Australia has taken it up to world number four Japan in the Men’s Table Tennis teams event, going down fighting in the first round at the South Paris Arena.
In a fast and furious three matches, Aussies Finn Luu, Nicholas Lum and Hwan Bae showed grit and tenacity against the reigning Olympic bronze medallists, eventually losing 3-0 to be eliminated from the competition.
The three 19-year-olds are seen as the future of the sport in Australia, and showed exactly why that is the case, not showing any nerves against their highly fancied opponents.
They were justly proud of their efforts across the three matches.
“We knew it was going to be hard going in there as they’re one of the best teams in the world,” Finn said.
“All of their players can contest against even the Chinese who are the best in the world.
“We just wanted to give our very best and fight until the end, and I feel like that's what we did today.
“The result doesn't look so good, but we're looking to improve going forward.”
Finn and Nicholas were up first in the doubles against Shunsuke Togami and Hiroto Shinozuka, firing from the get go as they looked to showcase their skills against the highly-fancied Japanese pair.
The Aussies raced to an early 5-3 lead in the opening game, forcing Togami and Shinozuka into several errors.
However, they were unable to hold on to the advantage, with the Japanese pair eventually overcoming the fighting Aussies to take the opening game 11-8.
The second game was another tight tussle, with both pairs exchanging lengthy rallies and neither able to extend a lead past three points.
Australia led 5-2 in the second game, but once again were overrun by the Japanese pair, falling 11-6 in the second game.
The third game followed a similar pattern, but Togami and Shinozuka were able to pull away late to take it 11-6 and close it out three games to none.
Hwan and Finn were up in the singles games, against Tomokazu Harimoto and Shinozuka respectively.
With fresh legs, Hwan gave a strong fight against Harimoto. After dropping the first two games 11-4, he pushed the world number nine to the limit in the third.
Trailing 3-0 early, Hwan forced his way back into the game with several big hits and forcing Harimoto into several errors.
Hwan saved match point at 11-10 and landed his own game point at 12-11, getting his teammates up on their feet in elation.
However, the experience of Harimoto soon came through, saving game point and going on a three point run to take the match 11-4, 11,4, 14-2.
Knowing it was win or go home for the Aussies, Finn came out firing against Shinozuka.
Dropping the opening game 11-9 in a tight and entertaining contest, Finn went point for point with his Japanese opponent early in the second before eventually succumbing 11-7.
Shinozuka would pull away in the third game to secure the victory in the match, and the round for Japan.
The defeat brings to a close the Olympics for all three debutants, with Hwan saying it had been an enjoyable time and gave them all valuable experience.
“From the day we entered the village, the field and the training hall and then to finally be able to play as a team in the team event today was a very rewarding experience,” Hwan said. “I think we’re all happy to join each other.
“We've all come a long way together since we were seven and eight.”
The Australian Women’s Team of Michelle Bromley, Minhyung Jee and Melissa Tapper take to the South Paris Arena tomorrow in the round of 16 against Chinese Taipei.
This article was originally written for The Australian Olympic Team. You can read the published version here
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