Bermuda Teen Top Rackets Player In UK
Last weekend, Bermuda teenager Christopher Stout [pictured] of Smith’s Parish, together with his rackets partner, Alex Duncliffe-Vines, won the UK Public Schools First Pairs doubles championship at Queen’s Club, London, representing Cheltenham College.
The top seeds, Stout and Duncliffe-Vines had a difficult route to the final, starting with their close 4-3 victory over Malvern in the round of sixteen, 15/11, 11/15, 13/18, 15/10, 15/5, 12/15, 15/7.
In the quarter-finals they defeated Tonbridge 4-2, (15/10, 18/13, 12/15, 15/10, 17/18, 15/4).
Cheltenham’s lapse in concentration at the end of the fifth game gave Tonbridge some hope but that was efficiently snuffed out in a one-sided game six. The semi-final encounter with fourth seeds Harrow, was more controlled as the Cheltenham first pair finally got into their stride. After narrowly losing the first game 16/17, they went on to take the remaining four games 15/6, 15/6, 15/7, 17/15.
In contrast, second-seeded Eton’s route to the final was noticeably smoother: 4-0 against Marlborough’s second team (6,3,12,9), 4-0 against St. Paul’s (4,9,7,4) and 4-0 against third seeds Radley (10,7,1,10).
The final itself swung back and forth. Eton cancelled out Cheltenham’s 15/7 win in the first game by taking the second game 15/2. Unfazed, Cheltenham took games three and four 15/6 and 15/11, to put them in a strong position.
Any hopes that Eton harboured of mounting a serious comeback after they won the fifth game 15/11, were dashed as Cheltenham won the sixth game convincingly 15/1, to win the match 4-2, take the title and in the process confirm their seeding.
This was Stout’s third consecutive appearance in the First Pairs final, following his and Richard Owens’s 4-3 defeats at the hands of Winchester in 2010 and Wellington in 2011. In winning this event Christopher, 18, followed in the footsteps of brothers Michael (2001), and James (2001 and 2002).
Like brother James, Stout won the Foster Cup, the British Schools schoolboy premier singles rackets title.
With his doubles victory in the First Pairs event Stout is confirmed as the top schoolboy rackets player in England.
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