EURO TEAM CHAMPS 2016 – Stoeva delivers only upset

Stefani Stoeva won singles and doubles matches back-to-back to cause the only upset on quarter-finals day at the European Men’s and Women’s Team Badminton Championships as Bulgaria joins 7 seeded teams in Saturday’s semi-finals in Kazan, Russia.

By Don Hearn.  Photos: Mikael Ropars for Badmintonphoto (live in Kazan)

Bulgaria’s Stefani Stoeva has had her share of success in Russia.  Even before her 20th birthday last year, she had already played in one White Nights singles final and won the Russia Open Grand Prix title in doubles with her sister Gabriela (pictured above).  On Friday, she had to play singles and doubles matches back-to-back to seal her team’s victory over fourth-seeded Turkey and earn not only a spot in the semi-finals in Kazan but also a berth in the Uber Cup Finals in China this coming May.

Stoeva, the 2013 European Junior Champion in women’s singles, was able to follow two veteran team-mates to appear as the third singles player for Bulgaria.  Linda Zetchiri dropped the first match to Turkey’s Neslihan Yigit but then former top 10 player Petya Nedelcheva got her team on the board with a victory over Ozge Bayrak.

Stoeva then stepped up to take the third singles, beating Cemre Fere.   Then she was joined by sister Gabriela to take on Bayrak and Yigit, who are also ranked #36 in the world in women’s doubles, in addition to both being decorated singles players.  Unfortunately for the Turks, their doubles match ended the same way their last international appearance did, with a loss to the Stoeva sisters, who had also just scored their 7th straight win in the rivalry two months ago, in the final of the Turkish International.

Bulgaria now advances to the semis for a rematch with Spain, whom they had beaten in round robin play in Kazan.  That loss was not enough to keep the 2nd-seeds out of the quarter-finals, however, and Spain recorded a 3-0 win over Ukraine.  Natalya Voytsekh (pictured right) was the closest to causing an upset but lost out to world #38 Beatriz Corrales.  Both players were slated to do double duty for the fourth time this week but this was precluded when Spain finished off the tie in three straight matches.

Apart from Turkey, Russia was the only quarter-finalist to go down swinging and avoid being shut out.  The first men’s doubles match, a repeat of the European Championship final from Kazan two years ago, finished in the same manner, with Vladimir Ivanov and Ivan Sozonov (pictured) triumphant over Mads Conrad-Petersen Mads Pieler Kolding.

Denmark’s big guns in men’s singles had already drawn first blood and Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen finished it off by beating Evgenij Dremin and Vasily Kuznetsov in straight games.

With all of the highest ranked teams reaching the semis, it ensures that Europe will have only four representatives in the Thomas and Uber Cup Finals in Dongguan, China this spring.  The three extra places up for grabs based on ranking will go to Asia’s unsuccessful quarter-finalists.

Click here for complete quarter-final results