Friday’s Men’s Singles Round of 16 at the European Championships in Ljubljana produced two major upsets, with France’s Léo DE NODREST eliminating Slovenian home favourite Darko JORGIC and Norway’s Borgar HAUG stunning third seed Truls MOREGARD of Sweden. Both victories came after dramatic battles, while top seed Félix LEBRUN and Germany’s Dang QIU also secured their places in the quarterfinals.
DE NODREST produced one of the biggest surprises of the Championships, overcoming fourth seed JORGIC 4-3 (9-11, 11-5, 12-10, 7-11, 11-6, 4-11, 11-9) in front of the Slovenian crowd at Arena Stožice.
The Frenchman held his nerve in a tense deciding game after seeing a 9-5 advantage disappear as JORGIC fought back to level at 9-9.
“I’m incredibly happy. Once again, it went right down to the wire, and it’s difficult to find the words immediately after a victory like this. My emotions are still running very high. All the hard work has paid off. I managed the match well tactically, and I was able to find an extra burst of physical energy when I needed it. I never gave up, even when things became difficult,” said DE NODREST.
The closing stages tested his composure as the experienced Slovenian threatened another comeback.
“I could feel myself becoming tense and wanting to finish the match as quickly as possible. But I managed to regain a clear head and get my thoughts back in order. My serve is a very important weapon for me. I managed to make the right decisions at the crucial moments and didn’t let my nerves take over.”
Asked whether experience had made the difference, DE NODREST offered a different explanation.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say it was experience, because Darko has an enormous amount of experience himself. I would say it was more youthful energy and determination that made the difference. I managed to raise myself to another level in the most important moments.”
DE NODREST will now face Germany’s Benedikt DUDA in the quarterfinals, with a European medal at stake.
“I’ll be facing another former teammate, Benedikt DUDA, with whom I played at the same club last year. Everything is still possible. I’m feeling good, and I’ll stick to the same preparation and the same approach that have worked for me so far.”
The Frenchman also reflected on how previous disappointments have helped him become mentally stronger.
“I’m trying to learn from my mistakes and react differently in difficult situations. That’s how you gain experience. If you keep repeating the same patterns, nothing really changes. I’ve been working on changing certain things mentally, and I can see that it’s paying off.”
Norway’s Borgar HAUG delivered another sensational result, defeating third seed Truls MOREGARD 4-2 (12-10, 11-8, 12-10, 10-12, 10-12, 11-7).
HAUG raced into a 3-0 lead, but MOREGARD fought back to take the next two games and threaten a remarkable recovery. The Norwegian, however, refused to surrender his advantage and completed what he described as the finest performance of his career.
“This was definitely the best match I’ve ever played. Right from the beginning, just like yesterday, I had an incredibly good feeling. I felt I could go for almost anything. My serves were working really well, and my receive was surprisingly good,” said HAUG.
“Truls is probably one of the best players in the world when it comes to serve and receive, but somehow I managed to deal with that and impose my own game. I knew I had to go for my shots, and that’s exactly what I did.”
Even with a commanding lead, HAUG knew the danger posed by the Swedish star.
“Even at 3-0, I still didn’t see myself as the favourite. He’s one of the best players at coming back in matches. He started reading my shots better, made some tactical adjustments and managed to neutralise my game a little. I just had to keep going and stick to what I was doing.”
HAUG will face Sweden’s Anton KALLBERG for a place in the semifinals.
“We’re great friends, so it will definitely be a special match. But I’ll prepare for it just like any other match and try to play my own game.”
Top seed Félix LEBRUN also faced a demanding challenge before overcoming Sweden’s Elias RANEFUR 4-2 (7-11, 11-5, 11-9, 11-9, 6-11, 11-5).
LEBRUN admitted that the encounter was considerably more difficult than their previous meeting in the league two weeks earlier.
“It was a very different match from the one we played two weeks ago in the league. This time, he caused me much more trouble with his serves and the amount of spin he put on the ball in almost every shot. It was really difficult for me. I’m very happy to have won 4-2, because I think the match could have been even closer.”
Germany’s Dang QIU produced an outstanding performance to defeat France’s Simon GAUZY 4-1 (11-8, 8-11, 11-4, 11-6, 11-7).
QIU controlled much of the contest with his aggressive approach, preventing GAUZY from establishing the long rallies in which the Frenchman excels.
“It was definitely one of the best matches I’ve played so far this season. In terms of aggression, I don’t think I could have played much more aggressively. I’m extremely happy with the result, but above all with my performance,” said QIU.
“Once you get drawn into those long rallies against him, you don’t really stand a chance. I’m certainly not someone who shies away from rallies, but he plays them incredibly well. He moves exceptionally well and is physically one of the fittest players on the tour. That’s why I had to raise my level of aggression enormously.”
QIU explained that his confidence grew as his attacking game continued to produce results.
“If my success rate had been a little different, I might have had to ease off slightly. But today everything worked really well. At some point, you get into a flow, and then you just try to stay in it. That’s exactly what I managed to do.”
