16-Year-Old Hung Che-yen Reaches WTT Ulaanbaatar Semifinals, Defeats Indian Top Seed

Taiwanese table tennis prodigy Hung Che-yen, who turns 17 on August 6, has advanced to the semifinals of the 2026 WTT Ulaanbaatar Contender. The 16-year-old secured his spot by defeating India's top seed Gnanasekaran Sathiyan in the quarterfinals with a 3-1 victory. This marks Hung's second appearance in the men's singles main draw of an adult WTT Contender event.

Under the guidance of coach Chuang Chih-yuan, Hung opted to compete in the Contender event in Ulaanbaatar instead of the junior championships. He demonstrated remarkable composure, overcoming a higher-ranked German opponent in the first round and then battling through a tough match against Singapore's Pang Xuejie in the round of 16. Hung ultimately won the deciding game 11-7.

In the quarterfinals, Hung faced the formidable Sathiyan, ranked 85th in the world. Displaying a fearless approach, Hung secured the win with sets of 11-4, 7-11, 11-7, and 11-7. He is now set to compete against India's Manav Vikash Thakkar for a place in the final.

Meanwhile, another Taiwanese player, Lin Yun-ju, was eliminated in the quarterfinals. After trailing 1-2, Lin had fought back to win the fourth set against Japan's Minoru Watanabe. However, he ultimately lost the deciding fifth game 7-11, missing a match point in the fourth set. Hung Ching-kai also lost his round of 16 match.