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Viersen, March 24th,2024.
The final of the World Championship for National teams could not have had a later moment of truth: the dying seconds of extra time as they say in football. It took two singles matches and a Scotch Double play-off that went to 14-14 before Vietnam’s Phuong Vinh Bao made the glorious last point.
Finalists Vietnam and Spain had both won a match: Ruben Legazpi edging Quyet Chien Tran 40-38 in 27 and Sergio Jimenez losing to Phuong Vinh Bao 40-22 in 18. A 15-point play-off with all four players at the table had to decide about the world title. In half an hour of high stress, both teams missed opportunities and scored spectacular points. The quarter could have dropped on heads or on tails, but it was Vietnam that made the 15th and it gave them their first ever world team championship. In fact, Vietnam had never finished in the medals before.
In the first semifinal, Vietnam had trouble fighting off the tournament revelation USA. Tran cruised past Raymon Groot, but Bao lost to Hugo Patino. The play-off was a narrow 15-13 (in 11) win for the team from Asia.
The second semifinal also resulted in a play-off, after Umeda had beaten Legazpi 40-30 in 34 and Jimenez had beaten Miyashita 40-36 in 29. This play-off was quickly captured by the Spaniards: 15-5 in 5 innings.
The best match in Viersen was played by Tayfun Tasdemir: 40 in 11.
The high run was shared by Sweden and Vietnam: 14.
Vietnam had the highest team average: 1.666.
Even though several world class players were not in the line-up (Jaspers, Sidhom, Polychronopoulos, Piedrabuena) there was plenty of excitement and quality play. It must have been an unforgettable experience for youngsters like Seleventas (Greece) and Ibraimov (Germany).
Full results of “Viersen” are available on the websites of Five & Six and the UMB.
Viersen, March 23th 2024.
Major surprises in Viersen: USA are in, Korea is out.
How close did we come to a Viersen final four without a semifinalist from Europe? Ruben Legazpi worked hard and beat Myung Woo Cho, forcing a Scotch Double playoff that was won by him and Sergio Jimenez. Had Legazpi lost to the world number one, Europe would have been without a podium finish, for the first time in the history of the World Championship for National teams.
Scotch Double was the key word of the day. France and USA tied (thanks to a 40-39 win by Bury over Groot, and Patino beating Devogelaere), but the USA were the superior team in the play-off.
In a major upset, the favorites from Sweden were outplayed by the Japanese. Miyashita and Umeda had shown form and determination against the Netherlands on Friday, and they performed even better against Blomdahl and Nilsson. It was a clear 4-0 victory, with Miyashita and Umeda finishing in 21 and 24 innings.
Belgium and Vietnam also needed a Scotch Double play-off, after Tran had lost to Merckx and Bao had beaten Philipoom. Vietnam won the lag and ran 13 (!) points from the spots, leaving Belgium gasping for breath.
Earlier in the day, Tayfun Tasdemir had produced the best match of the event, beating Quyet Chien Tran 40-28 in 11.
Sunday’s semifinals:
11.00 Vietnam – USA.
13.00 Japan – Spain.
16.00 the final
Viersen, March 22th 2024.
Two of the four groups in the World Championship for National teams have been decided, two will have their last match tomorrow. As it stands, Japan and France will advance from group C, Sweden and Belgium from Group D. The Netherlands, Jordan, Egypt and Germany were eliminated.
The crucial match in Group D was played between Japan and the Netherlands. Former world champion Riiuchi Umeda got the better of Jean Paul de Bruijn, and he did that with a marvelous run of 12 to finish. Takao Miyashita got past Jeffrey Jorissen.
The decider in Group C was between Belgium and Germany. The home team of Lindemann and Ibaimov played rather well but they got outclassed by Merckx and Philipoom nevertheless. The Swedish team of Blomdahl and Nilsson look rock solid so far.
Tomorrow, Saturday the 23d, the final matches in Group A and B will be played. Most interesting, perhaps, is the encounter between defending champions Turkiye and Vietnam, with world champion Bao and World Cup winner Tran.
All matches can be viewed on Afreeca TV.
Viersen,March 21th 2024
The opening day of the World Championships for National teams has not brought big surprises yet. Maybe one, if you count the first-ever win in this event by a 16-year-old: Amir Ibraimov. Nobody brought more enthusiasm from the crowd than he did.
Group A:
Title holders Turkiye are in the lead, but they could still go out tomorrow. A dangerous match against strong Vietnam awaits.
Group B:
Every match was a draw so far, so four teams with equal chances: Korea, USA, Colombia, Greece. There was a very notable win (40-39 in 31) by Raymon Groot over Myung Woo Cho.
Group C:
Netherlands and France have a clean sheet, Japan and Jordan without points so far.
Group D:
Sweden favorite to advance, Belgium and Germany with a chance, Egypt might not make it.
All matches can be viewed on Afreeca TV. Full results are available on the websites of Five & Six and the UMB.
