Taylor-Matthews firms World Race slot with win over Virgona at Champions Trophy
Fahey into semis with three-set win over Howell
Ben Taylor-Matthews has moved one step closer to securing his place in the 2027 World Championship Eliminators, following a victory over his nearest rival Steve Virgona at the Champions Trophy at the Royal Tennis Court on Thursday. Meanwhile, Robert Fahey has secured his slot in the semi-finals with a three-set victory over first seed, Nick Howell.
The main draw began with a rematch from two years prior — qualifier Nino Merola took on sixth seed Bryn Sayers. Sayers had withdrawn from that encounter after the first set, the last he played before his hip replacement. The initial play was very tactical, with both players opting for slower, tight railroads. Play had to be suspended midway through the fourth game as Sayers took a chunk out of the battery wall on the return. Merola had the better start, having points for a 4/1 lead after playing Sayers up and down the battery wall. But Sayers adapted to the pace of the court, increasing the pace of his shots to counteract the slow pace of the floor. Merola had to cling on defensively to steal the next pair of games, biding his time before an opportunity presented to reposte with a winner. But Sayers kept attacking, sending the set into a deciding game. Having spent most of the set pushing balls into Sayers’s backhand, Merola sent two disguised balls into his forehand instead, earning a point and two short chases and seemingly the advantage in the game. But Sayers beat better than a yard on the floor to nullify the advantage. Sayers put three balls deep into Merola’s backhand for two chases and a point himself. Merola beat better than a yard with a straight force to bring up set point, but he couldn’t convert the three yard chase. Sayers took the set with two winners down the main wall.
Having spent the first set scattering balls around the grille, Sayers opened the second set with back to back shots into the square opening. Across the set, the extra fraction that Sayers was extracting from his shots was enough to maintain the advantage. His target hitting was more accurate, hitting a dozen over the set as compared to a scant few in the first. Merola kept battling but it was ultimately in vain, with Sayers progressing through.
The second of the elimination quarter-finals was between Robert Shenkman and Vaughan Hamilton. Hamilton had had the better of Shenkman in their previous encounter at the Jesmond Dene Cup earlier in the season, so Shenkman was keen to make his fifth seed status felt. Shenkman was clinical in his execution, barely making an error. It pushed Hamilton to overextend on balls that weren’t there for the taking. Shenkman was ready to punish any mistakes, building a big lead in the first set. With nothing left to lose, Hamilton dialled the attack to the maximum, launching himself at every ball he could and pushing Shenkman back onto the defensive. He pulled back a couple of games but Shenkman had enough of a buffer to take the set. Hamilton had the initiative at the start of the second set, but Shenkman was able to suffocate his play instead. Visibly annoyed, Hamilton threw his racket after the ball, spraying shots all over but Shenkman was unphased. He methodically worked through the set, winning the match and moving on to the next round.
The second session saw the non-elimination quarter-finals, with previous winners Nick Howell and Robert Fahey doing battle. Both were keen to get off to a strong start, with the format rewarding the player who can encourage the other to submit and preserve energy for their repechage match. The first game went to seven deuces, with all three targets getting a workout. They were never separated by more than a game throughout the first set, with both players exercising their world-class forces. Eventually they reached a deciding game, with Howell earning a couple of set points with his big cut-volleys. Fahey defended both, taking the game to deuce. Howell brought up another set point with a dedans, before Fahey lost the set with a ball onto the bandeau, losing a second gallery chase.
Fahey’s response to dropping the first set was to go harder at the second. He wowed the crowd with his quick hands, scarcely believable shots, and pinpoint accurate shooting. He piled on the games, with the set passing in the blink of an eye. By the end, Howell was only mustering a token defence of Fahey’s forces, saving his reserves for the final set. He then switched on again, fighting hard and eventually having a chance for a 3/0 lead. However, playing a better-than-last gallery chase, his shot instead slid into the gallery. Fahey was keen to see the job done, pouncing on any slight error in Howell’s railroad and slamming them into the main wall. By the end of the match, one in three of his winning points came from winning openings. Even as he tired in his retrieval, his ability to keep the points short sufficed for victory, securing his slot in the semi-finals.
The last match carried with it big implications for the World Championship Race, with both Ben Taylor-Matthews and Steve Virgona fighting it out for the fourth spot in the eliminators. Ahead of the tournament, Taylor-Matthews held a six-thousand point advantage, and should he walk away from the tournament with more points than his rival, he would be able to pencil in his slot with three tournaments remaining. For Virgona, if he made the final and saw Taylor-Matthews bundled out in his two matches, over half of the deficit would have been erased.
Taylor-Matthews was faster out of the gate, immediately finding a good length on his shots, including beating some very short chases, and getting his railroad to spin tight. He took the first three games of the match before Virgona started to play into the match. Virgona worked Taylor-Matthews side-to-side over and over, but the Westwood professional was up to the task. Despite the adventurous strokeplay from Virgona, as the scoreboard ticked against him, so did the errors. He never stopped fighting, but Taylor-Matthews refused to give him an opening, holding on to win the set.
Virgona seized the initiative for the start of the second set, sending bullet after bullet at Taylor-Matthews. He saw off the initial challenge before the pair locked horns in their epic duel. Taylor-Matthews pushed ahead again, but Virgona was not going to give him any easy games. Taylor-Matthews was stretched defensively, but the form held. With Virgona’s attack now nullified, Taylor-Matthews pushed ahead. He benefited from a pair of double fault railroads from Virgona, the latter of which gave Taylor-Matthews his first match point. Taylor-Matthews didn’t need further invitation, winning the match and avoiding the repechage bracket for the first time since 2023.
Play continues on Friday, where the losers of the non-elimination matches will play the winners of the elimination matches. The winners of the non-elimination matches progress through to play in the semi-finals on Saturday.
Match results:
1:30 PM: Bryn Sayers (6) def Nino Merola (Q) 6/5 6/3
2:45 PM: Robert Shenkman (5) def Vaughan Hamilton (Q) 6/3 6/2
5:30 PM: Nick Howell (1) lost to Robert Fahey (3) 6/5 0/6 4/6
6:45 PM: Ben Taylor-Matthews (2) def Steve Virgona (4) 6/4 6/3
Order of play for Friday (all times BST):
5:00 PM: Bryn Sayers (6) vs Nick Howell (1)
6:15 PM: Robert Shenkman (5) vs Steve Virgona (4)