Evergreen table tennis champion Colin France just keeps getting better.
Last year France toppled a star-studded field which included two former Caribbean champions on the way to winning the prestigious Realty and Maintenance Super singles tournament in Trinidad and Tobago.
On Sunday he disposed of a no less stellar field to win the Invitational singles event at the “Plateau Des Guyanes 2009” tournament in French Guiana.
Coming up against Ruddy Balthazar in the final of a tournament which attracted players from Martinique, French Guiana and Guyana, France won 11-6, 11-4, 12-10, and 12-10.
“It was fairly difficult,” France told Stabroek Sport yesterday about the final.
“I had beaten him 3-1 in the team events but after winning the first two games quite easily he put up more of a fight in the remaining two,” he added.
Balthazar had benefited from a lapse of concentration on France’s teammate Christopher Franklyn which allowed him to escape with a 4-3 win in the quarter-finals.
Franklyn was leading 3-0 before Balthazar staged a comeback and won the next four games.
Franklyn told Stabroek Sport yesterday that in the first three games he was able to finish the points quite quickly which gave his oppo nent no chance whatsoever.
However in the remaining games Balthazar managed to keep the rallies longer and longer and Franklyn, who had only a few days of training prior to the tournament failed to rally out.
Franklyn lost 11-8, 13-11, 12-10, 7-11, 10-12, 9-11, and 8-11.
Franklyn, the number two seed in the singles had ousted the favourite Stephane Payet, a player who plays in France and came home specifically for the tournament 4-0 in the previous round. Payet had the highest rating points of anyone in the tournament 1964 but succumbed to Franklyn 5-11, 2-11, 8-11, and 8-11. “Actually I had watched him play before. He has a bit of control from off the table which suits my game. “I was able to manoeuvre him out of positions and even though he liked to counter attack the few points that involved counter-looping I managed to win. He also had problems answering my services.”
The third Guyanese Hewley Griffith failed to come out of his group.
Griffith with a rating of 1653 was grouped with Payet and Styven Zulemaro.
Griffith lost to Payet 5-11, 7-11, 7-11 and to Zulemaro 7-11, 4-11, 5-11.
France, the number five seed, headed Group Five which included Dinel Lorenard and Remi-paul Godier.
He defeated Godier 11-3, 11-3, 11-5 and Lorenard 11-8, 14-12, 12-10 before going on to defeat Sebastien Chapellon 11-5, 11-2, 13-11, 12-10; Richie Palton 11-3, 11-4, 8-11, 11-5, 11-6 and Claude Cliryx 11-8, 11-8, 11-6, 11-6 in the semi-finals.
Franklyn, rated 1900 topped Group Two which included Troy Pyle and Ange enel Luranna. He defeated Luranna 11-4, 11-6, 11-4 and Pyle 11-6, 8-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-4.
Two other Guyanese in Steve Lawrence, the former national junior player and Ray `Copter’ Anderson participated in the singles competition.
Lawrence placed second in his group after losing to Alex Tertulien at 8, 9 and 5 and defeating Keving Biassou 11-8, 11-5, 9-11, 11-6. He, however, went down to Palton in the next round 5-11, 2-11, 8-11, and 8-11.
Anderson lost to Cliryx 7-11, 1-11, 8-11 and to Alain Villageois 8-11, 11-5, 7-11, 9-11.
The Caribbean championships are scheduled to be held at the same venue from July 20.