THE English Open 2024 Pickleball tournament came to a close, with plenty of home representation in action, in the shape of Mike Pollard, John Pasturel, Georges Grossi, along with Joanna and Clive Chaplin.
“One of the nicest things we got out of it was the camaraderie surrounding all the Jersey players” said Joanna Chaplin.
“We all learnt a lot and I’ll definitely do it again.”
After the efforts of Tom Middleton, Laura Morel and Luke Pontin, Pollard was next up to bat in the 4.0 65+ Men’s Doubles event.
Along with his partner Art Severn, from Derby County, Pollard performed admirably, managing to win one match against the younger opposition.
Pollard repeated the feat in the 4.0 65+ Mixed Doubles with Anna Cherry.
Elsewhere, Pasturel thrived in the competitive pickleball environment.
Having entered the 3.5 65+ Men’s Singles, Men’s Doubles and Mixed Doubles, Pasturel narrowly missed promotion out of the group stages in the doubles events, achieving third place twice with two wins apiece.
However, the Caesarean managed to go one better in the singles, reaching the quarter finals before losing out to the eventual silver medal winner.
Next it was the turn of Joanna Chaplin, partnered with Grossi, to take on the 4.0 55+ Mixed Doubles. The pair took a while to find their form together, only managing to win their final match against a previously unbeaten duo.
For the singles, Grossi entered the Men’s Senior Open. While he was unable to walk away with a win, Grossi was part of the much stronger group, which featured both the tournament winner and runner-up.
The Islander was able to test the world number one and would-be champion, David Spearman, in a thrilling match on the show court that was broadcast online.
Meanwhile, Chaplin was able to walk away with one win in her 3.5 55+ category.
Clive Chaplin was the last to play in the 3.0 70+ Men’s Singles event.
Matching Joanna, Clive was able to claim one win to seal his English Open campaign.
Pickleball continues to grow locally, with this event marking the first time Jersey has competed in an international tournament.
