Plenty of action from WTT and ESL this weekend!
1xBit looks ahead to the forthcoming WTT Contender Almaty 2022 and ESL Pro League Season 16.
Table of Contents:
- WTT Contender Almaty 2022
- ESL Pro League Season 16
WTT Contender Almaty 2022
Calling all table tennis fans! Get ready for another WTT Contender as this time we head to Almaty, Kazakhstan from 13 – 18 September for another showdown! In the Men’s Singles, at the recently completed WTT Contender Muscat that concluded last weekend, we saw world ranking No.28 Jang Woojin storm his way to the final and then take down the young Chinese prodigy Liang Yanning, after being 3-2 down, to claim the title with a 4-3 victory! Woojin will be back in action in Almaty, can he replicate his form and bag yet more silverware?
No.1 seed Lin Yun-Ju will be the one to beat at this event, however. The Silent Assassin has victories against the two best players in the world under his belt and is one of the finest players in the sport. If he can find this level, he will be a touch above the rest of the opposition. However, back in March he crashed out in the quarter finals at the Star Contender Doha, but at the WTT Contender Zagreb in June he put on an incredible display and lifted the title! So, how will he fare this time around?
The rest of the top seeds contain some big names that could always throw in a surprise or two. The creative Croatian Andrej Gacina is the No.4 seed in this tournament, and actually went on to win the Star Contender Doha when Yun-Ju fell at an early hurdle, can he string together some more big performances? We also have the former World Championships finalist Mattias Falck among the performers. It’s been two years since he put on that dazzling display, but can he find his X-factor once more?
In the Women’s Singles, No.1 seed Hina Hayata will be the one to beat. She’s currently No.6 in the world rankings and is a tricky, left-handed powerhouse! In recent times she’s had great success in doubles events but has struggled with form in singles events. She’ll be hoping she can change her singles form around here in Almaty!
The rest of the seeds contain some names who have the quality to cause some big problems for Hayata! No.3 seed Miu Hirano got to the final of the WTT Contender Zagreb back in June and will be hoping to go one step further this time. She lost to fellow compatriot Mima Ito that time, can she fare better against a different compatriot this time around?
We also have the might of Monaco Xiaoxin Yang competing, who is seeded at #2. Back in February she reached the semi-finals of the WTT Contender Muscat with some fine displays, and the 34-year-old boasts 6 career titles over the last 9 years, can she use her experience to wield some magic?
The player who lost out in the other semi-finals of the WTT Contender Muscat back in February was Qian Tianyi, and the 22-year-old will also be competing here in Almaty. At the WTT Contender Muscat last weekend, she also lost out in the semi-final. The young Chinese captivator might only be ranked World No.58 at the moment, but her performances show us that she is one to watch! There are some higher-ranked names coming up in Almaty, but Tianyi is a young and upcoming talent and she’ll certainly cause a bit of a stir here, so let’s see if she brings any fireworks!
Who will perform under the lights? It’s so hard to call, but we can’t wait to find out!
ESL Pro League Season 16
Well, when it comes to ESL Pro League Season 16, it’s a case of two down, two to go as the playoffs draw ever closer. With two weeks of thrilling CS:GO action already behind us, you can bet your bottom dollar that there’s going to be plenty more twists, turns and thrills in store as we edge ever closer to the business end of the competition.
In Group A, it was Team Vitality who finished top of the pack after making a perfect start with 5 wins on the bounce. They’ll be joined in the final 12 by Fnatic and Natus Vincere, the latter of whom only managed to scrape through to the playoffs on points difference, leaving Team Spirit to wonder what could have been.
In Group B, it was G2 Esports who proved to be quite the surprise package after they made the perfect start to life in this tournament. This included a comfortable win over FaZe Clan, who are red hot favourites to win this competition, in the penultimate group stage match to go through as group winners. They’ll be joined in the latter stages by, you’ve guessed it, FaZe Clan and Outsiders.
As for this week’s action, our attention shifts to Group C where the teams are arguably more evenly matched than they were in Groups A and B. On paper, Heroic look like the favourites to finish top dogs in this group after a solid season which has seen them take home the bacon in 3 A-Tier tournaments and put in quite an impressive showing at PGL Major Antwerp 2022 in the summer.
By contrast, the glory days of the late 2010s appear to be a distant memory for Astralis, who haven’t managed to win a tournament since 2020. Although they managed to finish 2nd at Intel Extreme Masters XVII – Cologne, the Danes haven’t managed to find much in the way of consistency this season. What’s more, with the likes of ENCE and MOUZ no doubt fancying their chances of making it through to the knockout stages.
Can Astralis roll back the years and show everyone they’ve still got it? Or will the chasing pack leave them licking their wounds? No matter what happens, we’re in for a thrilling ride over the next few days or so.