The opening-round clash of Stage Two at the European Under 13 Championships in Kosta saw No. 4 seeds Bulgaria prevail over No. 3 seeds Spain.
Top-seeded singles player Ladimir MAYOROV, partnering Aina CASANOVAS, gave Spain a strong start by defeating Lachezar HRISTOV and Kalina STEFANOVA. However, Polina ENCHEVA overcame Celia VALPUESTA to level the score.
The key duel between No. 3 seed Alexander MALOV and No. 2 seed Stefan BONCHEV went according to the rankings, pushing Bulgaria into the lead. STEFANOVA then defeated CASANOVAS to extend the advantage to 3–1, before MAYOROV succeeded against HRISTOV to secure Spain’s second point in the group standings.
“I’m very happy that both me and the rest of the team performed well. It is especially nice to win when you feel that it is a team effort,” said Stefan BONCHEV.
Asked if he enjoys mixed team competitions, BONCHEV added:
“I like the team event with the mixed doubles, and I enjoy how there is a lot of tactic involved regarding who plays in what position. It makes the matches more interesting.”
Türkiye swept Croatia 5–0 in Group 1, while France denied Germany a single point in Group 2. In Group 3, alongside the Spain–Bulgaria battle, Italy narrowly edged Hungary in a full-distance duel. In Group 4, Sweden defeated Czechia 3–2, and Switzerland overcame Slovakia by the same margin.
A reminder: a special scoring system is in place to reward every effort. A 5–0 victory brings five points, while even a narrow 2–3 defeat still counts for two points. The system encourages teams to fight for every game: a 5–0 win equals 5 points, 4–1 gives 4, 3–2 brings 3, while losses of 2–3, 1–4 and 0–5 are worth two, one and zero respectively.
PHOTO: Manfred Schillings
Swiss coach Samir MULABDIC spoke after Switzerland’s 3–2 victory over Sweden, which left his team with five wins in five matches. In addition to the hosts, Enya HU, Michelle WU, Arthur LOUSTALOT and Silas STALDER also recorded wins against Hungary, Portugal, Moldova and Czechia.
“Everything has felt really good from the start of the event — not just the results but everything around it, such as the venue and organization. Since we arrived, everything has been excellent, and that is also reflected in the players’ performances. We did not expect to win five out of five matches, but since the players are performing at this level, we now look forward to fighting for a place in the final.”
