Van Lange makes light work of Wong brothers

Feb 08, 2022 Sports

GTTA National Championships…

By Calvin Chapman

Kaieteur News – The Cliff Anderson Sports Hall was a hive of activity on Sunday night as the Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) Senior National Championships continued with 15-year-old Jonathan Van Lange emerging the start of the day with two impressive wins in the men’s under-21 division and the men’s B Class finals.

Van Lange (left) during his match with Colin Wong.

Ishaka Jackman (right) and Saalih Rahim in the C class final.

First, in the under-21 division, Van Lange; the crowd favourite, swept Colin Wong 4-0 (11-8, 11-3, 11-7 & 11-9) although the younger Wong showed tremendous heart in the contest.
In the B Class final, Miguel was determined to do what his little brother couldn’t and got off to a flying start, as he won the first set 11-7 and he was well on his way to winning his second set after being up 10-6 but Van Lange, coached by National senior Shemar Britton, showed heart as he fought back to win that set 13-11.
Wong wasn’t fazed and went more offensive in the third set, and that, couple with some loose shots from Van Lange allowed him to retake the lead with a 11-8 win in the third set.

Jonathan Van Lange.

From the fourth set onwards, Van Lange, who turned 15 in December last, showed his superior mental fortitude and skill to dominate a composed Wong in three straight sets, 11-8, 11-7 and 11-8 to take the men’s B Class final.
In the women’s final, Olympian Chelsea Edghill dethroned Natalie Cummings with a dominating 4-0 triumph, winning 11-2, 11-4, 11-4 and 11-7.
The women’s under-21 final saw the mercurial Jasmine Billingy defeating Thuria Thomas 3-1 in a best-of-five matchup. Round one went to Thomas 15-13, but Billingy shook off the rust and battled her way to the next three rounds 11-3, 18-16 and 11-5 to be crowned the women’s U21 champion.
In the C Class final, Ishaka Jackman; an avid Kobe Bryant fan, didnt demonstrate the ‘Mamba Mentality’ after falling to youngster Saalih Rahim despite winning the first two sets of the best of five handsomely. Rahim preserved and was rewarded as Jackman folded under the pressure and lost the next three sets.

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