by Simon Daish
One of the standout results of the day came in the upper half of the Round of 32 draw, as Turkish contestant Abdullah Talha Yigenler registered a shock win against the 13th seed Bastien Rembert.
Right from the start of the match Abdullah Talha Yigenler was the stronger of the two players, and deservedly prevailed against his French opponent (11-6, 11-6, 13-11, 8-11, 13-11) to set up a last 16 fixture with England’s Tom Jarvis.
The highest seeded player to exit the Junior Boys’ Singles event on day eight in Guimarães was Azerbaijan’s Yang Xinyu.
Seeded in fifth position Yang Xinyu was expected to be a contender for the title heading into the tournament, but his campaign has been cut short following his seven games defeat to Russia’s Lev Katsman (11-3, 9-11, 7-11, 13-11, 11-8, 8-11, 9-11).
There was also a stunning exit for the sixth seed Florian Cnudde, who lost out to German representative Gerrit Engemann (8-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-13, 11-7, 4-11) while Cnudde’s Belgian compatriot Valentin Pieraert struggled to keep up with French player Irvin Bertrand.
Ioannis Sgouropoulos of Greece saw to it that Belgium’s hopes of reaching the Round of 16 were ended, after the number four seeded athlete emerged triumphant against Laurens Devos (11-6, 13-11, 11-3, 11-7).
“I did not have any problems at all. So far it has been a good season for me. I was at the World Championships this year with the senior team and it helped me gain experience”, Ioannis Sgouropoulos.
The upsets weren’t just restricted to the Junior Boys’ Singles category, as the Junior Boys’ Doubles competition also produced a couple of standout outcomes on Friday 21st July.
Denmark’s Andreas Dilling and Martin Andersen have extended their journey in the tournament following a dramatic victory in their match against the French third seeds Irvin Bertrand and Jules Rolland (8-11, 12-10, 14-12, 13-11), while Italy’s Gabriele Piciulin and Ukraine’s Vsevolod Broiakovskyi came out on top against the 10th seeded combination of Leo De Nodrest and Medardas Stankevicius (2-11, 13-11, 11-13, 11-9, 11-8) of France and Lithuania respectively.
Stag 2017 European Youth Championships: Results – Friday 21st July
