by ITTF-Oceania

The U21 Team events finalists have been found. Australia and New Zealand will face off in the men’s event, while Australia and New Caledonia will come toe to toe in the women’s.

Both promise to provide an action packed evening of table tennis.

Australia will be out for revenge in the U21 Men’s Team final. New Zealand defeated the Aussies in the group stage 5-0. That scoreline is as convincing as they come. But look a little closer and you’ll see that four of the five matches went in to the fifth game. The winner of tonight’s final is anything but certain. The Australians will not be keen to lose twice in a row on home turf.

Watch to see two heated benches getting vocal from love all.

Meanwhile in the U21 Women’s Team event, Australia will go in as clear favourite. They won both their group matches 5-0 and have solid depth in their team. Parleen Kaur has had a wealth of experience in the last four months, competing at the ITTF Team World Cup and the ITTF World Junior Championships, so won’t be phased by the hunt for gold. Meanwhile Matilda Alexandersson is top seed for the singles event, and will be looking to finish off the teams in good form.

On New Caledonia’s side of the court, Lorie La will be their wildcard. The dainty La has the persona of a teddy bear on the court; that’s until she smashes her forehand. The New Caledonia packs a punch, and if her powerful smash is on song, she can be up points very quickly.

The other player in the lineup will be Solenn Danger.

Danger will be looking to find the form that took her to a bronze medal at last year’s ITTF-Oceania Cup. She will look to cover the majority of the court with her backhand. It’s a safe shot, but she will need to take a few risks on the forehand half if she is to trouble the Australians.

If New Caledonia come out firing and the Aussies get nervous, the match could get tight.

Check out the full results here.