Ingham and Todd win Billy Ross Skinner on deciding point
Saved three championship points in final game of final against Bryant and Wetton
Georgie Ingham and William Todd have won the Billy Ross Skinner on the final, deciding point, following three days’ play at Hatfield, concluding on Sunday.
Friday and Saturday saw 15 pairs play through the group stages of Britain’s premier mixed doubles competition. The top female amateur players are paired with a male player of appropriate standard for all pairs to be of a roughly similar standard. The first two days’ play saw plenty of tight matches, including several final-point finishes, intra-partnership wipeouts and high quality competitive play.
Sunday saw the beginning of the quarter-finals, with the winners of the only group-of-three, Georgie Ingham and William Todd, play against Araminta Oldham and Chris Lintott, who had battled through the repechage bracket after losing their first match to Saskia Bollerman and Nick Thompson. Though Oldham and Lintott stayed within touching distance throughout the match, Todd was too regularly able to cramp Lintott up with shots at or near his body. They leaked enough points for Ingham and Todd to stay ahead throughout, helped along with the latter’s excellent targeting of the grille.
Next, group winners Rachel Hollington and Henry Stuttaford played Sabrina Didizian and Hugo van der Meer, the latter of which were playing better and better as they made their way through their repechage draw. Hollington and Stuttaford’s tight serving and relentless tambour play kept Didizian and van der Meer pinned down. They kept the ball on the floor as much as possible, not feeding the volleys of their opponents who were noted for their lawn tennis prowess. Stuttaford’s court coverage was exceptional while Hollington held her own with the volley as they pushed through the first set. The second set was much closer, with all four players engaging in an epic series of rallies with van der Meer and Didizian fighting for more control of the play. The second set finished in a deciding game, with Hollington and Stuttaford holding firm to go 40-0 up from the hazard end, winning with a Hollington volley placed just in front of the tambour.
The third quarter-final was between Saskia Bollerman and Nick Thompson and Laura Neill and Geoffrey Russell, the latter of whom qualified for the knockouts with a deciding game victory in the final set against Katherine Carney and Jonathan Fisher. Bollerman was putting in a heroic effort at the back of the court, attempting to cover off everything that Neill and Russell could throw at her. But Neill and Russell proved to be the more balanced pair, as Bollerman couldn’t maintain the domination that their mismatched pair needed. Neill and Russell took the first set, before Bollerman grew stronger and stronger in her role. Thompson provided ample support as they took the second with a late surge. Bollerman and Thompson then used their time at the service end at the start of the shortened third set well to push out the decisive lead, with Thompson winning the final game to love from the receiving end from Neill’s serve.
The last of the quarter finals saw another group winner, Izzy Marshall and Dan Worboys playing a pair from the repechage, Alexandra Bryant and Max Wetton, who lost deciding games in the second and third sets of their first round match. Marshall and Worboys were off-the-pace compared to their group stage exploits, while Bryant and Wetton’s explosive styles starved Marshall and Worboys’ ability to hit chases. Bryant and Wetton secured a straightforward straight-sets victory, shaping as a strong force for the later stages.
With the tournament now moving onto the semi-finals, Ingham and Todd returned to face Hollington and Stuttaford. It was a clash of similar styles and similar tactics at both ends of the court. Todd and Stuttaford swept up the back of the court for their respective teams, hardly letting a ball past them down the forehand channel, while Ingham and Hollington pushed to the galleries. Ingham in particular had to pull out all of her contortionist tricks to avoid being struck by the ball or her partner. Nothing could split them in the first set which went all the way to a deciding game, with Ingham and Todd taking it having started the game at the service end. In the second set, Todd was getting the better of his exchanges with Stuttaford, with the latter playing more desperate shots trying to force the issue, but more often resulting in an error. Ingham and Todd won the second set comfortably, advancing to the final.
The other semi-final was between Bryant and Wetton, and Bollerman and Thompson. Bryant and Wetton continued their dynamic play, being one of the few pairs in the competition playing a server-up strategy. They built an early lead, but when Bollerman started to play her way into the match it quickly evaporated. Bollerman and Thompson controlled the second half of the first set, winning four back-to-back games. The second set was back-and-forth as well, first with Bryant and Wetton winning three straight games, followed by Bollerman and Thompson winning three straight games. However, they could not sustain their run, with Bryant and Wetton taking three of the last four games to force a deciding set. Tensions were high in the final, shortened, set with all four players making errors. However, it would be Bryant and Wetton who would come up trumps, with a straight force from Bryant and an error from Bollerman providing the final few points needed to secure victory.
The competition moved straight into the final, with Ingham and Todd playing Bryant and Wetton. The first set began close, with lots of clean hitting and hard-fought points. Ingham and Todd pulled away towards the end, as Todd was able to maintain his unrelenting pressure to cause errors from Bryant and Wetton, generally willing to absorb everything without overextending. Ingham kept her game tidy as well, providing enough threat at the galleries to protect Todd’s backhand corner. They ran away with the first set, prompting Wetton and Bryant to switch receivers for the second.
