On Jun 1, Ma Long / Xu Xin were upset by Ovidiu Ionescu / Alvaro Robles and did not reach the final of men's doubles at 2018 China Open. Ma Long beat Lin Yun-Ju in the R32 and Wang Chuqin in the R16 and proceeded to the quarterfinal of men's singles.
Men's doubles semifinal started in the morning. Ma Long / Xu Xin leveled up after 0-2 down and held match points in the deciding game but did not capitalize. They lost to the new European duo by 2-3 (9:11, 9:11, 11:4, 11:4, 10:12).
In the afternoon, Ma Long beat Lin Yun-Ju by 4-0 (11:5, 11:8, 11:9, 11:5). In the post-match interview, he said Lin Yun-Ju has unique style and touch in his age group and will become a major rival of China National Team in the future.
In the evening, Ma Long beat Wang Chuqin by 4-1 (9:11, 11:3, 11:7, 11:9, 11:8). In the post-match interview, he said both Wang Chuqin and he played well and had some great rallies as they are familiar with each other's style and placements. He did not get affected by losing the first game although leading 9-7. When asked what he thought during the time-out he called at 9-8 in the fifth game, he said he lost 2 consecutive points leading 9-6. He called the time-out by instinct to calm down and finish the match.
Ma Long thinks he is still young. He IS.
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Q: The tournament schedule becomes more and more tight. Will it affect the energy arrangement for elder players like you?
Ma Long: First of all, I have to clarify that I am not an elder player. I think it is normal. Previous tournaments were as tight. Right now Timo Boll is still playing a match. As pro players, we just need to get adapted to the stadium, schedule and so on.
On Jun 2, Ma Long will face Liang Jingkun in the quarterfinal.