FULL MATCH | Hugo Calderano vs Shunsuke Togami | MS R32 | #WTTIncheon 2024

The pendulum serve from Calderano. It's always really low, just peering, peeking over the table. Tries to get his backhand flick, but to no avail. Level 2 up here, the third from Brazil. Another very high toss server. Just to get me out there. In the rally, barely anyone can compete with the brutality of Calderano. He's just so powerful. And that's saying something, because of how well Tagami meets the ball as well. Calderano's going to have to receive well this match. That, for me, is the key to beating Tagami. Because in the rally, Calderano's good, but you've got to remain disciplined. Not drift back too much. Mid-distance is fine, but he doesn't want to give Tagami that too many times. Although there, look at that for some cash back. Just slaps it. Again, how entertaining this man can be. We get to see it so soon. As well as this. He missed out on the World Team Champs in Busan, which was quite a questionable move for many. Returned into action at the smash and lost in the round of 64 there to Cho Daesung. Calderano. Looking to get back to his best in many ways. I wouldn't say he's any worse than what he was a couple of years ago, Calderano. But there's a few more names now that you can call Olympic medal challengers. Tagami there. Gets a dribble up. He's one of them, Tagami. The Japanese men's team is very young, but they're just going through this kind of transitional phase right now. Sora Matsushima could be the one to join Haramoto in singles, but still some time. That's the threat there. Right over. Physicality. You don't notice the weight transfer of the backhand as much. You can't have that, but there still is some. We hear from Calderano for the first time this match. Happy with that one. That's amazing. How he picks up the half-long and how quickly he gets to a neutral point. Just snaps at this backhand. Tagami's going to have to chase again. It's a great serve. Stamps his butt to try and mask the indication of spin and can be quite distracting. But it was the same service toss, different contact. And it ruffled the feathers of Calderano. Who manages, though, to keep his nose in front. They both kind of need a little bit of each other's game. Tagami needs some of Ugo's dynamic diversity. Calderano needs that discipline in terms of how he maintains similar distance from the table. What a counter, the angle. Both manage to manoeuvre each other wide. What about that? Poetry in motion from Calderano. Gassed from the crowd. They didn't know you could hit a ball that hard. They do now. It's a reality check here for Tagami. Staring down the barrel of a gun. Blinking, you miss him. Can he make history here in Inchon? Try to finish it there, kill it. Try to play the backhand from the forehand into the middle. Well done. Tagami knows if a ball is just a little bit loose, it's going to be very, very tough to deny Calderano the point. But he's not one to lay down Tagami. He likes to match fire with fire. Obviously believes he can out-hit Calderano. Look, he's done it twice before, in three meetings. Nice point. We've seen videos all over the internet, viral moments of Calderano coming up with just magic away from the table. Did it in the first game with that slap. Can't land the backhand that time. Turning by three. Yeah, looking at the head-to-head. The last time they played, Calderano did win. The star contender, Ljubljana, quarter-final. It's 11-6 in game five. Calderano nearly beat Fan Zhendong in the round after. But at that event, Tagami beat Tomokazu Harimoto. Two times before that, Tagami won 3-1 at their first meeting at the World Champs in Chengdu, and then at their contenders at Greb. 3-2. So we've never seen a clean sweeper between these two men. And Tagami making sure that doesn't happen here. 6-1 up in the second. Came out of position wrong-footed. Him and that receive there, Tagami. Lovely stuff. Not easy to dig long in that way. It requires wrist to get it deep. But that can be the thing that sends it too long. Supraka smacks it. You can hear the sound. How driven the shots are of Calderano. One of the most athletic players on tour. I'd say Tagami's on the list too. Just relentless spraying it around here. Wouldn't be a shocking time to call a time-out after this towel break. Looks like Tagami's going to try and save it for later if he needs to. Maybe he'd call it if Calderano won this point. Let's see. Don't know what he apologises for there. Does he hit the top edge? Calderano's back. That's where you get prize money and ranking points. Just for getting here. Being eligible. Showcasing his skills here, Calderano. Time-out defused. Six of the last eight to the Brazilian. He's tried to float it. But Tagami's really clear-minded in terms of what he wanted to do there. There's the footwork. How he just shimmies across. The speed of that. Just as impressive as the shot. Maybe even more impressive. Catches