Men's
Guangdong extended its winning streak by beating Tianjin 3-1. Shanghai lost to Sichuan, despite another singles victory by Wang Liqin. The young Nanjing club almost scored a huge upset over Luneng. Ma Lin had to win the Golden Ball match 5-2 over teenager Chen Qi to avoid the upset. Ma and Zhang lost in doubles in this tie, and that was the last loss by Ma in any outing during Phase 1. Liu Guozheng also won his singles in this tie.
Beijing also came close to beating Kong Linghui-led Heilongjiang. Kong was upset by Tang Peng 3-1. Penholder Xu Hui had to win the Golden Ball match over chopper Hou Yingchao to pick up the victory.
In yet another thriller, PLA overcame the Liu Guoliang-led Shaanxi. Liu won his singles over Zhan Jian, and his doubles with partner Yan Sen over Zhan Jian/Wang Hao, but Yan lost his singles against Wang 2-3. In the Golden Ball match, Wang beat Yan 5-2 in a match between 2 penholders.
Zhejiang scored a 3-1 victory over Hebei. After 3 rounds, the only unbeaten men’s teams were Zhejiang and Guangdong.
Women's
Liaoning recovered nicely from its tough loss by beating Guangdong easily, 4-0. Hebei won its 3rd in the row, beating Henan 3-1. Guo Yue served notice to the league by winning her singles again in this tie, beating Bai Yang 3-0.
Shanghai dealt the weak Shanxi club its third loss, although it was a close match. Gao Jun did not play, and Konishi again won the Golden Ball match to clinch the tie. PLA won its first tie, beating Sichuan 3-1. Luneng won 3-1 over Tianjin to pick up its second victory. Beijing also beat Jiangsu 3-1, although the tie was determined after the three matches with Beijing ahead 3-0.
After 3 rounds, Hebei has established itself as the club to beat, and
Luneng and Shanghai are showing potential to challenge the top teams.