Upsets galore at WTT USA Grand Smash as Harimoto, Calderano crash out

The WTT USA Grand Smash tournament has seen a series of upsets in the men's singles, with top contenders Tomokazu Harimoto and Hugo Calderano crashing out in the round of 16. This follows earlier exits by Chinese stars Wang Chuqin and Lin Shidong.

World number two Harimoto suffered a surprising defeat to Russia's Denis Sidorenko, ranked 37th. Sidorenko, who won the U21 World University Games gold medal last year, managed to overcome Harimoto in a close match. After losing the first game 8-11, Harimoto narrowly missed five game points in the second, ultimately falling 11-13. Despite a comeback attempt in the third game, he lost 8-11, ending his tournament run.

Meanwhile, world number eight Hugo Calderano was also eliminated, losing to Japan's Shunsuke Togami. Togami, ranked 30th, secured his first-ever Grand Smash quarterfinal berth by defeating Calderano 4-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-3. This victory marked Togami's first win against Calderano in their encounters.

In the women's singles, Macau's Zhu Yuling, ranked third, was defeated by South Korea's Jeon Ji-hee, ranked 16th, in their round of 16 match. With these results, only Sweden's Truls Moregard, France's Felix Lebrun, and Japan's Kakeru Matsushima remain among the top eight seeds in the men's singles.