaehyun, securing a straight-games 3–0 win (13–11, 12–10, 11–8). Brazil’s standard-bearer looked ice-cold in the clutch and proved himself a strong contender for a deep Macau run.

Adriana Diaz vs. Sofia Polcanova brought a fresh chapter to a matchup that saw Polcanova lead their head-to-head 2-0 on the WTT stage. But Diaz triumphed in a grueling five-set battle, taking the match 3-2 (5-11, 11-6, 5-11, 11-6, 11-9).

Much remains until the weekend, when the tournament narrows to its final stage and the finals take place. The WTT Champions Macao will run until Sunday at the East Asian Games Dome in Cotai.

Considering recent issues with ticketing, organizers advised the public to purchase tickets only through authorized channels and strongly warned against reselling tickets at inflated prices.