Above the incessant ding-ding-ding is an aural hash of fighter jets, screaming monkeys, clattering coins and a bellowing Wizard of Oz.

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But Xu, whose fund exited the stock in 2004, netting an eightfold return, reckons Ding knows how to swim with sharks.

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"In general we think the rebound is on track but the rebound seems to be quite modest, " said Ding Shuang, an economist with Citi.

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On Thursday, it was the turn of Netease, an online gaming company run by William Lei Ding.

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And local favourite Gerard Greene went through with an impressive 5-2 win over Steve Davis along with Ding Junhui.

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It is monochrome, with an extremely subtle pattern, and does not have a mark translating as "valuable Ding bowl" stamped on the bottom, making it look like a bowl found in Pottery Barn (and more commonly found at yard sales).

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