the net. So much arc on these balls. But that really mucked it up for Tagami. Threw up his anticipation. And this serves with Calderano. Could he go 2-0 up the Brazilian? This could be a make it or break it. Moment for the Japanese. Nicely done. A little mini forehand flick of Calderano would have fooled many, but not Tagami. Does well there not to go too big on that shot. Nice rotation. Good wrist work. Engages the percentage as well. And wins both. Second serve. Now having two of his own. Great fortitude. From Shunsuke Tagami. Just glances it there. A faded guide flick. Something different. A pin drop. In the Infinity Arena. Into the eyes of his opponent. Tagami with another game point. That was wicked from Calderano. In a defensive position, but still plays aggressive shots. Such a free style he has. Seems to do what he wants at times. Doesn't even have to live within the realm of the tactical world. Juice. Skidded along there. Tagami with a third game point. Gotta take this, hasn't he? Adjusts his position. Calderano. With a dainty little touch. Denies him once more. Man, this would be a tough bill to swallow for Tagami. Had his chances. Can't lob it down. Tightens the screw there, Tagami. Doesn't take his foot off Calderano's neck. And he gets that first forehand in right off the serve. Fourth game point. Can't take it. Had an eye to kill there. Wasn't too far off, but he knows he had the time to play it. Did he go maybe too wild? Tagami in the final of the contender Taiyuan, where he had match point on Liang Jingkun. Just went a little bit wild on the match point. It's a question of how he tames his aggressive instinct. There, just took a little touch into the middle. I guess more of a push in length. What's this, now the fifth game point for Tagami? It's remarkable, isn't it? An undying effort from Calderano. He is just refusing to give Tagami this game. He's not had a game point. Could this be the moment he gets one? Hands himself down. Here we go. Tagami tries to take on the flick from the forehand. He's got a bit stuck. Oh no. Japanese fans have their hearts in their mouths. It's a very good serve. And it's a very brave serve. You have to execute that spot on. And he did. It was the impending doom of the Calderano backhand waiting. But he didn't put it into the sweet spot. Not much between them in serve success. And nothing between them in the score. 14-0. Oh, that's emphatic from Tagami. He channeled his inner cocky Niwa there. With a cavalier finish. To a well-constructed point. Really nice control. There's nothing Calderano could do. Hand switch or double-handed backhand. Considered. And well, there's no show. A new and youngest star present. And Tagami. Brilliant winner there from Hugo Calderano. Who is the only Brazilian here. Some other strong players like Eric Dutty, Mito Ishii. But he's the main man. He's always sniffing Tagami. He's always hunting for something poachable. Lovely receive. The touch. Chop block. Wow. The feeling from Calderano there. Turning topspin into straight backspin. Wow, that was beautiful. Beautiful. Seems to have just relaxed into it a bit more here. Playing on pure instinct. Looking at the draw. The winner of this will face the winner of Alexis Lebrun. Who's up against Gao Zhengrui. Two young players under the age of 21. So many mouthwaterers today. I think on the men's side. Maybe the one that most people are looking out for is Charles Moragard. Who's facing Ma Long. Might be their first singles international meeting. And a match that the ball boys and girls will be looking forward to as well. The ball kids are from the SEA Academy. And are all aspiring table tennis players. They see a group to nurture and grow the next generation of Korean talents. Could be seeing a future Lee Sangsoo, Im Jonghoon, Jang Woojin in these young ball kids. Word. That is absolutely stupendous. The kind of rallies that make you fall in love with table tennis. Quality on tap. And Tagami has just harnessed something pretty good there. God knows how that backhand of Calderano came back. Came out of nowhere. As things so often do. It was too shallow and high there from Calderano. Made it quite easy for Tagami to come in. 4-5 in the third. We've seen that serve have some success but not that time. Had it in the memory bank Calderano. Wasn't going to be fooled by it again. It came back and Calderano tried to go down the line. Tried to switch Tagami around. But the response from the backhand of the Japanese was just about right. Powerful. Connected with it really well. A bit of a flick too but Calderano booms it. Venomous shot. Variation of Calderano sometimes makes him end up in a defensive position. So if he's going to use some creativity, don't try and use it aggressively. Tagami's more of a route one player as we said. Less dynamic. You know what he's going to do. But he's so quick it's difficult to do anything about. Calderano pounces there after the long push. Stunning step