Day One at ITTF World Para Future – Gold Coast

With 98 representatives from nine different countries visiting Australia for a World Para Circuit event for the first time, Day One at the ITTF World Para Future – Gold Coast certainly lived up to the pre-tournament expectations.

Play began at 10am on Monday, February 16, and there was plenty of Australian representation in the opening matches. Anthony Majtlis and Christopher Addis were amongst those in action in the opening fixtures, however, neither were able to overcome their opponents, as Japan’s Nariaki Kakita and Yoshihisa Nishida came out on top.

In the second round of matches, there were four victories for the Australian contingent, with Danni Di Toro, Sam Von Einem, Lin Ma and Jimmy Huo securing early wins. On her victory over India’s Kajalben Bharatbai Makavana, Di Toro stated: “The first match of an event is always a little bit nerve-racking, but it was lovely to have found a way through it. It was against a really tricky opponent, but it’s wonderful to see so many athletes from so many countries supporting this tournament in Australia for the first time. It’s great to get the first win under the belt.”

Arguably, the most enthralling fixture of day one came between Japan’s Shunta Yamamoto and Koya Kato, with Kato coming out on top of a five-game classic, with none of the five games being decided on 11 points (11-13, 12-10, 12-14, 13-11, 18-16).

Nathan Pellissier enjoyed a winning start to his campaign also, with a straight-games victory over India’s Kunal Arora, whilst there was also a final game decider between Australia’s Lennard Properjohn and Jetson Wood, with Properjohn taking the decisive game 11-8. Pellissier would continue his fine form in the afternoon session, with a three game to love victory over Japan’s Takumi Shukunobe.

Fresh from his triumph over Riki Murakami in the morning’s second round of fixtures, Sam Von Einem cemented his place in tomorrow’s semi-finals before lunchtime, with another strong performance, defeating Hong Kong’s King Shing Yuen. On a successful day one, Von Einem added: “It’s really special to be playing on home soil here today. It’s my first time playing an international event in Australia which is great. Winning both games in straight games felt good, and I feel like I’m training well and playing well. We’ve got a big group of us here, and I’m excited to come back tomorrow.”

The action will continue tomorrow at the Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre, with play set to begin at 9.30am. Tomorrow morning will see the finals take place for the men’s and women’s singles before the commencement of the Mixed Doubles and the Mens Doubles. You can view tomorrow's schedule, along with the full set of today’s results here.