SLUISKIL - What a matches and what a battles for the places in the final rounds we can still expect tomorrow at the Junior World championship in Sluiskil. The 20-year-old Turk Berkay Karakurt and the 15-year young Korean Myung Woo Cho were the first players who advanced to the best eight of the tournament.
The showdown will follow in the last session, in the matches which are decisive for the qualifications. The two Dutch players have been eliminated after two rounds. The champion, Jordy de Kruijf, lost twice: against Spaniard Antonio Montes (25-15 in 18) and Colombian Jefferson Pena (25-19 in 23).
The home player, Michael Vink, was punished very hard at this world podium with a 25-4 loss in only 9 innings (2777/0444) by Korean Jun Tae Kim. But in his second match he surprised the audience when he faced Victor Montedeoca from Ecuador. The second Dutchman at this WC won 25-22 in 42 innings and playes for the second position in the group tomorrow against Wesley van Apers.
Jun Tae Kim started the most impressive on this first day with his world class match against Vink and in the last session he also bested Belgian Wesley van Apers after a blistering start in his fourth inning with a 9-run, building his lead up to 25-14 in 18.
Andy de Bondt and Alexis Rouaud share the first position in their group with three points out of two after the Belgian balanced the match vs Rouaud with four in the equalizer.
Joao Ferreira is still in the running: after a poor start, the Portuguese recovered in the second round against Carlos Anguita in a match that took nine innings for 25-6, like Kim with 2.777 average.
Myung Woo Cho is topping Group B with the maximum four points and 1.724 average. In his second match, the youngest player of the tournament (16) defeated his main rival in the group, Antonio Montes, 25-14 in ten innings.
The most tension can be expected in Group C. Berkay Karakurt leads with four points and has secured the placement after his victory over Yusuke Mori 25-20 in 15 innings.
The Japanese is facing Adrien Tachoire tomorrow in a dead-or-alive match: both players have two match points, so the winner of that match will join Karakurt to the quarterfinals.
Adrien Tachoire made a huge comeback in the tournament. The French champion lost his first match without a chance against Karakurt, but showed his high level against Manuel Lindao, whom he bested 25-15 in 10.
The ranking after two rounds:
Group A:
1 Andy de Bondt, Belgium, 3-0.980-5
2 Alexis Rouaud, France, 3-0.961-4
3 Joao Ferreira, Portugal, 2-1.468-6
4 Carlos Anguita, Spain, 0-0.774-3.
Group B:
1 Myung Woo Cho, Korea, 4-1.724-7
2 Antonio Montes, Spain, 2-1.392-7
3 Jefferson Pena, Colombia, 2-1.023-9
4 Jordy de Kruijf, Netherlands, 0-0.829-6
Group C:
1 Berkay Karakurt, Turkey, 4-1.724-8
2 Adrien Tachoire, France, 2-1.666-6
3 Yusuke Mori, Japan, 2-1.607-6
4 Manuel Lindao, Ecuador, 0-1.478-6
Group D:
1 Jun Tae Kim, Korea, 4-1.851-9
2 Wesley van Apers, België, 2-0.573-4
3 Michael Vink, Nederland, 2-0.568-4
4 Victor Montesdeoca, Ecuador, 0-0.489-4.