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I Dig Sports
All the challenges facing Frank Vogel, LeBron and the Lakers
Published in
Basketball
Saturday, 11 May 2019 17:41
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NBA coaching hires typically fit into two categories of power profile: strong or weak.
There are also generally two kinds of general managers working in the league: those who make decisions aimed at keeping their jobs and those who are determined to do things their way, even if it comes with the risk of failure.
Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka made it clear which type of executive he wants to be in hiring head coach Frank Vogel, who made it clear where he falls on the coaching power spectrum.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, Pelinka got Vogel to take a three-year deal, and Vogel agreed to take on Jason Kidd as lead assistant coach. In the wake of Magic Johnson's exit from the team, this move establishes Pelinka as a powerful voice in the Lakers' organization. How long he'll keep that spot will perhaps be shaped by this choice. Vogel wanted the Lakers' job more than he wanted the power. Ty Lue, who rejected Pelinka's terms earlier this week, valued control more than he wanted this gig.
This very well could be a sliding doors moment. There are big names, a big job and a legacy franchise involved. This result could go any direction. It could be the basis of a turnaround. It could be a disaster. Lue's passing on the job could end up being prudent. Or it could end up being a mistake.
Let's get four things out of the way here:
Anyone who erroneously believed LeBron James was influencing the coach hire can drop that notion.
Pelinka's process has put Vogel in a challenging position.
Vogel has excelled in a challenging position before.
Until we see how the lottery and NBA draft play out -- and then see what the Lakers do with their $35 million in salary-cap space -- it's hard to know how strongly the Lakers will enter next season.
The coaching hire was a huge step for Pelinka. No matter how it might be spun, Vogel was at least the third choice. But retrofitting the roster around James is far and away Pelinka's bigger job this offseason. James can work with various coaches. What he really wants is to have a winning team constructed.
This wasn't the cleanest process, and it didn't exactly inspire confidence. Vogel has allies in the league, but he is not a classic free-agent draw. For Pelinka to give Vogel any chance, he's going to need major lottery luck or a much more executable plan for free agency than he had for the coaching hire.
The history of coaches with powerful assistants succeeding is spotty. For example, this is similar to the position in which the Cleveland Cavaliers put David Blatt in 2014.
The Cavs made Blatt, a coach with success on his résumé but limited power because he didn't have NBA experience, take Lue as his lead assistant. Lue had interviewed for the Cavs' job. The team liked him and wanted to pair the two together. There were some other dynamics also at play, including ownership and the front office disagreeing on the hire.
Blatt didn't walk in with James' respect. James felt more of a connection to the former player who sat next to Blatt. Within weeks, it was clear James preferred to deal with Lue over Blatt, and it set the stage for Lue to eventually replace Blatt.
Vogel has a real track record as a head coach in the NBA, especially his five seasons as head coach of the Indiana Pacers. Nonetheless, James and his Miami Heat team repeatedly beat Indiana in the playoffs. Although Vogel and the Pacers played James and the Heat tough, Miami never really feared them. In Orlando, Vogel had a disappointing and forgettable two years and was fired.
Vogel will come into the season with Kidd, one of the runners-up for the job, on his hip. James has long respected Kidd, and they won a gold medal together at the 2008 Olympics. Kidd was a veteran presence on the "Redeem Team" that year, and that experience largely shaped James as he was learning to be a leader. He won his first Most Valuable Player Award the next season.
Regardless of how James feels about his head coach, there is no way his respect for Vogel will match the level of his respect for Kidd -- at least not right away. How could it? James will naturally be connected to Kidd because of their relationship and Kidd's success in the league playing both against and with James.
But Vogel has been here before. He was in as weak of a position as any coach when he was named a midseason interim in Indiana in 2011. Few believed Vogel was more than a substitute teacher put in place to finish that season.
But he took over for Jim O'Brien and stunned the league with his confidence and leadership. His ability to corral and inspire a headstrong group of players that included David West, Paul George, Roy Hibbert and George Hill was commendable. When the Pacers let him go, he was hired by the Magic within days.
