Qatar Open: Ma Long and Timo Boll to meet in round two

DOHA, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Olympic champion Ma Long and German star Timo Boll will meet in the second round of the men's singles event at the Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Qatar Open Friday night.

Ma Long, the no.11 seed, beat Tristan Flore of France in Thursday's first round match (6-11, 11-5, 12-10, 9-11, 11-5, 11-7) while Boll, the no.4 seed, ended the hopes of compatriot Benedek Duda (11-4, 11-8, 11-4, 14-12).

Meanwhile, Xu Xin, the top seed, made a successful start as he beat Lim Jonghoon of South Korea (9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-9, 11-7). He will take on Japan's Yuya Oshima on Friday.