Hamilton in box seat for Champions Trophy qualification
Merola and Long undefeated with top-of-group play-off beckoning
The Champions Trophy qualifying began at the Royal Tennis Court on Tuesday, with each of the six matches characterised by a frontrunner pressing home their advantage. Vaughan Hamilton put himself in the box seat of Group A with two wins from two matches, while the race for Group B qualification promises a showdown between Darren Long and Nino Merola, with both looking strong during their early matches.
The tournament began with the Champions Trophy debutant Claire Fahey playing the veteran of every previous edition, Darren Long. Long opened the match with a big force at the dedans, leaving Fahey scrambling for an effective serve in the long opening game. Midway through, she lost her footing, slipping over and splaying on the floor. Her confidence wavered as Long took an early lead. While Fahey avoided railroads like the plague, they were Long’s bread and butter, getting the ball to stick along the side wall. Fahey had little option but to boast out of trouble. Though she was getting the better of the longer rallies, Long’s performance in the set pieces gave him the edge throughout the set. After Fahey started stepping in and cut-volleying Long’s railroads, the Moreton Morrell pro switched up his serve to the underarm twist, while Fahey settled on a high serve. Just as she was getting back into the match, Long stepped up his forcing game again, shifting the tempo of the match. He pushed through the last four games to secure victory.
For the third time in four months, Vaughan Hamilton lined up against Zak Eadle in a major competition. The match saw a frenetic start, with two targets in the first three points. Hamilton had the better of the early exchanges, winning the first four games as his forces had a fraction more accuracy and his open play was a fraction more incisive. Eadle found himself on the back foot more often than he would have liked, with Hamilton controlling play and pressing hard at Eadle. As the match wore on, both players became somewhat hot and bothered, arguing over a not-up call and gesticulating after hitting poor shots. Hamilton settled into a more measured tempo, maintaining a lead over Eadle without overworking. Eadle kept battling, hitting plenty of good winners despite Hamilton’s antics. An excellent service game from Hamilton gave him the decisive break, and he went on to record a straightforward victory.
Darren Long returned to the court in the second session, this time to play amateur Will Flynn. Not to be outdone by the previous match, this one opened with three straight targets, followed by two aces. Long controlled the play with his railroad, keeping the rallies short and preventing Flynn winding up on the force as he built a three-game buffer. Flynn pulled back two games, with some tight games to follow, but Long came out on top of each. With Long now holding a decent buffer, the play fell flat, with Flynn unable to gain any purchase on Long’s railroad. Even if he did manage to muscle it over the net, Long was ready with the follow-up ball as he secured his second victory of the day, putting him in pole position for qualification with one match to play.
In the other group, Vaughan Hamilton lined up for his second match, this time against another Champions Trophy debutant, Benedict Yorston. On a court that doesn’t reward cut, Yorston backed himself to chase down every single ball, getting to the vast majority. Hamilton had to be patient, working through the point without overextending. Hamilton’s deep shot repertoire served him well, as did his railroad, and he eventually found a way through Yorston. Hamilton’s win made it two-from-two in the group stage, with one match still to play.
The final session of the day began with the match between Nino Merola and Claire Fahey. Merola opened proceedings with two worse-than-a-yard cut-volleys, which Fahey responded to by sliding two balls into the dedans. But thereafter, Merola got on a roll, controlling the restes from both ends of the court. He notched up four games before Fahey could get on the board. Unlike the earlier matches in the day, both players were trying to take pace out of the ball, counteracting the lack of action from the walls by refusing to let the ball reach the back. Merola held his early advantage through the middle stage of the match, with Fahey falling away towards the end despite Merola having to search to find the final point.
The last match of the day saw the entry of the highest ranked player in qualifying, Lewis Williams. His opponent was Zak Eadle. For the first time in the tournament, neither player got off to a runaway start. The play was cagey, with both players holding back some of their attack without becoming fully free-flowing. They weren’t separated by more than a game across the first seven games, yet Eadle always went ahead first. Eadle finally got a break, with his superior read of the court helping him find and execute angles that made life difficult for Williams. With the scoreboard at his back, Eadle relaxed into the play, while Williams had to fight for every ball. The lead grew and grew, with Williams getting more desperate in his shots. Eadle ran away with the remainder of the match.
Qualifying matches continue on Wednesday, with the remaining six group matches. The winner of each group will be drawn into the main draw, with the matches to be determined by lot on Wednesday evening.
Match results:
1:30 PM: Darren Long def Claire Fahey 9/4
2:30 PM: Vaughan Hamilton def Zak Eadle 9/4
4:00 PM: Darren Long def Will Flynn 9/2
5:00 PM: Vaughan Hamilton def Benedict Yorston 9/2
6:30 PM: Nino Merola def Claire Fahey 9/2
7:30 PM: Lewis Williams lost to Zak Eadle 3/9
Group A standings:
Vaughan Hamilton (played 2, won 2)
Zak Eadle (played 2, won 1)
Lewis Williams (played 1, won 0)
Benedict Yorston (played 1, won 0)
Group B standings:
Darren Long (played 2, won 2)
Nino Merola (played 1, won 1)
Will Flynn (played 1, won 0)
Claire Fahey (played 2, won 0)
Order of play for Wednesday (all times BST):
1:30 PM: Nino Merola vs Will Flynn
2:30 PM: Lewis Williams vs Benedict Yorston
3:30 PM: Will Flynn vs Claire Fahey
4:30 PM: Benedict Yorston vs Zak Eadle
5:30 PM: Nino Merola vs Darren Long
6:30 PM: Lewis Williams vs Vaughan Hamilton