Ma Long and Fan Zhendong Not Playing T2 was probably pre-planned. After all, they need to prepare for the Men's World Cup next week. Niwa still wouldn't have gotten a spot, but because of WCQ's suspension, Niwa managed to squeeze in and get the last spot. In his mind, Mizutani's probably throwing an imaginary racket at WCQ right now.
On the women's side, only LSW withdrew, so it's not enough to get Ishikawa a top 8 seed. This only helps Hirano because she has one less CNT player to worry about drawing in the first round since Wang Yidi moves to a top 8 seed. First, LSW lost to Qian Tianyi when Hirano was in the same quarter as her in the Austrian Open. Then, she withdrew from T2, which ended up giving Hirano better draw odds. LSW certainly knows how to give back to her biggest fan.
On the women's side, only LSW withdrew, so it's not enough to get Ishikawa a top 8 seed. This only helps Hirano because she has one less CNT player to worry about drawing in the first round since Wang Yidi moves to a top 8 seed. First, LSW lost to Qian Tianyi when Hirano was in the same quarter as her in the Austrian Open. Then, she withdrew from T2, which ended up giving Hirano better draw odds. LSW certainly knows how to give back to her biggest fan.