over. Exactly the kind of aggression that he needs to have. Tagami staying in the conversation. Players wiping their hands near the net. Because when they get sweaty they need to get rid of the sweat. So they put it in the place where the ball is least likely to hit. Calderano living up to the expectation here. Looking to level the head-to-head against the man who denied him a fifth contender title. He's the joint second all-time leader. Calderano in WTT event wins. Four contenders and a star contender that was back in 2021. Semi-finalist of two Singapore smashes. Hasn't quite had the success at champions level. Maybe it could be different here in Incheon. For the thrill from Brazil. Three game points here. Nice inside out forehand. That's what the best players are the best at. Making it seem simple. Making it feel easy to play. Table tennis you want to have smooth shots. That consistency. Control. You don't want to do too much in between them. And it all stems from the footwork. Tagami along with Zhang Weijin. And Xu Yunbin for me. Some of the very very best footwork in the game. But it's the wisdom that comes with experience. Calderano is just showing a little bit more composure. The intent there from Calderano. Coils that wrist back. Produces loads of rotation. Difficult to know when to meet the ball when it's spinning so much. That's one that you'd normally make. Tagami, two ahead here. But we see another match here. The second of the event. Go the distance. Shovel serve from Tagami. Not a good enough receive from Calderano. And he's punished for it. Acted upon it. Holds in there for that one. Took a bit of pace off the second one. Put it into the backhand side. Not the easiest way to win a point. But he'll take it. Better quality touch there. That's what he's really been working on. How deep is the push? But Tagami's spin there. Awesome. You cannot push a ball any better than what Calderano did. Amazing answer there from the Japanese. You wonder now what will happen. No one's looked as though they're going to sail through. Harnessing Calderano like backhands there. Tagami from further away. Change of pace didn't affect the Japanese player. He bombed it into the crossover of Calderano. And will remain in front for now at least. Absolutely clattered it. Stand and deliver. Tagami had a hint of admiration in his eyes there. Got it taken a lot here. But he's managed to level. A bit of respite for Calderano. Pressure on Sanchuki Tagami. To convert behind his two serves. In this must-win game. Clever service change. Shovel again but wider into backhand. The kind of serve that makes it very hard to power flick. Big point here. Absorbs it. Keeps the bat high. Bracket closed. Counteracts all that topspin. Calderano had generated from the middle with his backhand. This has been just cat and mouse. Just chain together these two. Is it destined to go the distance? Brilliant. I've been amazed with some of Tagami's reactions to these surprising pushes. Again it's his footwork. How he manages to get behind the ball. In a way that he wants. Two game points. To Shunsuke Tagami of Japan. And he manages to get back the big bomber backhand of Calderano. Can he come back stronger? See how much just winning that first point alone meant to him. This could be a dogfight. Too good from Tagami. They're both so powerful. The prowess in the attacking game. Is something that the other has really struggled to deal with. And that's why we're seeing a score like it is. Spanks it Tagami. Go sit on the naughty step he says. The speed. My god. Six of the last eight. To Shunsuke. Shovel but. Can't meet the ball as he wants with his third ball forehand flick. Just denied by the tape there. You know to get it past Calderano you've got to play with power but again. Did he rush a bit Tagami? Couple of lets. Tagami one behind. In this deciding game. Nicely done there from Calderano. He comes across it more. Which. Confuses Tagami a bit. He was there to block it but. Nice. Disguise. Great backspin serve. Bites into the table surface. Change of ends Calderano three ahead. Goal. That was emphatic. It's almost unreplicable. The power. That the third from Brazil gets. One of the most feared. Shots in the game. That exchange. See the use of his legs Tagami. How he transfers his weight. So seamless. This flick right here. More powerful than most. Players smashes. Barely even needs a backswing on it. Acceleration. Step below. Well he's in exactly the right position. To finish this Calderano. But he cannot afford to ease off. Eight three. To the world number eight. What a finish. Two away. From sailing through to the round of 16. Could have been flashbacks to the smash. As well as some of the tough moments. Calderano. Has done very very well here in the fifth. This is epic. It's seven game and seven match points. To the third from Brazil. The Chiquita does it. He sees off Shunsuke Tagami. And levels the head to head overall between them.