China challenged but win over Britain 3-0 to reach men' s team semis at Rio Olympics

Underestimated Britain proved themselves here on Sunday, chopping one game off each set from the all-time leading Chinese though losing 3-0 to miss the men' s team semifinals of table tennis at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

The 2016 world team championships' semifinalists opened the last eight match in style as Liam Pitchford, 23 years old and Olympic scholarship holder, rushed 6-0 against Ma Long before beating the newly crowned Olympic singles gold medalist 11-6.

Ma, however, later showed the true color of a world No. 1 and Grand Slam winner by breezily taking the second game 11-4 to tie on games 1-1.

He again stumbled in the following two games but twice overcame a two-point deficit of 9-7 to wrap up the set 6-11, 11-4, 11-9, 11-9.

The similar scene was repeated when world No. 3 male paddler Xu Xin took the 26-year-old Paul Drinkhall, surrendering his first game 9-11 before coming back 11-6, 11-6, 11-7.

Xu, also 26, then teamed up with the only other active Grand Slam winner of men' s table tennis Zhang Jike to overcome a late comeback of the British pair of Samuel Walker and Drinkhall 11-4, 11-7, 11-13, 11-4.

Before their quarterfinal face-off with China, the trio of Britain battled past France in full sets and full games in Friday' s first round.

The Chinese men' s team will next play South Korea en route to defending their second straight Olympic team title after the London silver medalists denied a mid-way high-light performance from Mattias Karlsson to beat Sweden 3-1.

Later on Sunday afternoon, last Olympics' semifinalists Germany take Austria and Japan meet Hong Kong, China in the remaining quarterfinals. Endit