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Manchester Gold Racquet 2016

Singles Draw

Doubles Draw

Single Plate

With an enormous amount of entries, the presence of the World Champion and the World Doubles champions - the Manchester Gold Racquet 2016 was one of the most memorable in living memory. Two divisions of the singles tournament therefore operated in order to accommodate the large amount of competitors, meaning a feast of Rackets was on offer for all concerned.

Play began on Friday and continued until 2am on the Saturday morning, with the main shock of the first round draw coming in the shape of George Loup who defeated the 8th seed George Sandbach in two close games. The top 4 seeds of the doubles draw also negotiated the first round without any real hiccups, before Alex Duncliffe-Vines upset the seedings in the singles quarter finals by defeating James Coyne 2-0.

Duncliffe-Vines continued his good form by claiming the first game from Tom Billings in the semi final, however Billings' superior fitness carried him through to a 3-1 victory. On the other half of the draw Richard Owen also defeated Christian Portz 3-0 despite his opponent pushing him to the limit in 3 punishing games.

The New York pairing of Stout and Cipriano then defeated Coyne and Duncliffe-Vines 3-0 before Portz and the three time Gold Racquet winner Alex Titchener-Barrett defeated a tired Owen and Billings by the same scoreline to reach Sunday's final.

The final of the singles tournament was a superb contest between two of the rising stars of the game. Last year's winner Richard Owen explosively won the first two games by returning serve expertly and taking the ball early in the rallies. However, blisters hampered his progress in the third and fourth games with Billings finding a better length on his service and retrieving relentlessly. In the end, Billings romped away in the 5th game to claim his first Gold Racquet title to the delight of the packed Manchester gallery.

The doubles final had been eagerly anticipated and it did not disappoint with James Stout's power on the forehand side being defended superbly by Portz and Peter Cipriano more than holding his own in his first experience of a British tournament. The British pair managed to edge the first two games despite rallies of prolonged excellence before holding firm in the third game to claim victory in straight games.

The organiser of the tournament, Brendan Hegarty, was praised for ensuring that the event ran smoothly despite the abundance of entries. It was also particularly pleasing to see members from both New York and Detroit taking part in the tournament and it is hoped that the Gold Racquet next year will prove similarly successful.

Results

Singles

Final

• Billings bt Owen 6/15 10/15 15/3 15/0 15/4

Semi-finals

• Owen bt Portz 15/11 15/9 15/9
• Billings bt Duncliffe-Vines 8/15 15/4 15/5 15/8

Quarter-finals

• Billings bt T. Bomford 15/3 15/2
• Duncliffe-Vines bt Coyne 18/17 15/4
• Portz bt Cipriano 15/11 15/2
• Owen bt Loup 15/6 15/6

First Round

• T. Bomford bt Shields 15/11 15/10
• Portz bt Key 15/0 15/0
• Coyne bt Shenkman 15/9 15/10
• Duncliffe-Vines bt Tancer 15/6 15/7
• Billings bt Rock 15/3 15/4
• Loup bt Sandbach 15/12 15/13
• Owen bt Long 15/5 5/8
• Cipriano bt Maxwell 15/7 18/14

Doubles

Final

• ATB & Portz bt Stout & Cipriano 15/10 15/10 15/10

Semi-finals

• ATB & Portz bt Coyne & ADV 15/1 15/4 15/9
• Stout & Cipriano bt Billings & Owen 15/7 12/15 15/9 15/4

Quarter-finals

• Billings & Owen bt Barton & Hande 15/10 15/3
• Stout & Cipriano bt Long & Loup 15/5 15/11
• Coyne & ADV bt Shenkman & Bomford 17/14 15/3
• ATB & Portz bt Sandbach & Rock 15/2 15/4

First Round

• Barton & Hande bt Adkins & Shields 15/12 15/9
• Stout & Cipriano bt Stamp & Symonds 15/1 15/0
• Coyne & ADV bt Jamieson-Blacks 15/8 15/11
• Long & Loup bt Key & Rowell 15/7 18/15
• Shenkman & Bomford bt Bebb & Harding 15/1 15/2
• ATB & Portz bt Tancer & T. Cawston 15/2 15/5
• Billings & Owen bt Maxwell & B. Cawston 15/5 15/4
• Sandbach & Rock bt Hyde & Wakeley 15/9 15/9

Singles Plate

Final

Semi-finals

Quarter-finals

• Rowell bt Jono J-B 15/9 12/15 15/13
• Hande bt Stamp 21/11
• Adkins bt Barton 21/17
• Cawston bt Hyde 21/6

First Round

• Jono J-B bt Wakeley 12/15 15/1 17/14
• B. Cawston bt Harding 15/4 15/7
• Barton bt Jamie J-B 15/13 12/15 15/9
• Hande bt Symonds 15/7 15/9