There is no question that Vogel can impress in an interview. He's one of the refugees of the video room, where great coaches such as Erik Spoelstra and Mike Budenholzer started their careers, and that has earned him a reputation for being a good tactician.
But being a success in this job would probably be the greatest accomplishment of his career.
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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The New York Yankees were frustrated by their play, and by slugger Luke Voit getting hit yet again.
Willy Adames and Ji-Man Choi had run-scoring infield singles in the sixth after tempers flared during the top of the inning when reliever Yonny Chirinos hit Voit on the left shoulder, and the American League East-leading Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees on 7-2 Saturday night.
Yandy Diaz homered twice and drove in four runs for the Rays, who reopened a 1½-game lead over the Yankees.
Voit was hit by Chirinos (5-1) one batter after DJ LeMahieu's tying solo homer.
"It's frustrating," said Voit, who didn't speculate on whether he was thrown at intentionally. "He can hit me anywhere else. This one is up and in. It's a situation that can be career-ending. He's a sinkerballer. and that was pretty straight."
Although there were no on-field incidents after Voit was hit, Yankees starter CC Sabathia went to the top of the Yankees dugout and yelled toward Tampa Bay players.
In his final start last season, Sabathia was ejected at Tropicana Field and given a five-game suspension for hitting Jesus Sucre with a pitch after Rays pitcher Andrew Kittredge threw a pitch behind Austin Romine.
"It's just the same thing, you hit a home run and then they throw up and in," Sabathia said. "It's stupid."
Voit has been hit five times; only Kansas City's Alex Gordon with eight has more among AL players.
Jonathan Holder (2-1) was warming up in the Yankees bullpen during the top of the sixth preparing to come in for Sabathia, who gave up two runs, three hits and four walks in five innings.
Avisail Garcia greeted Holder with a single and advanced to third on a stolen base and a throwing error by Gary Sanchez, whose seven errors are the most among big league catchers. LeMahieu, a Gold Glove infielder, could not get his glove down to receive the throw.
"I should have had Gary's ball," LeMahieu said.
Guillermo Heredia walked, and Garcia scored on Adames' single to LeMahieu, who was shifted and gloved the ball on the shortstop side of second base. LeMahieu made a sliding backhand stop on the outfield grass, but the ball popped into the air as he tried to throw. The left-handed-hitting Choi followed with a bouncer to LeMahieu in short right field and beat the second baseman's one-hop throw. Heredia kept running and scored from second on the hit as the ball bounced away from Voit at first.
Sanchez was hit hard on his catching helmet by Heredia's backswing in the eighth. Sanchez stayed in the game and underwent postgame tests.
"Feel good right now," Sanchez said through an interpreter. "Got to wait and see how I feel tomorrow."
With the Yankees' bullpen short after being used extensively the previous two days, manager Aaron Boone brought in Nestor Cortes Jr. in the seventh, the 36th player and 17th pitcher used by New York this season. The 24-year-old left-hander gave up a three-run homer to Diaz in the eighth.
Cortes was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after the game, an indication right-hander Chad Green could be recalled after three appearances for the International League club to regain his mechanics.
Garcia homered in the second and Diaz added a third-inning shot off Sabathia, who has allowed eight homers over 30⅓ innings in six starts.
Diaz has nine homers. In parts of two previous seasons, he went deep one time.
"I've actually surprised myself," Diaz said through an interpreter. "I've never had those numbers in the past, but I'm swinging hard and I've been getting good results."
Clint Frazier hit an RBI double in the fifth, when Mike Tauchman into an inning-ending double play with runners at the corners.
DOUBLE CATCH
Tommy Pham made two catches on one play in the fourth inning. The Rays left fielder caught Brett Gardner's fly ball and then used his bare hand soon after to grab a contact lens that popped out. Pham, who went 0-for-4, was on the field postgame hitting balls at home plate off a tee.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Yankees: Center fielder Aaron Hicks (back strain), expected back Monday, went 3-for-4 with two doubles and a homer for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. ... Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki (strained left calf) is scheduled to resume hitting and defensive drills during the upcoming week. ... Designated hitter/outfielder Giancarlo Stanton (left biceps/shoulder) is doing limited baseball activities. ... Sanchez was hit by Heredia's backswing in the eighth.
