Volker Sach was the big winner at the SWT Dubai Racketlon Classic as he won two titles at the unforgettable debut event.
Sach triumphed in the Men’s +45 Singles and the Men’s B Doubles alongside Frank Kleiber to leave Dubai unbeaten.
Dutchman Guidi Weijel was the other non-elite champion in Dubai as he fought off a pair of Indian players to win the Men’s B Singles.
Men’s +45 Singles – Sach Cruises to Singles Victory
It was a fruitful trip out to Dubai for Germany’s Volker Sach. The German found himself in a five-player box league alongside familiar faces Frank Kleiber, Graham King, Ersoy Korer and Steve Kneller. All five players would face each other to determine the champion.
In the end, Sach actually only lost three sets in his four matches. The first came in his opener against Steve Kneller. Britain’s Kneller won the squash 21-16 but Sach still won before tennis after heavy table tennis and badminton victories. He was forced to play a full tennis set in his second match against Ersoy Korer. Ultimately, his 21-11 tennis win gave him a 2-0 lead. That cemented his spot at the top of the table alongside Frank Kleiber.
Kleiber’s challenge for the title was dealt a blow in the next set of matches as he was defeated by Korer. The Turk played fantastic badminton to eventually beat Kleiber by six points, putting him back in the race for the title. Sach’s win over Graham King meant that if he beat Kleiber, then he would win the title.
A 21-10 table tennis victory gave him a comfortable head start, one that he would not give up. Sach needed just 14 in the tennis and got there, winning by 12 points to complete a clean sweep of the box league and get his hands on the Seniors +45 Singles title.
Korer won his other three matches to claim the silver medal while they were joined on the podium by Frank Kleiber.
The full Men’s +45 Singles results are available here.
Men’s B Doubles – Sach and Kleiber Beat Korer and Nadgonde
After Graham King and Michel Mont Rabet were forced to withdraw following their first-round loss to Ersoy Korer and Kedar Nadgonde, we were left with a two-pair shoot-out for the title.
Korer and Nadgonde returned to court to take on German duo Frank Kleiber and Volker Sach. The Germans took a big early lead after an impressive 21-7 table tennis victory. However, their lead didn’t last long. Korer and Nadgonde are both badminton players and that showed, with the pair winning 21-6 to take the lead by a single point.
Momentum swung back towards the Germans on the squash court. They dominated from start to finish, eventually winning 21-11 to leave them needing 13 on the tennis court. They reached 13 with ease, eventually winning the match by 17 points.
For Sach, this left him unbeaten in Dubai, winning all five matches that he played across the singles and doubles competitions.
The full Men’s B Doubles results are available here.
Men’s B Singles – Weijel Holds Off Indian Challenge
By far the tightest category of the three in Dubai was the Men’s B Singles. The decisive match ended up being won by just three points.
It was originally a five-player box league but after Sujit Kumar withdrew following his first-round match, it became just four players battling for glory.
Early wins for Kedar Nadgonde and Guidi Weijel over Andreas Baumung left the German in trouble at the foot of the table. The crucial match came between Weijel and Vishal Narayanan.
The two traded 21-3 victories, with Narayanan winning the table tennis and Weijel the squash. That left badminton and tennis as crucial sports. Weijel won the badminton 21-17 while Narayanan won the tennis. However, Weijel needed 17 in tennis and he made it with the score at 17-18 to get the victory.
After Narayanan beat Nadgonde, Weijel just had to beat Nadgonde for the title in the division’s final match. In the end, he did so with relative ease. A 21-5 squash victory was the killer blow and Weijel won by 21 points to get his hands on a first career singles title. Narayanan took silver while Nadgonde won bronze.
The full Men’s B Singles results are available here.
The full report from the elite categories is available here.
More information about the Dubai Fitness Challenge is available here.
Sam Barker / FIR Media Officer
Image Credit / Guidi Weijel
