The Men’s Open Doubles final of the Trophy Stall Doubles tennis tournament was a one-sided affair in the first set. Anthony Downes and Jason Andrews unleashed a plethora of serves and volleys that quickly pushed the junior team of Heimraj Resaul/Jordan Beaton to the breaking point of 5-0.
That fast approaching bagel unnerved the juniors who tactfully set up a few points to create a slight opening. Resaul/Beaton’s flat forehands penetrated the net play of the agile seniors, rewarding them with a service and a break to go up two games. But the seniors regrouped, cleaned up their act and took the first set 6-2.
“I think we settled in and we were able to play better. We started to apply more pressure and started our offensive strategy and stopped playing defense,” Resaul expressed. This was evident in second set.
Resaul/Beaton found their rhythm and challenged the seniors. This proved fruitful with the set neck and neck up to 5-5. Downes did not enjoy this challenge and dropped a service game with well placed serves to take a 6-5 lead.
Resaul then served hoping to take the match into a tie breaker. But after looking very confident and saving two match points, the team again made a few unforced errors and was unable to deliver.
Downes/Andrews clenched their first Trophy Stall Doubles title with their 6-2, 7-5 win, but together this is their fourth title having never lost a set. It is also clear that their young opponents are poised to have a bright future ahead and they have already sounded a warning bell to the champions.
The tournament will close with the final of the Men’s Over-35 match between top Berbicians Godfrey Lowden and Tony Ameerally against Sandeep Chand and Alex Almeida.
