Malte Thyregod won the first elite title of his career as he and Anna-Klara Ahlmer fought off the field to win the Mixed Doubles.
Elsewhere, Leon Griffiths and Duncan Stahl teamed up to deny Thyregod two titles on day one of the IWT Malta Open as they triumphed in the Men’s Doubles.
Here is the full report from the two elite doubles classes on day one of the Racketlon World Tour event.
Mixed Doubles – Thyregod Joins Title Club as he and Ahlmer Triumph
Friday’s action began with the Mixed Doubles as four pairs battled for the title in Malta.
Top seeds Myriam Enmer and Anthony Duthuillé were first on court as they faced Anna-Klara Ahlmer and Malta Thyregod. The French pair’s challenge for the title was dealt a heavy early blow as Ahlmer and Thyregod won the first two sports to single figures to triumph before tennis.
Astrid Reimer-Kern and Kresten Hougaard were the next pair to get a victory on the board. They battled past a dogged Swiss pair of Gaëlle Wavre and Nicolas Lenggenhager, needing a full set of tennis to win by 11 points.
Reimer-Kern and Hougaard swiftly made it two wins from two. Their next victims were Enmer and Duthuillé. The French pair were only four points down after the badminton but a crushing 21-6 squash victory effectively sealed the win for the German-Danish pairing.
Ahlmer and Thyregod would comfortably set up a final showdown with Reimer-Kern and Hougaard without the use of their tennis rackets. They cruised past the Swiss pair to win all three sets and set up a blockbuster final.
Knowing that squash would be a test, Ahlmer and Thyregod made a blistering start. They took the table tennis 21-10 and followed that up with a 21-12 badminton win to lead by 19 points. Much of that deficit was clawed back with Reimer-Kern and Hougaard winning the squash 21-8. It wasn’t enough though. Ahlmer and Thyregod won the tennis 15-12 to secure the title.
For Thyregod, that’s a first elite Mixed Doubles crown. The duo were imperious all day, dropping just two sets in their three matches to ultimately cruise to the title. Ahlmer adds a seventh Mixed Doubles title to her glistening collection and is now likely to enjoy a small rankings rise as a result.
Enmer and Duthuillé nabbed the bronze medal in the end. The French duo beat Wavre and Lenggenhager to ensure that they left the Mixed Doubles category with some silverware.
The full Mixed Doubles results are available here.
Men’s Doubles – Griffiths and Stahl Work Hard to Win Title in Malta
With the Mixed Doubles completed by the early afternoon, it was time for the Men’s Doubles. Top seeds Leon Griffiths and Duncan Stahl were up first as they faced Polish pair Michal Kurek and Mateusz Skorek. The Brits were 19 points up after badminton but a 21-11 squash win for the Poles put them back in the game. Griffiths and Stahl won the tennis 13-10 to secure the win and book a place in the final.
Joining them were Kresten Hougaard and Malta Thyregod. The Danes emerged victorious in a fierce battle with second seeds Anthony Duthuillé and Nicolas Lenggenhager. This momentum of this match swung wildly, with no pair ever establishing a big lead.
The Danes took the table tennis 21-13 but had their lead taken away as Duthuillé and Lenggenhager won the badminton 21-15 and squash 21-16. That left the No.2 seeds needing 19 points on the tennis court to reach the final. They couldn’t manage it though. Hougaard and Thyregod showed their class to win 21-13.
The Danes then made a riotous start to the final. A 21-10 table tennis win put them in the driving seat, leaving the Brits with plenty to do. Griffiths and Stahl chipped away at the lead, winning the badminton 21-18 and squash 21-15 to leave a full set of tennis for glory.
With the sun setting on the Marsa Sports Club, it was the Brits who triumphed in the Maltese evening. They won 21-13 to win by six points and get their hands on the trophy. It was a landmark moment for Stahl as he became just the 10th male player in racketlon history to reach double-digit elite doubles titles. Griffiths will likely become the 11th player to achieve this in the near future as he moves up to nine total titles.
A 21-5 squash victory was enough of a turning point for Kurek and Skorek to grab a bronze medal. They beat Duthuillé and Lenggenhager by 11 points in the bronze medal match.
The full Men’s Doubles results are available here.
Keep up with the IWT Malta Open
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We’ll have a full report from the amateur doubles categories coming with our Amateurs and Seniors report on Monday.
Interested in competing in a Racketlon World Tour event? The full 2022 World Tour is available here with a number of tournaments already open for entry.
Sam Barker / FIR Media Officer
