Hong Kong tennis ace Coleman Wong Chak-lam has secured another medal for the city — Hong Kong’s first National Games medal in singles tennis — after his success in the in the quarter-finals of the men’s singles event on Tuesday.
Wong faced Cui Jie of Beijing in the quarterfinals. The players seemed evenly matched in the first set, with the score reaching 3-3 before Cui gained the upper hand at 4-5. Wong, firing on all cylinders, levelled at 5-5 before clinching the set 7-5.
Wong carried the momentum into second set, wrapping up the 29-minute rout to secure his place in Wednesday morning’s semifinals at Hengqin International Tennis Center in Zhuhai, Guangdong province.
As the event’s rundown does not include a bronze playoff, Wong’s semifinal entry assures the Hong Kong team of at least one medal.
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Tuesday’s victory came hot on the heels of a tough doubles defeat for Wong, who partnered Wong Chun-hun on Monday evening in the men’s doubles quarterfinals draw, losing 2-0 to Jiangsu’s Tang Sheng and Sun Qian.
As of Tuesday noon, the Hong Kong delegation had pocketed 17 medals — eight gold, two silver, and seven bronze — a record-breaking tally at the National Games. This includes a tennis bronze earned in the junior men’s team event.
