Toma Junior Popov came close to a second singles title at the Spanish Masters. After winning the Super 300 in Madrid in 2021, the 25-year-old Frenchman had a chance to enrich his record this Sunday. But he had to lose against the Singaporean Loh Kean Yew, world No. 11, at the end of a breathtaking final concluded in the extension of the third set (11-21, 21-15, 22-20).
Popov (world No. 24) had recovered from a difficult start where he lacked rhythm. Then he found his bearings, at the front as well as at the back of the court, and his attacks made Loh, who defeated Christo Popov in the round of 16, lose control. Everything came down to the third set, and “Tomi” Popov held on to lead 19-18 and then reach 20-20.
In close-to-the-wire exchanges, the Singaporean made the difference through flat play to get the victory. “At 20-20, there are no more tactics, it’s more feeling,” testified the Frenchman after his 58-minute battle. Today he got it. Next time it will be me. »
Olympic qualification will be decided at the European Championships
Toma Junior Popov is right to look to the future because his Spanish week opened doors for him that seemed almost closed. While his brother Christo seemed to have won his race towards Olympic qualification in singles, the eldest of the siblings has reduced the gap and is now only 2,805 points behind, while they still have one tournament to go. compete before the end of the qualifying period.
Everything will therefore be decided at the European Championships, organized in Saarbrücken (Germany), from April 8. Christo remains the best placed but Toma Junior has a small chance of taking the only ticket available in men’s singles for France: for this to happen he would have to reach the final of the event and his brother should not go beyond the second round.
He also retains the possibility of competing in the Olympics in another draw, in doubles with Christo. Semi-finalists in Madrid, the Popov brothers have returned to the lead of the Race des Bleus, but they are still exposed to competition from Lucas Corvée and Ronan Labar. The Europeans will be worth a lot.
2024-03-31 13:51:49
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