In round 10, BC Drop Shot fought for the very last, yet minimal chance to have any prospect of reaching the final, but coach Paul de Graaf received bad news in the week prior to the match about the availability of leader Nick Fransman . His long-standing injury now prevented him from playing, making the prospects suddenly a lot murkier.
In the men’s doubles, Qijin Bai made his debut alongside Timo Stoffelen against Noah Haase and Dyon van Wijlick. The people from Almere were only able to distance themselves from Timo and Qijin halfway through the first game, but they immediately opened up a gap in the second game and managed to gradually expand this, although the Dropshotters struggled for a while: 12-21 and 14 -21.
In the women’s doubles the familiar duo of Kelly van Buiten and Iris van Leijsen, who competed against Cheryl Seinen and Kirsten de Wit. The first game the ladies gave little to each other and extra time was needed to decide the game. Both duos had game points, but in the end the game went to Cheryl and Kirsten: 21-23. In the second game, Kelly and Iris had a more difficult time keeping up with the Almere ladies and also had to leave that game to Cheryl and Kirsten: 16-21.
Score 0-2, a bad start for Drop Shot.
Due to the division of doubles and singles, the two women’s singles were played first. Novi Wieland had to compete against Alida Chen. Novi had a good start, but struggled to maintain it. Many shots just missed, which Alida eagerly took advantage of: 14-21. Novi seemed to recover in the second game and even opened up a reasonable gap, but for inexplicable reasons a lot of sand got into the wheels and nothing worked, so the win went to Alida: 10-21.
In the second women’s single, Anissa Wongsodimedjo also made her debut and she had to compete against Diede Odijk. Anissa did her utmost, but Diede’s experience and power were still too much for her. With 8-21 and 5-21, the congratulations went to Diede, but Anissa could still look back proudly on her debut in the Premier League.
The score is 0-4 and a debacle for Drop Shot seems to be looming.
Lars Kors had to compete against Noah Haase, both of whom were allowed to play the first men’s single this time due to an injury to the normal first men Nick Fransman and Dennis Koppen. Lars gave Noah a good match and even took a tiny lead. But Noah took control again and went on to win 12-21. In the second game Noah was less able to keep away from Lars and Lars turned it into a real competition. Unfortunately, Lars was just unable to force a third game and had to leave the win to Noah with 18-21.
In the second men’s single, Qijin was allowed to compete against occasional singles Alex Vlaar. Alex may not often play singles, but he used to be a formidable singles player. Qijin played a good game, but still had to recognize his superiority in the experienced Alex. With 13-21 and 14-21 the point went to Almere.
After all singles there is a 0-6 score on the board. Will Drop Shot still be able to save the honor through the mixed doubles?
Timo and Iris bring the first mix to Alex and Cheryl. Timo and Iris put a lot of energy into the battle, but had to passively watch that the Almeerder combination was a size too big: 12-21 and 14-21.
In the second mix between Lars with Kelly and Dyon with Kirsten, the relationships were less clear. Lars and Kelly played well, but had to leave the first game to Dyon and Kirsten: 16-21. The second game became a real thriller, with both duos fighting for every point. The game also went into extra time, with Kelly and Lars, Dyon and Kirsten not being able to convert several game/match points, but at 23-24 the score was scored and the win went to Almere.
A disastrous 0-8 loss for Drop Shot, the biggest home defeat since the re-entry into the Premier League, which now definitively means that the remaining matches will actually be played for bare bones due to the absence of the semi-finals.
On Saturday, January 11, 2025, the competition continues for BC Drop Shot with an away match at Smashing.