THE Oswestry Senior Table Tennis Championships had 22 entrants this year and it was last year’s runner-up, Wyn Williams, pictured, who took the main honour.
In the Open competition the top four seeds of Wyn Williams, Stephen Roberts, Vic Wedge and Eric Ma were expected to reach the semi-finals.
Williams progressed through the early rounds with team-mate Glyn Jones giving him an early fright in a close match. Stephen Roberts in the bottom half of the draw had it fairly easy although taken to three sets by Pat Lovell 11-5,12-14,11-4. Eric Ma, the number four seed, went through to the semi-final without dropping a set.
The other quarter was slightly different, with Jason Hughes taking an easy win over Jim Reeves and then coming up against Vic Wedge. Wedge, the number three seed, then went down in straight sets to Hughes 11-7, 11-6. In the first semi-final Wyn Williams took on Eric Ma, the first set going to Williams 11-9, Ma then fought back to take the second 11-8. The close encounter looked to be going to deuce, but at 10-9 Williams got the decisive point to take him through to the final.
In the second semi-final it was Stephen Roberts versus Jason Hughes. Roberts took the first set 14-12, and this momentum carried on into the second set and Roberts took second set, and the match 11-7.
In the final, the two left handers were battling for the main honour. The first set saw Williams take an early lead, only for Roberts to fight back with some controlled backspin shots followed by quick offensive backhand top spins. At deuce there seemed to be no one on top, but the steadier play of Williams saw him through 13-11.
The second set saw a change in fortunes as Roberts tried to be more attacking, but this seemed to go against him, and Williams went out to a comfortable 11-4 win.
Special mention should go to youngster Josh Birks who, playing in his first open, took the experienced Pat Lovell to three sets in an early round with Birks eventually going down 11-9, 7-11, 6-11.


 

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