China bags 4 wins in a row at women's softball Asia Cup

XI'AN, July 15 (Xinhua) -- China extended its winning streak to four after smashing Malaysia 10-0 and defeating Thailand 11-1 here at the ongoing women's softball Asia Cup on Tuesday.

In the first inning, Xie Jiaxin contributed a base hit, helping team China take a 2-0 lead against Malaysia. In the second inning, China's pitcher Chai Yinan made her rivals suffer a fourth strikeout of the game, and then Chai's teammates scored five runs.

China continued to enlarge its lead before Sang Yujuan sealed the victory in the forth inning through a base hit.

In the afternoon, although China sent on some young players, it scored an 11-0 lead after the third inning against Thailand.

In the fourth inning, China dropped the first point at the Asia Cup. However, Thailand never appeared to be a serious threat throughout the game.

"The tournament is a long campaign for us. As a pitcher, I have to try my best to help my team save the energy, in order to keep my team sharp when facing tough rivals at the weekend," Chai said.

As the defending champion, Japan also recorded a pair of wins on Tuesday. It demolished Singapore 10-0 in the morning and then saw off the Philippines 9-1 in the afternoon.

In Tuesday's other games, the Philippines beat South Korea 7-0, Hong Kong, China defeated Thailand 7-0, Singapore routed India 9-0 and Chinese Taipei brushed aside South Korea 5-1.

On Wednesday, China will face Singapore while Japan shall take on Chinese Taipei. ■