It was a hectic day on Friday on the Heiligengeistfeld in Hamburg, where the King of the Court Crown Series 2022 kicked off the day before. Matches were delayed because of thunderstorms in the area, but when play started 45 minutes late, a lot of the built-up energy got released. A lot of big names struggled, as newly formed teams showed what they are made of. Check out the results of Day 2 below. And don’t forget to sign up to King of the Court TV, so you won’t miss any high-energy play.
Men
The first international combination was just formed on Thursday, Leon Luini (NED) took the train to Hamburg and met his teammate, German Robin Sowa. They showed what freshly formed couples are capable of and won their group. In the final round they beat Alejandra Huerta/Adrian Gavira (ESP) and the Aye brothers from France.
Surprisingly it was Aleksandrs Samoilovs and Janis Smedins who were convicted to playing the evening’s play-ff to stay in the tournament, after getting zero points on the board in the first round. In that play-off they survived with flying colors, so they will appear today in the next play-off for a spot in the quarterfinals. Utrecht Kings of 2020, Marco Krattiger and Florian Breer, also didn’t make it directly into the quarterfinals, they will also play for a spot this morning.
The second group also saw a German-Dutch combo win, Clemens Wickler (German King of 2021) swept the competition with blocker Robert Meeuwsen. Hamburg’s King from 2021, Piotr Kantor and his partner Maciej Rudol were second, Dutch Stefan Boermans (silver in Doha) and USA’s Troy Field were third after a come-from-behind run of points in the second round. We’ll see Chilean Aravena and Droguett in Saturday’s play-off as well.
Women
Japan’s Miki Ishii and Sayaka Mizoe had a great run in their Group C match, they won and beat their French friends Lézane Placette and Alexia Richard, and Spanish Maria Belén Carro (Queen of Utrecht 2021) and Angela Lobato Herrero.
In Group D Anastasija Kravcenoka teamed up with a 2016 Olympic champion for the second time in Queen of the Court. After having played Utrecht 2021 with Laura Ludwig she now was paired with Kira Walkenhorst. The German-Latvian duo almost won their match, if it hadn’t been for the McNamara twins. Megan and Nicole rushed to victory, claiming the golden ball to use in the quarterfinals.
In the 5th place play-off Sarah Schermerhorn and Corinne Quiggle from the USA powered through, they will now fight for a spot in the quarterfinals as well.
5-minute rounds
Saturday starts with the most stressful matches you can imagine. Five teams play three round of 5 minutes, in which the winner progresses to the quarterfinals. Tune in to King of the Court TV at 11.30 CEST so you won’t miss a thing! Check out the schedule here.