Rays: Right-hander Tyler Glasnow (6-1), who left his start Friday night in the sixth inning, is expected to miss four to six weeks with a right forearm strain. Glasnow will not throw for seven to 10 days.
UP NEXT
Yankees RHP: Masahiro Tanaka (2-3) will start Sunday's series finale against Rays LHP Blake Snell (3-3).
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Giants pitcher Derek Holland has criticized San Francisco's front office and says he faked an injury that led to a recent stint on the injured list.
Holland was demoted to the bullpen following a 5-4 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday night then said he has "no idea what they're doing" in the front office.
The veteran left-hander gave up seven runs in 2⅔ innings Thursday during a 12-11 loss to Colorado, his first outing after going on the IL because of a left index finger bone bruise.
Holland said he "did a fake injury" and that he's "not happy about that." He specified that his frustration is with the front office and not manager Bruce Bochy. He said "they keep changing a lot of the things'' and "at the end of the day, I'm going to do whatever they ask me to do."
Farhan Zaidi, the team's president of baseball operations, told the San Francisco Chronicle later Saturday that the injury was legitimate.
"His use of the word 'fake' probably comes from him feeling he could continue to pitch with it," Zaidi said.
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Cubs duo on the comeback trail step up, snap Brewers' streak
Published in
Baseball
Saturday, 11 May 2019 18:55
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CHICAGO -- Everyone loves a redemption story, and the Chicago Cubs have two of them going on right now. Both showed up Saturday, with catcher Willson Contreras hitting a 15th-inning walk-off home run against the Milwaukee Brewers to make a winner out of formerly much-maligned pitcher Tyler Chatwood.
Let's start with the right-hander, who came out of the bullpen to pitch four innings, keeping the Brewers off the scoreboard from the 12th through the 15th. Chatwood led the majors in walks last year, with 95 in 103 innings. The Cubs banished him to the pen, where he has reemerged and thrived this season. His walk percentage has gone from a whopping 20 percent to under 15, as he has been filling up the zone with some nastiness.
"Last year I knew I didn't lose my stuff," Chatwood said after the Cubs' 2-1 win Saturday. "I didn't have a good year, but my stuff was still there. I had some of the best stuff but wasn't able to throw it over the plate."
It's true. Chatwood can spin the ball with the best of them while firing up a 97 mph fastball. Finally, that has come into play for him in a Cubs uniform, and the team is reaping the unexpected rewards.
The same can be said of Willson Contreras, who hit just 10 home runs last season. Guess what? Saturday's walk-off long ball was already his 10th of 2019.
Where Chatwood has done a good job of making a bad number get smaller, Contreras is doing the opposite, making a small number get really big. His home run rate has jumped from 1.8 percent to more than 7 percent.
"To be honest, I didn't think about having a great start like this one," Contreras said. "I did put my focus and work into [a better] mindset. That took me out of my game plan last year. I put a lot of pressure on myself to match the homers or RBIs from the year before. It didn't work out, but I was glad I was able to fail that way and learn from it."
Entering the season, both Contreras and Chatwood were considered X factors on the Cubs' roster. Fans had some faith that the catcher could return to form, but there was little hope for Chatwood. He worked hard in the winter to turn his career back around.
"I'm seeing the benefits," Chatwood said. "I just have to keep going."
The same can be said for the Cubs, who snapped Milwaukee's seven-game win streak on Saturday. The NL Central race is so tight that no team can afford a tilted season series against one opponent. The Brewers had been trending in the right direction against the Cubs, winning three of four games to begin this season after taking the division title in Game 163 last year. If Saturday is a good indication, though, the final 14 games between these two teams should be plenty of fun.
