Top seeds Shayan Siraj and Mollie Patterson lived up to billing on day one of the Junior National Cup at Ellenborough TTC in Enfield.

They were the only two athletes unbeaten after the first five rounds of competition at an event where the 10 players, selected on rankings, play each other on a round-robin basis to decide the champion.

The fight for the medals is certain to be close tomorrow, however, as a clutch of players remained in contention.

All pictures by Michael Loveder.

Girls

The 10 players in the girls’ competition

Top seed Mollie Patterson won all five matches to put herself in pole position after day one, with three players – Megan Gidney, Sarah Menghistab and Tiana Dennison one win further back.

Third seed Menghistab lost her only game in the first round, a marathon against Katie Holt, the fifth-ranked player taking it 4-2.

Even though it did not go the distance, the game scores were remarkable, with the girls still only in their second game when at least one other match had finished. Eventually, Holt prevailed 12-14, 20-18, 13-11, 8-11, 11-6, 12-10.

No 9 Amelia Chan also overcame a higher-ranked player, defeating No 7 Lisa Rinnhofer in four straight. It was also four straight for No 4 Tiana Dennison over No 6 Lois Perryman.

Top seed Patterson started with a 4-0 win over No 10 Danielle Kelly, while second seed Gidney needed five against Sophie Barlow, ranked at eight.

Menghistab got herself on the board in Round 2 but had to hold off a comeback from 2-0 down to 2-2 by Kelly. Barlow also got her first victory, losing the first game but taking the next four against Perryman.

Gidney, Patterson and Dennison won their second matches against, respectively, Rinnhofer, Chan and Holt.

Perryman came close to taking her first win in Round 3, leading Menghistab 3-2 but seeing her opponent fight back to win.

Rinnhofer also looked as if she might put her first tick in the win column when she led Dennison 2-0, but Dennison won the third 15-13 and the fifth 14-12 on her way to a 4-2 score which kept up her 100% record.

Gidney and Patterson remained unbeaten, seeing off Chan and Barlow respectively, while Holt picked up win No 2, over Kelly.

Danielle Kelly

Round 4 saw some potentially decisive moves as two unbeaten records were ended by players earning their first victories.

Kelly was the first to strike, overcoming Dennison 4-1 in a match which ought to have been closer given their previous results.

Perryman then recorded the biggest win of the competition to that point as she sunk second seed Gidney, this time coming out on the right side of a 4-3 scoreline, despite things looking ominous when Gidney took the first 11-2.

That left Patterson out on her own at the top, having registered her fourth win, a routine 4-0 over Rinnhofer. Menghistab defeated Barlow 4-2 to stay in the medal picture, but Holt could not join the group on three victories as she saw Chan come back from 3-2 down to win the decider 11-8.

Gidney bounced back in the final round of the day, overcoming Holt in four straightforward games to hang on to Paterson’s coattails – the leader beat Perryman in five.

Also one win behind is third seed Menghistab, who won 4-2 against Rinnhofer, the only winless player after day one, albeit having played the top four seeds.

The third player on four victories is Dennison, who ended the day with a 4-1 scoreline against Chan. Kelly picked up her second win on the bounce as she twice came from a set down to beat Barlow 4-2.

Boys

The competitors in the boys’ event

Shayan Siraj matched Patterson’s record as the top seed won all five matches to stand one victory ahead of James Smith, Naphat Boonyaprapa and Gaurav Aravind.

In the first round, third seed Ethan Walsh saw fifth-ranked Boonyaprapa fight back from 2-0 and 3-2 down to win 4-3 – remarkably taking the sixth 11-1 before adding the decider 11-9.

The other one to go the distance also saw an upset as No 6 Joe Cope sunk No 4 Aravind, winning the sixth and seventh sets 11-9 after seeing Aravind move ahead by taking the fifth 15-13 in a see-saw match which saw Aravind 1-0 up, 2-1 down and 3-2 up.

Top seed Siraj started with the only 4-0 result of the round, over Artur Veeck Caltabiano, while it was 4-2 for both Israel Awolaja over Sam Chesterman and second seed Smith over Matthew Daish.

