THE DEFENDING CHAMPIONS IN THE LAST FOUR
22 Apr 2023 | News |
The defending champions in the last four
THE CESTA ALL STAR SEMI-FINALISTS ARE KNOWN. TAMBOURINDÉGUY-LOPEZ WILL TRY TO QUALIFY FOR A SECOND FINAL IN A ROW.
The last games of the qualifying phase were played Thursday evening, at jai alai in Saint-Jean-de-Luz. The first meeting opposed in group B Erkiaga-Zabala to Laduche-Lekerika. The latter had their backs to the wall and had to win their game in two sets to hope to qualify for the semi-finals on goal average. Laduche-Lekerika got off to a flying start in the first set, leading from the start 7-1. Jon Zabala had trouble getting into his game, unlike Laduche-Lekerika who had a strategy well in place, as Ludovic Laduche points out: "we wanted to avoid Aritz, which we did well at the start because the balls weren't too hot so we could force as much as we wanted, it didn't happen to him". A tactic that allowed them to pocket the first set 15-8.
In the second set, however, Jon Zabala raised his level of play and above all committed fewer unforced errors. Aritz Erkiaga had more balls and therefore more chances to finish the point. The sentence was immediate and Laduche-Lekerika lost this second set 15-7. In the third set, Erkiaga-Zabala again dominated their opponents to win 5-2. "We got off to a bad start. We knew we were 20 points short of qualifying. We didn't need to win and that hurt us. We were under no pressure so we played calm and badly, ”underlines Aritz Erkiaga. Thanks to this victory, Erkiaga-Zabala are in the semi-finals. For his part, Ludovic Laduche ends this All Star with a certain disappointment: “I'm very disappointed to have failed in the first game which put us directly in difficulty. Even if there is the defeat on this second part, I am happy to have made a better performance”.
The second part of Thursday evening was decisive for the classification of pool A. Olharan-Minvielle and Tambourindéguy-Lopez played for first place in pool. It was Olharan-Minvielle who won after a fierce game. The two teams went blow for blow throughout the meeting. In the first round, Olharan-Minvielle easily won 15-8 but Tambourindéguy-Lopez showed good resistance. They also won the second set 15-6. Led from the start of the inning, Olharan-Minvielle kept their energy for the third and final set, which they won 5-1. “I was very scared the first three points, we took terrible attacks. It stung a lot of Tuesday and in the end, once we managed to make the exchanges last,
The semi-finals will be played on Tuesday 25 and Friday 28 April from 7:15 p.m. As a curtain raiser, at 6 p.m., place for women.
Program
Tuesday April 25 – Semi-finals
6 p.m.: 1st women's semi-final
7:15 p.m.: Goikoetxea-Inza vs. Olharan-Minvielle
Friday April 28 – Semi-finals
6 p.m.: 2nd women's semi-final
7:15 p.m.: Erkiaga-Zabala vs. Tambourindéguy-Lopez