On this day, the guy who had to crouch for 15 innings said, "Enough is enough." Through a drizzling rain -- and to the delight of his starting pitcher on the day -- Contreras continued to make his comeback tour epic.
"I know the type of power that he has and the threat that he is," Cole Hamels said, still cold from a long, freezing spring day. "We were all talking about. I don't think he wanted to go out there for a 16th inning."
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Madrid Open: Simona Halep misses out on number one ranking with final loss to Kiki Bertens
Published in
Tennis
Saturday, 11 May 2019 12:13
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Romania's Simona Halep missed out on regaining the world number one ranking as she lost the Madrid Open final to Kiki Bertens.
A win would have seen Halep overtake world number one Naomi Osaka but she lost 6-4 6-4.
The title is the biggest of Bertens' career and she will climb to fourth in the rankings on Monday, making her the highest-ranked Dutchwoman in history.
She also becomes the first woman to win in Madrid without dropping a set.
Halep is the fourth Grand Slam champion Bertens has beaten during the tournament and will now been seen as one of the favourites for the French Open, which begins in two weeks.
Both players struggled to hold serve with eight breaks across the two sets - three to Halep and five to Bertens - but the Dutchwoman was the more dominant.
Last year's runner-up hit 25 winners and four aces with her forehand in particular causing problems.
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Rafael Nadal beaten by Stefanos Tsitsipas in Madrid Open semi-final
Published in
Tennis
Saturday, 11 May 2019 16:01
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Rafael Nadal's bid for a sixth Madrid Open is over after he was beaten by Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-final.
Greek 20-year-old Tsitsipas, the eighth seed, came through 6-4 2-6 6-3 in a thrilling encounter.
He will play top seed Novak Djokovic in Sunday's final after the Serb earlier overcame Austrian Dominic Thiem 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-4).
Nadal's defeat on the Madrid clay comes just two weeks before he bids for a 12th French Open title in Paris.
Tsitsipas, one of the most exciting young players in the game, beat Roger Federer at this year's Australian Open and, though he had never beaten Nadal, produced a brilliant performance to see off the Spaniard on his favourite surface.
Nadal's defeat was his third straight semi-final exit on clay after losing to Fabio Fognini in the Monte Carlo Masters and Thiem in the Barcelona Open.
Tsitsipas said: "It means the world, it's really nice to be able to play this way, it's an unbelievable feeling.
"I had to show mental discipline, and being tough and decisive in those crucial moments was key, I had to take all opportunities because Rafa is a fighter, he doesn't give you many points."
Tsitsipas, who beat Djokovic in the Rogers Cup in Toronto last August, said he was looking forward to another match with the Serbian.
"I'll have to be mentally prepared for Djokovic, I'm sure he wants the title as badly as me."
The Greek made a fine start against Nadal, breaking the Spaniard's serve three times in the opening set, but the 17-time Grand Slam champion looked to have swung the match in his favour by winning four straight games at the end of the second.
Tsitsipas saved break points early in the third and then earned a break of his own to move to move 3-2 in front before another soon after took him 5-2 ahead.
Nadal then denied Tsitsipas when his opponent was serving for the match before the contest ended with a thrilling final game.
Nadal saved Tsitsipas' first match point at 30-40 before hitting a sensational pick-up winner and a fine drop shot to see off two more, leaving his home crowd gasping in disbelief.
But when the Spaniard hit a volley into the net on the following point to give Tsitsipas a fourth match point, the Greek closed out the match.
Djokovic finding form before Paris
World number one Djokovic reached his third Madrid final earlier on Saturday with a gruelling win over Thiem.
The match lasted two hours and 24 minutes and secured Djokovic a first clay-court final of the season.
Thiem, the runner-up in the previous two Madrid finals, led by a break in both sets but Djokovic fought back to win.
Elsewhere, Roger Federer has confirmed he will play in next week's Italian Open as he continues to build-up to his first French Open for four years.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion played his first clay-court event in three years in Madrid, reaching the quarter-finals before losing to Thiem.
