Element Turns On The Style To Become Current Masters Champion

On a night of high level of table tennis Richard Element became the Worksop Masters Champion for 2018. The annual event now in its second year was held at Stanley Street Club with a great turnout of spectators who enjoyed some exquisite skill, attacking table tennis and high drama!
The six players who had qualified for the event all came from the top end of Division One and were split into two groups of three with the winner of each group going on to contest the final with all matches being umpired by our qualified umpire Chris Clemson.
Group ‘A’ consisted of Chris Cattell, Tom McIntosh and Richard Element whilst Group B had the defending champion Ernest Mpundu and the new kids on the block in Valentinas and Martynas Riauba.
The evening started with the introduction from Andy Lee the Chairman of the Worksop League who thanked the leagues sponsors Robert and David Hooton from DTH Engineering for not only attending but for also putting up the prize money for the event.
Richard Element and Chris Cattell got proceedings under way in Group A with Element registering a comfortable 3-0 win although he was made to work hard in the third game winning it 16-14.
Next up was the defending champion Ernest Mpundu in the first Group B game and he was soon under the cosh against Martynas Riauba losing the first two games. Mpundu won the next game to reduce the deficit but looked to be dead and buried in the next game as he found himself 10-7 down but somehow managed to haul himself out of the hole he found himself in and take the next 5 points to win it 12-10 and in doing so took the match into a deciding set. Mpundu came out firing and soon took control of the game as he went into a 5-1 lead, a lead that he wouldn’t relinquish finally taking it 11-6 to head group B.
The focus for the next game was back on Group A with Tom McIntosh making his first appearance of the evening up against Chris Cattell with Cattell winning a close first game 11-9 before McIntosh got into his stride playing some quality table tennis and he rattled off the next three games to knock Cattell out of the competition.
Next up was the battle of The Riauba brothers Martynas and Valentinas in Group B and the match was full of quality table tennis which is testament to just how far the Riauba brothers have come over the last few years. Martynas took a fabulous first game 18-16 before Valentinas hit back to take the next two games to get his nose in front but any thoughts of a quick victory were soon dispelled as Martynas took the fourth game to take the match into a deciding set. Valentinas streaked into a 6-1 lead and looked like winning it very comfortably before Martynas started to claw his way back into it and to start to worry his brother, so much so that he took a time out to compose himself before going on to win it 11-7.
Both final group games would decide who would make this year’s final and that fact wasn’t lost on the players as they all upped their games once again. In Group A Richard Element and Tom McIntosh had a right old ding dong with Element taking the first game 11-9 only to see McIntosh win the next two 13-11, 11-7 to get himself in front but Element was soon back on level terms as he won the fourth 11-5 to take the contest into a deciding set. Both players were now firing on all cylinders with both playing well but there had to be a loser and on this occasion it was to be McIntosh with Element winning the decider by the narrowest of margins 11-9 to get through to the final.
The final match in Group B between Ernest Mpundu and Valentinas Riauba was a repeat of the Open Singles Final from a few weeks ago which Mpundu won but lightening was not going to strike twice and the defending champion found himself knocked out of the competition. Valentinas took the first game 11-6 with Mpundu levelling the match by taking the next game 11-5 but that was the end of  the wins for Mpundu as Valentinas took the next two games 12-10, 11-5 to make the final on his debut in the competition.
The final between Valentinas Riauba and Element promised to be a superb match and it didn’t disappoint with both players hitting some superb shots but it was Element who had the edge on this particular occasion and he soon took charge of the final by winning the first two games 11-7, 12-10. Riauba did hit back to take a fabulous third game by winning it 13-11 before Element took complete control of the match with some deft touches around the table and it was all a bit too much for Valentinas and Element won the fourth game 11-3 and with it the match to be crowned Worksop Masters Champion 2018 on a night of superb table tennis.