(Photo: Rafael Bello/COB)
Giulia Takahashi lost to Serbia’s Sabina Surjan by 3 sets to 2 (7/11, 11/8, 13/15, 14/12 and 11/4), this Thursday (02), and fell in the second round of the Saudi Table tennis smash, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Brazilian played a good game and had match point in the fourth set, but wasted it and took the turn. Eric Jouti also took action and ended up defeated in the men’s contest.
How was the game
Giulia entered favorite in the duel due to ranking. She is ranked 86th in the world, while Sabina is number 150 in the world. However, the match was very close. The Brazilian started better and took the lead, winning the first set 11/7. In the second partial match, the Serbian grew and managed to land good shots, which led to her winning the set 11/8.
The third set was well balanced, with the two tennis players exchanging points from the beginning. Giulia managed to open up a lead at the end and reached 10/8. However, she wasted five set points until she managed to close at 15/13 and put herself ahead again. In the fourth half, the Brazilian had 9/6, but took four points in a row and took the turn. She had match point at 11/10, but wasted it and lost 14/12.
Finally, in the fifth and decisive set, the Serbian set a good pace and forced mistakes from the Brazilian. The European quickly gained an advantage and reached 5/2. When changing sides of the table, Giulia still scored two points and cut the difference to one, but stopped there. She suffered six points in a row and ended up defeated 11/4, being eliminated from the tournament.
Eric Jouti falls on debut
Hours before Giulia Takahashi played, Eric Jouti made his debut in the Saudi Smash men’s tournament qualifier. Just like his compatriots Vitor Ishiy and Guilherme TeodoroJouti (109th) fell in the first round, losing to Frenchman Jules Rolland (69th) by 3 sets to 2 (11/8, 9/11, 8/11, 11/6 and 11/9).
This way, Brazil will only have two table tennis players in the main draw of Smash in Saudi Arabia: Hugo Calderano, eighth in the world rankings, and Bruna Takahashi, number 17 in the world. Additionally, Vitor Ishiy/Guilherme Teodoro, Bruna Takahashi/Giulia Takahashi and Vitor Ishiy/Bruna Takahashi will compete in doubles. Eric Jouti will be with the Hungarian Nandor Ecseki (men) and the Hong Kong Ng Wing Lam (mixed).
22 years old from São Paulo. Journalist graduated from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG). I’ve been at Olimpíada Todo Dia since 2022. I covered the World University Games in Chengdu and the Pan American Games in Santiago-2023.
