Europe Top-16 Cup | 4 Feb 2017

Matilda EKHOLM ends Antibes campaign on a high note

The 2017 ITTF Europe Top 16 Cup, Antibes, France

 

With the semi-final positions already decided, the evening session of play on Saturday 4th February focused on deciding the positions 5-8 for the competitors at the 2017 ITTF Europe Top 16 Cup.

 

Unfortunately, the play-off match to decide fifth and sixth places in the Women’s Singles event was cut short after Romania’s Bernadette SZOCS withdrew due to injury problems after the opening few points, and as a result Georgina POTA of Hungary will finish in 5th position.

 

Therefore, the attention turned to the battle for seventh position as Sweden’s Matilda EKHOLM went head-to-head with the other Romanian player in action Daniela MONTEIRO DODEAN.

 

EKHOLM made the slightly brighter start in the tie with her capture of games one and two, but then a glimmer of hope appeared for MONTEIRO DODEAN when she took the third end to narrow the game scores.

Both players continued to give it their all but three games later and the win was EKHOLM’s (11-8, 11-9, 8-11, 12-10, 7-11, 11-6).

 

The final order of the Men’s Singles competition will be confirmed tomorrow, but there were two encounters in the evening session to decide which players would take part in which play-off ties.

 

Earlier in the day Timo BOLL suffered a shock defeat to Frenchman Simon GAUZY in the quarter-finals. Germany’s BOLL will still have an opportunity to finish the tournament on a positive note though, after his victory over Portugal’s Tiago APOLONIA (11-9, 8-11, 11-9, 11-4, 15-13) put BOLL into the match for fifth place.

 

BOLL will meet Andrej GACINA on the final day of the 2017 ITTF Europe Top 16 Cup following the Croatian contestant’s 4-3 success over Austria’s Stefan FEGERL (11-9, 6-11, 11-6, 11-8, 6-11, 8-11, 11-7).