2023 World Bowls Champion of Champions - Day Three Round Up
Scotland’s Darren Gualtieri has successfully qualified for the quarter-final stages of the 2023 World Champion of Champions with a game to spare. After one win and two defeats on Thursday, Natalie McWilliams has unfortunately bowed out of the Women’s Singles.
In the Men’s Singles, Darren had the perfect day at the office as he notched up two commanding 3-0 victories against Norfolk Island and Israel. First up was Trevor Gow from Norfolk Island who proved to be a stubborn opponent as there was never more than 2 shots in any of the three sets. Ultimately, Darren just had too much in the tank and claimed a crucial straight sets triumph.
Next to face Darren was Israel’s David Trappler. After a tight opening set, the Scot really moved through the gears and produced some excellent bowls to again secure a straight sets victory.
Going into his last group game tomorrow against Spain, Darren is guaranteed to qualify for the knockout stages regardless of the result. This match will be available to watch on World Bowls’ Facebook live stream at 11.30pm (BST) on Thursday 14th September. Darren’s quarter-final contest will then take place on Friday 15th September at 5am (BST), when he will take on New Zealand’s Sheldon Bagrie-Howley.
In the Women’s Singles, Natalie McWilliams encountered another difficult day as she managed to win one of her remaining three group matches in Section 2.
Natalie suffered a narrow defeat to Marisa Baronda from Philippines in her first fixture on Thursday but responded well to defeat Cyprus in her next encounter. The Scot rounded off her Champion of Champions campaign with yet another one end tie break agonising defeat to Niue.
Well done to Natalie on reaching this stage and gaining invaluable experience in Southern Hemisphere conditions. Three of Natalie’s five losses were on one end tie breaks which are such fine margins when competing on the world stage.
Keep up to date with all the scores and standings from the 2023 World Champion of Champions here: https://results.mc.worldbowls.com/event/55c6ac0b-56b0-48fb-bee3-31d096bf6c86
A full breakdown of Scotland’s scores from day three can be found below:
Session 1:
- Men’s Singles: Darren Gualtieri beat Norfolk Island 3-0 (5-3, 6-4 & 6-5)
- Women’s Singles: Natalie McWilliams lost to Philippines 0.5-2.5 (1-8, 4-5 & 3-3)
Session 2:
- Men’s Singles: Darren Gualtieri beat Israel 3-0 (4-2, 6-3 & 8-2)
- Women’s Singles: Natalie McWilliams beat Cyprus 2-1 (4-3, 4-6 & 3-2)
Session 3:
- Women’s Singles: Natalie McWilliams lost to Niue 1.5-2.5 (5-5, 3-6, 5-3 & 0-2)