No change could overcome Todd’s excellent forehand strokes along the main wall, flirting with the high part of the net each time. They controlled the service end throughout the second set, seeing a match point come and go in the 5/3 game. Wetton fended it off with a grille. Moments later, the set headed for a deciding game, with Ingham and Todd at the service end. They earned another couple of championship points before feeding a hazard chase off an Ingham volley. Todd hit the next return out of court to set up a deciding point. Bryant’s serve and volley beat Todd’s forehand to sneak the set and send the championship into a decider, the pair embracing in relief.
Todd switched back on to Wetton’s serve. Bryant and Wetton held the serve for the first two games of the short set, making Ingham’s game win off Bryant’s serve even more crucial. Bryant and Wetton lost the serve with a hazard chase, with Ingham and Todd going up 5/4 before the next change of ends. Bryant and Wetton scraped the game to send the championship into one final game. It opened with a pair of short chases to Ingham and Todd, but Wetton and Bryant won both, first with a rebound into Ingham’s leg and the second with a back wall nick. A hazard chase followed, but with the following points evenly exchanged, Bryant and Wetton returned to the service end with three championship points. Todd and Ingham beat all three, including the final deciding point, with errors on Bryant’s forehand. It marked the first time either Ingham or Todd had won a Billy Ross Skinner title.
Match results:
Friday:
Group 1:
11:30 AM: Laura Neill & Geoffrey Russell def Katherine Carney & Jonathan Fisher 1/6 6/4 6/5
12:30 PM: Lauran Neill & Geoffrey Russell lost to Georgie Ingham & William Todd 0/6 1/6
1:30 PM: Katherine Carney & Jonathan Fisher lost to Georgie Ingham & William Todd 1/6 1/6
Group 2:
3:00 PM: Rachel Hollington & Henry Stuttaford def Katie Leppard & Neil Harrison-Smith 6/3 6/2
4:00 PM: Eve Shenkman & Simon Edmond def Alexandra Bryant & Max Wetton 3/6 6/5 6/5
5:00 PM: Rachel Hollington & Henry Stuttaford def Eve Shenkman & Simon Edmond 4/6 6/1 6/5
6:00 PM: Katie Leppard & Neil Harrison-Smith lost to Alexandra Bryant & Max Wetton 1/6 6/5 5/6
7:00 PM: Alexandra Bryant & Max Wetton def Eve Shenkman & Simon Edmond 6/1 5/6 6/4
Saturday:
Group 3:
9:00 AM: Saskia Bollerman & Nick Thompson def Araminta Oldham & Chris Lintott 1/6 6/2 6/5
10:00 AM: Natalie Barber & Steve Brewerton lost to Amy Pye & Richard Ramjane 6/3 4/6 5/6
11:00 AM: Saskia Bollerman & Nick Thompson def Amy Pye & Richard Ramjane 6/4 6/3
12:00 PM: Araminta Oldham & Chris Lintott def Natalie Barber & Steve Brewerton 6/5 6/3
1:00 PM: Araminta Oldham & Chris Lintott def Amy Pye & Richard Ramjane 6/1 2/6 6/3
Group 4:
2:00 PM: Tara Lumley & Ben Geytenbeek lost to Ulla Petti & Nick Wherry 3/6 1/6
3:00 PM: Sabrina Didizian & Hugo van der Meer lost to Izzy Marshall & Dan Worboys 4/6 6/4 6/4
4:00 PM: Ulla Petti & Nick Wherry lost to Izzy Marshall & Dan Worboys 4/6 1/6
5:00 PM: Tara Lumley & Ben Geytenbeek lost to Sabrina Didizian & Hugo van der Meer 3/6 6/3 6/4
6:00 PM: Sabrina Didizian & Hugo van der Meer def Ulla Petti & Nick Wherry 6/1 6/5
Sunday:
Quarter-finals:
10:00 AM: Georgie Ingham & William Todd def Araminta Oldham & Chris Lintott 6/4 6/4
11:00 AM: Rachel Hollington & Henry Stuttaford def Sabrina Didizian & Hugo van der Meer 6/1 6/5
12:00 PM: Saskia Bollerman & Nick Thompson def Laura Neill & Geoffrey Russell 4/6 6/4 6/4
1:00 PM: Izzy Marshall & Dan Worboys lost to Alexandra Bryant & Max Wetton 2/6 3/6
Semi-finals:
2:00 PM: Georgie Ingham & William Todd def Rachel Hollington & Henry Stuttaford 6/5 6/1
3:00 PM: Saskia Bollerman & Nick Thompson lost to Alexandra Bryant & Max Wetton 6/4 4/6 4/6
Final:
4:00 PM: Georgie Ingham & William Todd def Alexandra Bryant & Max Wetton 6/3 5/6 6/5