Singles: Kanak Jha (USA) versus Leonardo Iizuka (BRA) in the Men's round of 16 at the ITTF Pan American Cup 2025. Burlingame, CA. Feb 21, 2025. (Photo by ITTF/Brandon Fernandez)
Burlingame, Calif. – Kanak Jha, Nandan Naresh, Lily Zhang and Amy Wang have advanced into the quarterfinals at the 2025 ITTF Pan American Cup in Burlingame, California.
With the remaining three matches for America in the rounds of 16 concluded, the U.S. secured four spots in the men’s and women’s quarterfinal matches.
Kanak Jha was the first U.S. male to make it into the Continental Cup quarterfinals after going seven games with Leonardo Iizuka (BRA). Jha pulled off yet another exceptional comeback in his playing career beating Iizuka after being down three games to one to finish 4-3 (6-11, 11-8, 9-11, 10-12, 11-6, 11-9, 11-9).
“I believe [Iizuka] played his best level here today. I tried to just calm down a bit. Once I was down three one, I knew my back was against the wall and there was nothing left to lose. I'm a little more experienced than him in the close moments. By the end, I was a little calmer than him,” commented Jha after the match.
Jha is scheduled to play in the quarterfinals at 7 p.m. today and awaits the winner between Rogelio Castro (MEX) and Santiago Lorenzo (ARG) in the second half of the round of 16.
Also making it to the men’s singles quarterfinals for the U.S. was Nandon Naresh with a win over Ishiy Vitor (BRA) 4-2 in the round of 16. Naresh prepares to play against face Horacio Cifuentes (ARG) at 4 p.m. PST.
Lily Zhang defeated Angelica Arellano (ECU) 4-0 in the round of 16 to ensure a spot in the women’s singles quarterfinals. Zhang's quarterfinal matchup with Guilia Takahashi (BRA) is at 6:15 p.m. PST.
Joining Zhang in the next round for women’s singles is last year’s Pan Am Cup silver medalist Amy Wang. Wang bested Zhiying Zheng (CHI) in six games, winning 4-2 (11-5, 11-6, 10-12, 9-11, 11 -9, 11-7) to advance to the next round.
In the quarterfinals, Wang will play at 5:45 p.m. PST against the winner of Ana Codina (ARG) and Brianna Burgos (PUR).
Jishan Liang drew Guilherme Teodore (BRA) in the men’s singles round of 32. Liang took the win at 4-2 but ultimately fell in Alberto Mino (ECU) in the round of 16.
Jessica Reyes Lai finished her round of 32 matchup at 4-1 with a win over Jenny Cux (ARG) to make an appearance in the round of 16. Reyes Lai faced Mo Zhang (CAN) in her efforts to reach the women’s quarterfinals at just 15 years old but fell short in four games.
Watch live coverage from 888 Table Tennis Club in Burlingame California on the USATT Website and YouTube Channel.
