China's Liang stunned in WTT US Smash first round

French qualifier Lilian Bardet stunned fourth seed Liang Jingkun of China in a five-game thriller in the men's singles first round of the World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash in Las Vegas on Sunday.

World No. 5 Liang twice held the lead but was unable to close out the match, falling 5-11, 11-8, 8-11, 11-8, 11-5 to the 85th-ranked Frenchman.

Liang's teammate Chen Yuanyu also exited early, suffering an 11-7, 11-8, 11-13, 12-10 defeat to England's Liam Pitchford.

Their losses leave world champion Wang Chuqin as the only Chinese player remaining in the bottom half of the men's draw.

Wang, who claimed his first major singles title at the World Championships in Doha this May, defeated Romania's Iulian Chirita 3-1 and will next face Kao Cheng-jui of Chinese Taipei in the second round.

"Chirita posed a huge challenge to me, but I managed to make adjustment when trailing in the second game and snatch some crucial points," said Wang.

Top names including Felix Lebrun, Darko Jorgic and Qiu Dang also advanced to the round of 32.

In the women's draw, world No. 1 Sun Yingsha edged Australia's Liu Yangzi in a full-distance battle, 11-7, 6-11, 11-4, 4-11, 11-4.

"In my first match here, I was not quite focused on the game," admitted Sun. "In the opening stages of the second and fourth games, I could not catch up with the opponent on the scoreline. Finally, I got my concentration back in the deciding game."

Facing Sun, Liu said she was like playing against AI as "she can solve everything."

Chen Xingtong overcame He Zhuojia in a five-game all-Chinese clash and was joined in the second round by compatriots Chen Yi and Kuai Man.

Japanese stars Miwa Harimoto and Hina Hayata also progressed to the last 32.

The WTT United States Smash runs through July 13.