Federer has never won in Rome and will receive a first-round bye for the tournament which begins on Monday.
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Suffering defeat in all three of their previous Champions League finals, however, KTS Enea Siarka Tarnobrzeg were well placed heading into the 2nd leg of this year’s final having established a narrow, but important, 3-2 lead in the opening leg.
Making a dream start, visitors Tarnobrzeg sailed into a commanding 2-0 lead in the 2nd leg as Han Ying and Elizabeta Samara emerged victorious in their respective encounters with Doo Hoi Kem (11-5, 11-9, 11-7) and Fu Yu (11-3, 7-11, 12-10, 11-13, 11-4).
With home advantage on their side the Dr. Casl players weren’t willing to give up on the prospect of a second successive title with Ni Xia Lian and Doo Hoi Kem holding the upper hand in fixtures three and four against Li Qian (11-5, 11-6, 11-7) and Elizabeta Samara (2-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-8) to level the scores at 2-2.
Successful in the opening encounter of the evening and Han Ying was the player celebrating in the closing fixture of the match, condemning Fu Yu to her second straight games defeat (11-4, 11-8, 11-9) to complete a 3-2 victory for Tarnobrzeg and an aggregate win of 6-4 across the two legs.
Halted at the final hurdle two years ago but the 2018-2019 Women’s Champions League title belongs to KTS Enea Siarka Tarnobrzeg.
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Notable names add to earlier success, Liu Jing and Gu Xiaodan maintain form
Published in
Table Tennis
Saturday, 11 May 2019 15:34
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Gold medallist in Beijing, London and Rio de Janeiro, the three most recent Paralympic Games, on the second day of action Liu Jing had won the class 2 title; partnering Nadejda Pushpasheva, on the concluding day of play, the class 1-2 team title was secured.
The top seeds, in a group organised event, they finished ahead of the no.3 seeds, the Brazilian combination formed by Catia da Silva Oliveira and Maia Limp de Azevedo; Florence Gossiaux-Sireau of France in partnership with Argentina’s Maria Garronne ended the day in third position.
Similarly, Gu Xiaodan added to her success in the individual events; competing in the same category and partnering Zhou Ying, the duo secured the class 4 team title. The top seeds, at the final hurdle they recorded a 2-1 win in opposition to the no.2 seeds, the Serbian combination of Borislava Peric-Rankovic and Nada Matic.
Gold for China but it was not the situation in class 3 nor in class 5; events in which they held the top seeded positions. In class 3 the trio comprising Xue Juan, Li Qian and Yang Zhonghui experienced a 2-0 defeat in the final against Korea Republic’s Yoon Jiyu and Lee Migyu.
Meanwhile, in class 5, the outfit formed by Zhang Bian, Zhang Miao and Pan Jiamin had to settle for second place in a group administered event. In the vital concluding match of the itinerary, they suffered 2-1 reverse at the hands of the combination formed by Sweden’s Anna-Carin Ahlqhuist and Israel’s Caroline Tabib.
Matters concluded in Lasko, attention now turns to Wladyslawowo; the three day Para Polish Open 2019 commences on Thursday 30th May.
Thermana Lasko Slovenia Para Open 2019: Latest results and main draws
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Korea Republic pairs upset seeding, familiar name excels
Published in
Table Tennis
Saturday, 11 May 2019 15:43
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Korea Republic dominated class 1, they provided both finalists but it was the unseeded second team duo of Nam Kiwon and Park Sungjoo who emerged the winners; at the final hurdle they recorded a 2-0 win in opposition their colleagues, the top seeded partnership formed by Joo Youngdae and Kim Hyeonuk.
Similarly, in class 4, compatriots Kim Younggun and Kim Junggil, although major contenders for honours, did not start as favourites; they were the no.2 seeds. In the final they upset the odds; a 2-1 win was the margin of victory in opposition to the top seeded Turkish combination of Abdullah Ozturk, Nesim Turan and Suleyman Vural.
