The second day of the IWT Polish Open saw a conclusion to the mixed doubles draw with a captivating gummi-arm playoff at the end of the day, but before that, there were plenty of singles matches to be played.
Men’s elite singles – Top seeds secure their semi-final spot
The men’s draw went according to seedings, as no 1 seed Lenggenhager started his quarter-final strong against Lipowski from Poland, winning +32 (19-21 21-1 21-7) to secure his spot in the semi-final. Here he will play his doubles partner Sylvain Ternon. Ternon has been playing well this season, winning his first match against Kleiber +28 (13-21 21-1 21-5) to go on to beat Kurek in the quarters with a similar scoreline. The score was +28 (21-17 21-3 21-15). Both Lindberg and Stahl secured their semi-final spots in the lower half of the draw. Lindberg beat Schaefer and Pichler in his first two matches, only needing one point in tennis against Schaefer. Stahl beat Skulina +19 (12-21 21-12 21-6 6-2) and Lorkiewicz +12 (13-21 21-18 21-4 10-10) in his first two rounds. The semi-finals tomorrow morning will show some great Racketlon. Lenggenhager and Ternon’s previous encounters were in favour of Ternon, while Stahl and Lindberg Hold a 1-1 Record, with Lindberg clinching their latest encounter at the 2021 Rotterdam Open
Women’s elite singles – Ahlmer and Joyce Chan will battle for the title
A round-robin often means a lot of matches and can have some surprising outcomes. Ahlmer started her run for her first title of 2023 well by winning all her matches today before tennis. She will play Joyce Chan tomorrow to decide who will take the Polish Open title. Joyce Chan also displayed some good Racketlon today, as she also won her first three matches before tennis. Both players have only faced each other in doubles, but it looks like it will be a great match. Kaptein is currently in third position, as she beat Sákovics +16 (21-12 22-20 22-20 9-6) with incredibly close scores in badminton and squash. She will play Holly Ranson tomorrow in her last match. They have played before and the head-to-head is 1-1. Ranson has only played two matches today and will have two more matches tomorrow. This indicates that there are still many possibilities and potential upsets in store.
Mixed elite doubles – Stahl and Ranson win a captivating gummi-arm playoff
The gummi-arm playoff for silver and bronze had everyone on the edge of their seat. Everyone at the IWT Polish Open wanted to watch, and it was also streamed on our Facebook page with great commentating from Anna-Klara Ahlmer, who won the gold medal with Michal Kurek yesterday. Stahl/Ranson won their table tennis gummi arm against Kaptein/Lorkiewicz with a great smash from Stahl, but lost against Joyce Chan/Ching Ng, whilst Kaptein/Lorkiewicz won their gummi arm against the Hong Kong pair. This resulted in a tie in table tennis. Joyce Chan/Ching Ng took the first gummi arm in badminton with an amazing attacking smash from Joyce Chan, Kaptein/Lorkiewicz the second, and Stahl/Ranson the third keeping the scores even. In squash each pair selected one player to play the gummi arm. Lorkiewicz took the first gummi arm in squash against Ching Ng, with a perfect straight drive. Stahl and Lorkiewicz had a long rally, resulting in a let, where Lorkiewicz took it in another great rally with a volley in the nick. Stahl took the third gummi arm in squash against Ching Ng. This meant that Kaptein/Lorkiewicz had 4 points going into tennis, with Stahl/Ranson at 3 and Joyce Chan/Ching Ng at 2. Stahl/Ranson won two gummi points in tennis, evening the score which meant that they had to play another gummi arm point! This was won by Stahl/Ranson, securing their silver medal. Kaptein/Lorkiewicz took the bronze. After this gummi-arm playoff, Stahl and Ranson said it was good fun, and that their badminton might have been the key to winning the silver medal.
Junior titles for Ranson, Fojtík, and Roman
The u13 title was won by Damian Roman from the Czech Republic, who proved very strong winning before both his matches before tennis. He also won a silver medal in the boys u16, losing to Fojtík +45 (21-4 21-7 21-7). The girl’s u16 was won by Ranson, who beat Tomková convincingly in the final +51 (21-11 21-0 21-1).
Lorkiewicz, Port and Kleiber win senior titles, Döbörhegyi wins the men’s C
Lorkiewicz won the +40 seniors title, beating fellow Polish player Stasiło +5 (21-10 21-12 6-21) in the final. Port won the +45 title, he won both his group matches before tennis but unfortunately, his opponent Zaorski had to withdraw in the final. The seniors +55 title was won by Frank Kleiber, the German beat Ostaszyk +22 (21-6 21-9 16-21) in the final. The men’s C was won by Döbörhegyi who beat Stasilo in the final, the score was +19 (22-20 21-18 21-8 4-3).
Tomorrow will be an exciting last day of the Polish Open, with the finals of the Elite and B categories.
Sanne Veldkamp / FIR Media Officer
