Last week, I emerged victorious at the Costa Brava Open in Spain. My performance was reasonably good. Of course, there are always areas to fine-tune, but at this stage of my season, I am content with the outcome.
Due to the coronavirus, more than eighty players withdrew from the tournament in Platja d’Aro at the last minute. As a result, I found myself in a combined schedule of handicap classes 7 (my class) and 8. It was an interesting twist to compete against the ‘eights,’ providing me with a delightful challenge. Even though the classes were merged, I was still the top-seeded player in Spain.
In the group stage, I faced off against Pilar Gonzalez from Spain and Russia’s Narina Oganisian. I comfortably won both matches 3-0. I felt good, and the conditions were favorable. Then, in the semifinals, I encountered Japan’s Yuri Tomono. I took the first game, she claimed the second, and then I secured the next two games. So, I won 3-1. I must admit that I played that match moderately to poorly, which left me far from satisfied.
In the final against Dajana Jastrzebska from Poland, I performed much better. I didn’t give her any opportunity to get into the game, and I was in my element. Consequently, I won 3-0 (11/4, 11/9, 11/5). Both the Polish and Japanese players compete in handicap class 8, so it was a significant boost for me to defeat them.
Overall, I am quite content with this tournament. As mentioned earlier, there is always room for improvement, and that’s exactly what I’ll be working hard on now!
Costa Brava Spanish Open Results
Group A
Kelly van Zon – Narina Oganisian (Rus) 3-0 (11/2, 11/9, 11/5)
Kelly van Zon – Pilar Gonzalez (Spa) 3-0 (11/6, 11/2, 11/6)
Quarterfinal
BYE
Semifinal
Kelly van Zon – Yuri Tomono (Jap) 3-1 (11/2, 5/11, 11/5, 11/6)
Final
Kelly van Zon – Dajana Jastrzebska (Pol) 3-0 (11/4, 11/9, 11/5)
