At events like the European Men’s and Women’s Team Championship, we often get witness some so-called ‘David and Goliath’ matchups. On such example of this is Luxembourg facing up against the Netherlands, who have a strong pedigree in this competition.
As such, we are able to see some fresh, young faces from the top nations get given a chance to show what they are capable of. Sometimes with new doubles partnerships. This is what we got when the number one Dutch duo this afternoon was Wessel Van Der Aar playing with Robin Tabeling. They were victorious and a swift two-game match, 21-7, 21-13 against Luxembourgish pair Kevin Hargiono and Maxime Szturma. After the match, Van Der Aar said.
-There were a bit of nerves in the beginning, but as we got into the match it went away and it got easier. Also, it was nice to have Robin next to me on the court, so it was a good match.
Where there is a benefit to blood in the youth, there is also a benefit for the more experienced players have a rest due to the rotation. Tabeling explains this further by saying.
-These tournaments are opportunities for the young guys to step up and to learn some things about these kinds of tournaments. It is the group stage, and with all due respect, it is a match we should win, and therefor Jelle (Maas) just stepped out for one day, and the young guy got a chance today with me.
For the full list of fixtures and results, click
here.