Walsh again saw a 3-2 lead evaporate in Round 2, this time at the hands of No 10 Veeck Caltabiano, who won the decider 11-4.

Boonyaprapa and Aravind both went to seven again when they met each other, and the outcome was different for both as Aravind, who was 2-1 and 3-2 down, won 4-3 – 11-5 in the decider.

The top two both won again – Siraj against No 9 Chesterman and Smith against No 7 Awolaja, both 4-1. Cope was the other unbeaten athlete, overcoming eighth-ranked Daish in six.

In Round 3, Walsh belatedly got his campaign up and running and ended Cope’s unbeaten start in the process. Again it went to seven, Walsh finally taking it 12-10 after Cope had saved three match points at 10-7.

Aravind also kept up his record of every match going to seven, notching an impressive victory from 3-1 down against Awolaja, taking the last three games by match 8, 8, 8 scores.

Gaurav Aravind

Smith overcame Chesterman 4-1, and it was the same margin for Siraj against Daish and Boonyaprapa against Veeck Caltabiano – though the latter was extended to 16-14 and 14-12 in the third and fourth.

Walsh kept his momentum going in Round 4, recovering from losing the first to Daish to take the next four.

Aravind had the luxury of a 4-0 scoreline, defeating Veeck Caltabiano, and it was also 4-0 for the top two, Smith beating Cope and Siraj defeating Awolaja with no alarms in either case. Boonyaprapa twice came from a game behind to overcome Chesterman in six.

The final round was rudely interrupted by the fire alarm – the result of Awolaja inadvertently hitting an emergency button with his elbow as he swung from the back of the court.

It obviously upset the system as the alarm sounded again for a few seconds later on – and an umpire’s timer malfunctioning and refusing to be silenced further added to the interruptions.

Amid the chaos, Siraj started like a house on fire against Cope, romping to 3-0 up and completing a 4-1 victory.

And it left him out in front on his own as Smith’s unbeaten record was ended by Boonyaprapa, by a 4-1 margin. It was also 4-1 as Daish picked up his first victory, over Veeck Caltabiano.

And so to the two seven-set specialists. Aravind was the victor over Chesterman, who came so close to recording his first victory as he fought back from 3-1 down to level.

And Walsh also made it four deciders in five matches, but was on the wrong end of the scoreline against Awolaja – who was clearly not alarmed by his mishap.

Details

Girls
Round 1
Mollie Patterson bt Danielle Kelly 4-0 (11-9, 11-5, 11-7, 11-8)
Tiana Dennison bt Lois Perryman 4-0 (11-6, 11-2, 11-9, 11-9)
Amelia Chan bt Lisa Rinnhofer 4-0 (11-8, 11-2, 11-8, 11-6)
Megan Gidney bt Sophie Barlow 4-1 (11-7, 11-9, 5-11, 11-6, 11-7)
Katie Holt bt Sarah Menghistab 4-2 (12-14, 20-18, 13-11, 8-11, 11-6, 12-10)

Round 2
Dennison bt Holt 4-0 (11-7, 11-7, 11-7, 11-2)
Menghistab bt Kelly 4-2 (16-14, 11-6, 5-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8)
Patterson bt Chan 4-1 (8-11, 12-10, 11-7, 11-6, 11-9)
Barlow bt Perryman 4-1 (4-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-5, 11-5)
Gidney bt Rinnhofer 4-1 (11-8, 8-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-8)

Round 3
Holt bt Kelly 4-0 (11-8, 11-3, 11-8, 11-7)
Gidney bt Chan 4-0 (11-8, 11-8, 11-9, 11-9)
Patterson bt Barlow 4-1 (7-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-8, 11-8)
Menghistab bt Perryman 4-3 (11-5, 10-12, 12-14, 11-6, 5-11, 11-5, 11-6)
Dennison bt Rinnhofer 4-2 (8-11, 7-11, 15-13, 11-8, 14-12, 11-6)

