by Simon Daish
Worcester has been selected to host the tournament as Europe’s brightest young stars make the trip to England in the hunt to secure continental glory.
Four players will represent the host nation England including Charlotte Bardsley, who lives near Worcester and has qualified for the Cadet Girls’ Singles competition.
“I’m really excited for the competition. It’s a great opportunity and I think I’ve got a good chance. I was 15th in the rankings so it shows I’m there or thereabouts and hopefully I can prove something”, Charlotte Bardsley.
However, England’s best hope of receiving silverware at the event arguably lies with Tom Jarvis who demonstrated some of his superb talent at the recent Stag 2017 European Youth Championships.
Seeded fifth for the Junior Boys’ Singles category in Worcester, Jarvis is hoping to make full use of the home advantage and has his eye on avenging his recent defeat suffered against Romanian competitor Cristian Pletea who has been named as the top seed
“It’s the most prestigious European tournament there is for my age group. It will be nice to play in England with a home crowd and hopefully that will help me play better. I’ll be trying to follow on from a good European Youths and it would be good to get revenge over Pletea – but all the players there are good players”, Tom Jarvis.
Denise Payet will represent England in the Junior Girls’ Singles tournament earning a spot at the Europe Youth Top 10 as a home nation competitor and the country’s top ranked player in the category is excited to take to the stage in Worcester.
“I’m really looking forward to it, it’s going to be a great event. I can’t wait to show what I can do. It will be a really big challenge but I’ll be able to see how challenging the standard is and hopefully it will help me to become better”, Denise Payet.
The other player to receive a host nation place at the event is Ethan Walsh, who will compete in the Cadet Boys’ Singles draw.
“I feel good about facing the top players because I don’t have any pressure on me at all and I can go out there and play my own game and relax. I think at first I’ll be quite nervous but I think it will be all right and it will actually help me having the support of the home crowd”, Ethan Walsh.
Source: Table Tennis England
