Challenger Events
3rd Open de Lagord: Masotti Through to Keep Home Hopes Alive
Baptiste Masotti continued his quest for glory on home soil, beating England’s Declan James 3-0 in the 3rd Open de Lagord quarter-finals.
The Frenchman – seeded at No.1 in this event – looked to be heading for a comfortable victory after taking the first two games 11-5, 11-9, but the third was a different story.
James led for almost the entire game, squandering game balls at 10-9, 11-10 and 12-11 up before saving one of his own at 13-12 down.
Masotti, though, won the next two points to book a semi-final spot, where he will play Ivan Yuen.
The No.8 seed took little more than half an hour to see off fellow Malaysian Mohammad Syafiq Kamal, dropping just six points in each game.
In the bottom half of the draw, George Parker and Greg Lobban will face off for a spot in the semi-finals, after both knocked out a Frenchman in the last eight.
Parker was facing Yahya Elnawasany’s round-two conqueror, Toufik Mekhalfi, and took the opening game 11-6.
Mekhalfi reversed the scoreline in game two to level things up, but from there it was largely one-way traffic, as the No.5 seed claimed the next two games 11-4, 11-7.
Lobban’s victory followed a similar pattern, though he was made to work for the win by Lucas Serme.
The Scot won game one 11-9 before being pegged back in game two, but took control of the third at 4-4, winning eight of the next 11 points to move back ahead.
The fourth was a tight and tense affair, but Lobban came up trumps in the crucial points at 9-9, winning the next two to secure a spot in the final four.
Defeat for Serme means home hopes rest solely on the shoulders of Masotti, who is now the only Frenchman left in the draw.
Results: Men’s Quarter-Finals
[1] Baptiste Masotti (FRA) bt [7] Declan James (ENG) 3-0: 11-5, 11-9, 15-13 (45m)
[8] Ivan Yuen (MAS) bt Mohammad Syafiq Kamal (MAS) 3-0: 11-6, 11-6, 11-6 (33m)
[5] George Parker (ENG) bt Toufik Mekhalfi (FRA) 3-1: 11-6, 6-11, 11-4, 11-7 (55m)
[2] Greg Lobban (SCO) bt [6] Lucas Serme (FRA) 3-1: 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, 11-9 (60m)
