On the second day of play at the 2025 European Youth Championships in Ostrava, eight teams secured direct qualification for the Round of 16 in each event. For the remaining eight positions, teams are required to fight through the play-off matches. In the Under 19 Boys’ Event, the top two teams in their respective groups are: France and Poland (Group A), Hungary and Austria (Group B), Slovakia and Portugal (Group C), Czechia and Spain (Group D). Reigning Under 19 team champions from Malmö — albeit with a refreshed lineup this year — Romania, fell to Czechia in the final round of the group stage. That victory launched the host nation from third to the top of the standings in Group D. The only remaining member of last year’s winning Romanian team, Iulian CHIRITA, lost to Štěpán BRHEL in the opening duel, paving the way for Czechia to reach the Round of 16. BRHEL then secured another crucial point by defeating Dragoș BUJOR in a five-game battle. Martin ŠIP also went the distance, ultimately overcoming Robert Alexandru ISTRATE. “We did not expect this win, to be honest. We had to perform excellently and show something incredible to achieve it — and we did! I played the best I could, maybe even more than I expected,” said BRHEL. “In my match with CHIRITA, I was 2-0 up, then it was 2-2. I don’t think he changed his tactic — he just started playing better. In the fifth game, it came down to mentality and a bit of luck, which I had in the end. Against BUJOR, I was really nervous because I knew I had to win, but I’d have been even more nervous if we were down 1-2. During the match, I changed my serve, and I think that helped me the most.” Romania will face Italy in the play-off match. Italy had earlier lost to Portugal in Group D. The top-seeded team in Group C, Portugal, managed to recover from yesterday’s defeat against Slovakia to finish second in the group. Slovakia finished top despite losing to Sweden — their earlier wins against Portugal and Italy were enough to secure first place. Hungary justified their top billing, but not without difficulty. Austria, who had already beaten Belgium and Croatia in straight matches, pushed the top seeds in Group B to the limit. Nonetheless, both teams secured their place in the Round of 16. The key player for Hungary was Dávid SZÁNTÓSI, who overcame both Julian RZIHAUSCHEK and Petr HODINA. Lei BALÁZS lost to HODINA in the opening match but sealed the team victory by defeating RZIHAUSCHEK in the deciding match. “To be honest, I didn’t play really well, but my teammates did. SZÁNTÓSI played exceptionally — he won two points, beating both RZIHAUSCHEK and HODINA. We were down 1-2 when SZÁNTÓSI played HODINA. He was trailing 1-2 but came back to win 3-2. That gave us a huge boost and pushed me to give my best in the deciding match. In the final game, I think I was simply more focused than RZIHAUSCHEK — that helped a lot. We had a tough group, but the most difficult match for me was against CLOSSET from Belgium,” recalled BALÁZS. The last teams to finish group-stage play were Germany and Poland. In a fierce five-match battle, Germany triumphed over higher-ranked Poland. However, it wasn’t enough to secure second place – Poland advanced due to a better match ratio. In the Under 15 Boys’ Event, top seeds in Groups C and D – Hungary and England, failed to secure direct passage to the Round of 16 and will now compete in the play-offs for a spot in the main draw. Only Group A concluded according to the seeding, with Italy and Poland advancing as first and second, respectively. In Group B, Türkiye met expectations, but Sweden fell short, allowing Spain to finish second. In Group C, Germany upset the rankings to finish first, followed by France. Meanwhile, in Group D, Portugal climbed from the bottom of the group to finish first, with Romania taking second place.

In the Under 19 Girls’ Event at the European Youth Championships in Ostrava, Portugal upset the odds by defeating third-seeded Ukraine. In the much-anticipated clash between the no. 1 and no. 2 teams in Group D, spectators witnessed a thrilling encounter. See the pictures here. European Under 21 champion, last year’s EYC Under 19 singles silver medalist, and Top 10 Under 19 winner, Veronika MATIUNINA, secured two points for Ukraine with little trouble. However, Portugal’s Matilde PINTO, Julia LEAL, and Mariana SANTA COMBA displayed exceptional patience and capitalized on every opportunity. Particularly impressive was LEAL, who won a tense five-game decider in the final match. “We started the match with Matilde PINTO against Veronika VASYLENKO, which she won convincingly 3:0 and gave us a great start. The next match, I played against MATIUNINA — she played really well, as she also did against Matilde. In the third match, Mariana SANTA COMBA played brilliantly and won 3:2 against Olha PONKO – I think that was a really important match for us. In the decider, I faced VASYLENKO and won 3:2. I think the most crucial moment in the match was when I started playing softer and stopped trying to kill every ball. That shift in approach is what helped me win,” explained LEAL. Both Ukraine and Portugal had recorded straight-match victories the previous day, against Bulgaria and Croatia respectively. “I think we got a good group. Ukraine was the top seed, so beating them helped us a lot. We’ve already beaten Croatia, and now we have Bulgaria, so I think we have a pretty good chance against them.” In the morning session in Group A, there were no major surprises. France remains at the top, and the battle between Spain and Slovakia later in the afternoon will decide who secures the second position in the group — which guarantees direct qualification to the round of 16. In Group B, Germany recorded two straight-match victories, defeating both Czechia and Belgium. However, their toughest test comes later in the afternoon against Austria – a team that has already delivered two upsets. Despite being seeded only fourth in Group B, Austria beat both the host nation and Belgium. Last year’s semifinalists and current top seeds in Group D, Poland, are yet to record their first win. After losing to Hungary yesterday, they suffered another defeat today, this time against Romania. Hungary and Romania now sit at the top of the standings and are set to face each other later today.