Success for the Korea Republic, there was also success for China; notably more gold for the irrepressible Feng Panfeng. The winner two days earlier of the class 3 singles title, in the same category he joined forces with Zhai Xiang and Guo Fei to secure team gold. The top seeds, at the final hurdle they accounted for the no.3 seeds, the combination formed by Ireland’s Colin Judge and Jenson Van Emburgh from the United States.
More gold for Feng Panfeng and for the player he had beaten in the singles final, there was a degree of consolation; Thomas Schmidberger partnered German colleague Valentin Baus to success in class 5. The top seeds, in the final the duo combined to record a 2-0 win against the no.2 seeds, Norway’s Tommy Urhaug and Great Britain’s Jack Hunter-Spivey.
Delight for Thomas Schmidberger and Valentin Baus but the happiest man was seemingly Jack Hunter-Spivey. A 2-0 win had been posted at the semi-final stage in opposition to the no.4 seeds, the Chinese trio led by Cao Ningning, the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games gold medallist; in Lasko supported by Zhan Dashun and Shi Yanping. It was for the British player very special on a special day.
“It’s always a pleasure playing with Tommy and it’s great to get to the final of such a strong competition. I feel that I’ve played very well this week; I’ve been training hard and I’m starting to see the rewards. Beating Baus in the singles event is a great win for me as he is a great player and now I’m showing that I’m on the same level as the top players in the world. Overall I’m really happy with my performance and a big win over China in the team event on my birthday makes it even more special.” Jack Hunter-Spivey
A delighted Jack Hunter-Spivey, it was also a delighted Fabien Lamirault and Stéphane Molliens; the top seeds, the French pair secured the class 2 title; they overcame the no.3 seeds, Slovakia’s Jan Riapos and Martin Ludrovsky 2-0 in the final.
Proceedings over in Lasko, attention now turns to Wladyslawowo; the three day Para Polish Open 2019 commences on Thursday 30th May.
Thermana Lasko Slovenia Para Open 2019: Latest results and main draws
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Titles for China but Ukraine and Russia provide stand out names
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Table Tennis
Saturday, 11 May 2019 15:50
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Winner of the class 6 title earlier in the week Maryna Lytovchenko joined forces with Romania’s Gabriela Constantin to secure the top prize in the class 6-7 team event; furthermore, the success was very much contrary to expectations.
The no.3 seeds, in a group administered event, they finished ahead of the top seeded Russian duo comprising Raisa Chebanika and Maliak Alieva; the no.2 seeds, the pairing formed by Turkey’s Kubra Korkut and Germany’s Bente Harenberg concluding matters in third position. A quite outstanding effort and even more outstanding when taken into consideration the fact that they did not surrender a single individual match; the score-line 2-0 was recorded on each occasion.
Meanwhile, in class 11, the category for players with a learning difficulty, Elena Prokofeeva added to her earlier success by partnering colleague Anzhelika Kosacheva to gold. The top seeds, at the final hurdle they recorded a 2-0 win in opposition to Japan’s Kanami Furukawa and Sayuri Mio.
Otherwise, in the women’s team standing events, it was success for China. Imposingly Mao Jingdian, Huang Wenjuan and Li Guiying combined to secure the class 8 title and repeated earlier success. In the group stage they had recorded a 2-0 win again the German pairing of Juliane Wolf and Stephanie Grebe, in the final they did exactly the same.
Gold for China as status predicted, it was the same in class 9 but not in class 10. In a group organised class 9 competition, Xiong Guiyan and Liu Meng finished ahead of Poland’s Karolina Pek and Malgorzata Jankowska; rather differently in class 10, not listed amongst the top outfits, Fan Lei, Zhao Xiajing and Hou Chunxiao emerged victorious. At the final hurdle they claimed a 2-1 win in opposition to the Turkish trio of Neslihan Kavas, Merve Demir and Ümran Ertis.
Play concluded in Lasko, attention now turns to Wladyslawowo; the three day Para Polish Open 2019 commences on Thursday 30th May.
Thermana Lasko Slovenia Para Open 2019: Latest results and main draws
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