Round 4
Patterson bt Rinnhofer 4-0 (11-2, 11-6, 11-2, 11-6)
Menghistab bt Barlow 4-2 (11-7, 9-11, 11-8, 11-5, 8-11, 11-8)
Kelly bt Dennison 4-1 (9-11, 11-6, 5-11, 8-11, 9-11)
Chan bt Holt 4-3 (11-9, 11-13, 11-9, 5-11, 11-13, 11-7, 11-8)
Perryman bt Gidney 4-3 (2-11, 11-8, 6-11, 11-5, 12-10, 5-11, 11-9)

Round 5
Gidney bt Holt 4-0 (11-5, 11-8, 11-4, 11-4)
Patterson bt Perryman 4-1 (11-2, 9-11, 11-9, 11-4, 11-8)
Menghistab bt Rinnhofer 4-2 (9-11, 11-6, 10-12, 11-8, 11-8, 11-8)
Kelly bt Barlow 4-2 (6-11, 11-7, 11-13, 11-9, 11-8, 11-4)
Dennison bt Chan 4-1 (11-8, 13-11, 10-12, 15-13, 11-6

Katie Holt

Boys
Round 1
Shayan Siraj bt Artur Veeck Caltabiano 4-0 (11-4, 11-6, 11-4, 11-8)
Joe Cope bt Gaurav Aravind 4-3 (8-11, 11-6, 9-11, 11-4, 13-15, 11-9, 11-9)
Naphat Boonyaprapa bt Ethan Walsh 4-3 (7-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-8, 10-12, 11-1, 11-9)
Israel Awolaja bt Sam Chesterman 4-2 (11-6, 5-11, 11-6, 12-10, 11-13, 11-8)
James Smith bt Matthew Daish 4-2 (13-15, 11-8, 11-6, 9-11, 11-3, 14-12)

Round 2
Smith bt Awolaja 4-1 (11-7, 11-6, 8-11, 11-8, 11-6)
Veeck Caltabiano bt Walsh 4-3 (11-6, 5-11, 11-8, 3-11, 6-11, 11-8, 11-4)
Aravind bt Boonyaprapa 4-3 (11-8, 10-12, 13-15, 11-9, 7-11, 11-6, 11-5)
Siraj bt Chesterman 4-1 (11-4, 11-8, 9-11, 13-11, 11-7)
Cope bt Daish 4-2 (11-9, 5-11, 11-8, 8-11, 13-11, 11-7)

Round 3
Smith bt Chesterman 4-1 (11-4, 11-6, 11-5, 12-14, 11-5)
Boonyaprapa bt Veeck Caltabiano 4-1 (11-5, 8-11, 16-14, 14-12, 11-9)
Aravind bt Awolaja 4-3 (10-12, 6-11, 12-10, 4-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-8)
Siraj bt Daish 4-1 (11-9, 11-5, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9)
Walsh bt Cope 4-3 (10-12, 11-7, 9-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-5, 12-10)

Round 4
Smith bt Cope 4-0 (11-7, 11-7, 11-5, 11-7)
Siraj bt Awolaja 4-0 (11-4, 11-2, 11-4, 11-8)
Aravind bt Veeck Caltabiano 4-0 (11-9, 11-7, 12-10, 13-11)
Boonyaprapa bt Chesterman 4-2 (12-14, 11-8, 9-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-4)
Walsh bt Daish 4-1 (6-11, 11-6, 11-8, 14-12, 11-9)

Round 5
Siraj bt Cope 4-1 (11-2, 11-3, 11-5, 9-11, 11-9)
Boonyaprapa bt Smith 4-1 (11-7, 4-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-9)
Daish bt Veeck Caltabiano 4-1 (3-11, 11-8, 11-3, 11-7, 11-9)
Aravind bt Chesterman 4-3 (9-11, 11-2, 11-8, 11-7, 3-11, 7-11, 11-5)
Awolaja bt Walsh 4-3 (11-8, 11-13, 4-11, 11-9, 11-7, 7-11, 11-5)

Sam Chesterman