After all the drama of the semi-finals in the mixed doubles, the final was a comparatively quiet affair with the new favourites; Kelly Sibley and Darius Knight taking home the title in a straight games victory over surprise finalists Chris Doran and Hannah Hicks.

Doran and Hicks had performed expertly in the semi-finals to dispatch the top seeded pairing of Paul Drinkhall and Joanna Parker but when it came to the final they just fell short.

After the drama of the last match they could have been forgiven for starting slow but they kept with Knight and Sibley all the way in the first game before narrowly falling 11-9.

The second game again went to the new favourites 11-6 and when the third game also went to Knight and Sibley 11-5 – the celebrations were muted as you sense they would have preferred another big final fixture against Joanna Parker and Paul Drinkhall.

As it was the pair picked up their first Nationals Mixed Doubles title since 2007 to start what they hope to be a successful weekend for both players.