WTT Star Contender Ljubljana 2026 June 16-21

[NextLevel]

Watching Fan Shuhan beat Sato yesterday was a breath of fresh air given how easily Sato beats the layer below the top Asians. Following it up with a victory over Kuai Man is good. Now she gets Hayata. A critical mqtch for both players.

Diaz vs Harimoto should be as predictable as expected. Harimoto hasnt played great at this event but she alwaus delivers the right result.

Shin Yubin generally doesn't enjoy playing Kihara when Kihara is in form. I don't expect that to change as Kihara is in form.

Zhu Yuling gets Xunyao Shi. Xunyao Shi is arguably the better athlete but I dont see her having a path through Zhu Yuling's wall. Breaking down Zhu Yuling on backhand is extremely difficult. Ask Miwa. And Shi is jot stable enough on forehand to switch

Gauzy is asked to avenge Felix vs Shinozuka. I do not think vengeance is his.

Peng beat Calderano the last time they played. Peng is a streaky player and while Hugo is the better player, I like Peng's streak and pick it

Kuo tries to complete his domination of Germany at this event. I think the most stable Gwrman is Dang and that Dang will have answers for Kuo.

Finally, we havw Dima vs Togami. I think Dima has expended enough energy vs Uda. Togami will make it physical and I think that will be enough to get Togami through.

And those are my picks.

4/8 lol. Miwa, Dang, Shunsuke and Zhu did the right thing. Shin pleasantly outperformed, as did Hayata. Gauzy really surprised me, and I guess Peng has work to do. Well, tomorrow's picks get even harder lol...

 

[joshmak10]

Is WRB turning into can best foreigners, can’t beat teammates? Surprised he couldn’t beat XP given the latters form, proven by a 3-1 loss to Hugo. Still have tons of faith in WRB, but results as of late have been disappointing

 

[ajtatosmano2]

I am rooting for Togami to finally earn a gold. I think he has the potential to beat anybody in this semifinal, there are no particularly bad matchups for him.

 

[NextLevel]

I am rooting for Togami to finally earn a gold. I think he has the potential to beat anybody in this semifinal, there are no particularly bad matchups for him.

Potential sure. But beating Hugo and Dang at this point will require something special.

 

[TampaBayTableTennis]

Miwa and Hugo! & LJH/SYB

 

[Janard]

Miwa vs ZYL -> Miwa
Gauzy vs Qiu, mainly because I feel their serves/receives are above their opponents Calderano/Togami -> Qiu
XD -> Lim/Shin

 

[NextLevel]

Miwa vs ZYL -> Miwa
Gauzy vs Qiu, mainly because I feel their serves/receives are above their opponents Calderano/Togami -> Qiu
XD -> Lim/Shin

I think the days of Gauzy beating Hugo are over. Togami vs Qiu for me is for Qiu because Qiu will frustrate Togamj. Calderano vs Qiu depends on whether I trust the German analytics machine over Hugo athleticism and I do, so at least we agree on the favorite.

On the women's side, Hayata was bashing the ball against Fan, not sure she can bash the ball like that consistently. Also she is facing the best non-Chinese player on the planet. So that one has to go to Miwa.

The Shin Yubin vs Zhu Yuling, well, again, Shin has to prove something. She is probably capable but I don't think she is ready. So Zhu is my pick.

 

[pongfugrasshopper]

I think the days of Gauzy beating Hugo are over. Togami vs Qiu for me is for Qiu because Qiu will frustrate Togamj. Calderano vs Qiu depends on whether I trust the German analytics machine over Hugo athleticism and I do, so at least we agree on the favorite.

On the women's side, Hayata was bashing the ball against Fan, not sure she can bash the ball like that consistently. Also she is facing the best non-Chinese player on the planet. So that one has to go to Miwa.

The Shin Yubin vs Zhu Yuling, well, again, Shin has to prove something. She is probably capable but I don't think she is ready. So Zhu is my pick.

FWIW, SYB beat ZYL at 2026 WTT Champions Chongqing. We'll see if she can do it again here.

 

[NextLevel]

FWIW, SYB beat ZYL at 2026 WTT Champions Chongqing. We'll see if she can do it again here.

I think the Champions draws and limited seeding often create tough matchups at premature stages before some players are ready to bring their full intensity. So I don't see it quite the same as beating ZYL in the semis or final of a Contender/Smash. Just my opinion of course.

 

[JackJohnson]

Is WRB turning into can best foreigners, can’t beat teammates? Surprised he couldn’t beat XP given the latters form, proven by a 3-1 loss to Hugo. Still have tons of faith in WRB, but results as of late have been disappointing

Still have a lot of faith in WRB so far due to his wins against foreigners. I don’t mind the losses against his teammates though. The currency of beating foreigners should always be greater than beating your own teammates.

I still rate WRB as being better than LSD so far but who knows how he will fare in 1 or 2 years time. If FZD ain’t coming back for LA28 the spot should go to LJK. I know the talk about him finishing his career at the WTTTC 2026 but at this rate the other players are unreliable.

 

[joshmak10]

Still have a lot of faith in WRB so far due to his wins against foreigners. I don’t mind the losses against his teammates though. The currency of beating foreigners should always be greater than beating your own teammates.

I still rate WRB as being better than LSD so far but who knows how he will fare in 1 or 2 years time. If FZD ain’t coming back for LA28 the spot should go to LJK. I know the talk about him finishing his career at the WTTTC 2026 but at this rate the other players are unreliable.

I feel by 2028 LJK would be retired or phased out. I could well see LSD and WRB join WCQ in LA, although can’t rule out XP, ZQH or CYY (even tho I don’t see anything at all in them)

 

[M51]

Spent the day in Ljubljana yesterday, had a great time.

Watching the semis on YouTube right now, and OH MY GOD, the commentator sounds like he's covering a funeral!

Literally not having a commentator at all is better than this.

 

[M51]

Well, not this time. Bravo, Togami!

 

[piligrim]

I feel by 2028 LJK would be retired or phased out. I could well see LSD and WRB join WCQ in LA, although can’t rule out XP, ZQH or CYY (even tho I don’t see anything at all in them)

If LJK retire he can join to Fang Bo in Kazakhstan ))

 

[pongfugrasshopper]

Huge win for Hina!

 

[Janard]

My predictions unravelling except for ZYL lol but that reverse pendulum from Hayata seem to trouble Miwa a lot.

 

[Kopp]

Huge win for Hina!

View attachment 42165

I'm rooting for Zhu Yuling to win this tournament.

☯️ Return with dust swirling ☯️

 

[Kopp]

Woah.. what a match! Absolute respect for both Hugo & Gauzy

 

[Takkyu_wa_inochi]

6-9 in the decider it’s the point of the day

 

[Kopp]

6-9 in the decider it’s the point of the day

Yes. Hugo's return didn't land wide enough, leaving a huge space on his right. Gauzy hit the target beautifully 😍