Day one of the Blackpool Grand Prix saw impressive performances across the board from the Scottish contingent, namely Rebecca Plaistow who won both bands 3 & 4. Dylan Curry took home the winning trophy for men’s band 2, whilst Keir Morton took runner-up in men’s band 3.
Men’s Band 1
Number 2 seed Ryota Kawai showed no sign of faltering as he comfortably won Men’s Band 1 with a 3-0 defeat of James Hobson. Kawai looked in control of the match throughout and looked in great form which will bode well for tomorrows Men’s Open event.
Women’s Band 1
Emily Bolton wrapped up the Women’s Band 1 event winning all bar one of her matches in the round-robin format. Bolton was taken close by eventual runner-up Yolanda King, and beaten by Lynda Flaws in a match which may well contain the set of the weekend (a thrilling 27-25 end, taken by Flaws). However Bolton showed enough to hang on for a well deserved first place.
Men’s Band 2
Having played against one another in the group stages Dylan Curry and Naphat Boonyaprapa met again in the final of the Men’s Band 2 event at Blackpool. After beating Boonyaprapa in the groups Curry will have felt confident. This confidence showed as Curry dispatched his opponent with a convincing 3-0 win.
Women’s Band 2
Charlotte Bardsley won the Women’s Band 2 for the second Grand Prix in a row. Following on from a successful showing at Tipton, Bardsley locked up the band 2 win in Blackpool by beating opponent Bhavika Mistry 3-0 (11-7, 11-9, 11-8).
Men’s Band 3
Joe Killoran beat Keir Morton in three to seal the Men’s Band 3 Final. Killoran controlled the game throughout giving Morton little chance to make his mark, taking the three games 11-5, 11-7, 11-7.
Women’s Band 3
Rebecca Plaistow made it a double, winning the Band 3 event to add to her Band 4 win earlier in the day. Plaistow continued an impressive day by beating Andrea Harrison 3-0 in the final. Harrison came close in all three ends but couldn’t quite capitalise.
Men’s Band 4
Timothy Franke beat Jason Thompson to win the Men’s Band 4 final. Thompson won the first set with relative ease, only for the young German to come back strong and win three consecutive ends 11-5, 11-3, 11-6.
Women’s Band 4
Rebecca Plaistow came away the win in an exciting final to the Women’s Band 4 event. Opponent Janet Adams started off the stronger of the two players taking the first and third end to take a promising 2-1 lead. However a commanding 11-1 win in the fourth end seemed to swing the momentum for Plaistow as the Scottish player went on to take a 3-2 win. Plaistow has now made that back to back wins in band 4 after also winning in the previous Grand Prix at Tipton.
Men’s Band 5
Shaun Ellis was the victor in the Men’s Band 5 after beating opponent Zak Cantor in four. Cantor started off strong, winning the first end with ease. Things didn’t look good for Ellis as he took a tumble in the second end which caused the Yorkshireman some obvious discomfort. However Ellis found his groove and after a tight 14-12 win in the second he seemed to take control, taking the 3rd and 4th ends to 8 and 6 respectively.
Men’s Band 6
Matthew Fields beat Zeshi Wang to win the Men’s Band 6 event. Both players wre seeded in the lower end of the draw but overcame the odds to reach the final. Wang took a tight first end 12-10, however Fields seemed to find another gear as he motored on to a 3-1 victory.
Results
Men’s Band 1
Ryota Kawai (Mi) bt James Hobson (Y) 3-0, (11-4, 11-4, 12-10)
Women’s Band 1
Emily Bolton (Cu) won Round Robin. Yolanda King (Su) runner-up.
Men’s Band 2
Dylan Curry (SCO) bt Naphat Boonyaprapa (Ng) 3-0 (11-4, 11-5, 11-9)
Women’s Band 2
Charlotte Barsley (St) bt Bhavika Mistry (Np) 3-0 (11-7, 11-9, 11-8)
Men’s Band 3
Joe Killoran (Ch) bt Keir Morton (SCO) 3-0 (11-5, 11-7, 11-7)
Women’s Band 3
Rebecca Plaistow (SCO) bt Andrea Harrison (La) 3-0 (11-8, 11-7, 11-9)
Men’s Band 4
Timothy Franke (GER) bt Jason Thompson (Wo) 3-1 (7-11, 11-5, 11-3, 11-6)
Women’s Band 4
Rebecca Plaistow (SCO) bt Janet Adams (Y) 3-2 (7-11, 11-5, 8-11, 11-1, 11-7)
Men’s Band 5
Shaun Ellis (Y) bt Zak Cantor (La) 3-1 (4-11, 14-12, 11-8, 11-6)
Men’s Band 6
Matthew Fields (La) bt Zeshi Wang (Av) 3-1 (10-12, 11-6, 11-5, 11-5)