China's reigning Olympic champion and world No. 1 Ma Long has successfully entered the championship round of the men's singles event at the ongoing ITTF China Open 2016 after defeating fellow Chinese player Zhang Jike in Chengdu in a seven-game encounter on Saturday.

Ma, 27, who is a native of Anshan, Liaoning, got the better of Zhang 6-11, 11-9, 11-9, 3-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-5, in their first official meeting after the Rio Games, according to Xinhua.

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"Several games were decided by just one or two points. Anybody who had better control of the game would win eventually. Luckily, I won some crucial points in the seventh," Ma said.

The victory is Ma's 13^th win over Zhang in their 19 official encounters. During the recently ended Olympics in Brazil, Ma easily outclassed Zhang in four-straight games in the city of Rio de Janeiro to became the fifth male table tennis player to win all the sport's major titles - the Olympics, world championships, and world cup.

"It seemed easy for me in the Olympic final, but the first game was undoubtedly of great importance. If Zhang could have taken two game points in the first, then he would have the possibility of winning in four straight games," Ma said.

Meanwhile, Zhang attributed his loss to a lack of good luck.

"We were too familiar with each other. I felt a little distracted at last, especially in the seventh game. Also, the luck was not on my side. Ma made fewer unforced mistakes than me in the decisive game," he said.

According to Sina, Ma will face compatriot Fan Zhendong in the final. Fan, 19, defeated Wong Chun Ting of Hong Kong, China 10-12, 5-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-7, 11-8.

TagsMa Long, zhang jike, Fan Zhendong, ITTF World Tour China Open, ITTF, grand slam, Rio Olympics 2016