The Handicap Singles Tournament is always a fun and interesting event with the tweaked handicaps providing some very close encounters and a few shock results along the way. In the early rounds there was some cracking sport – Terry Hylands gave pre-tournament favourite Eric Green a fantastic run for his money taking Eric to 21-21 in the deciding 3rd leg before succumbing to the Green composure. Dave Marsh and Tony Forster went all out in their long 3 legged affair with Marsh taking the final leg to proceed. Louis Gunn fought hard against Eamonn Hall losing out to 2 very close legs, one going way beyond deuce, and Denis Balic fought valiantly but couldn’t do enough to best Graham Briggs who progressed.
In the Quarter-finals, Alan Scammell provided the upset of the round with a tight 2 legged victory over Green. Briggs and Sam Lowman had an all out 3 legged war which Briggs just scraped through (18,-16,18), and then Sanjay Saptarshi and Hall joined in the 3 legged fun with their own immense battle where the first 2 legs somehow went to the wrong players and then the final leg was a war of will and styles. Saptarshi prevailed (20,-19,17). Marsh was still recovering from his battle with Forster and was unable to ‘figure out’ Kim Shead and lost out before really getting into the game. Into the semis, and Shead didn’t really have any answers to the style and accuracy of a fired up Scammell who rattled through the points in rapid succession giving Shead little to build on. The match was over in a blur and Mr Scammell was Final bound. The other semi was a closer affair with Saptarshi and Briggs swapping forehand rallies – but with Saptarshi just that little bit more accurate and consistent and he was able to retrieve the handicap and progressed to the Final.
The Final handicapping saw Saptarshi on -6 points, and Scammell on +6pts creating a 12 point handicap – but would it be enough? Scammell was up for the challenge – he had a twinkle in his eye and fire in his belly, and it showed as he set off like a bullet train with excellent use of his pimples against a more traditional player in Saptarshi. In the first leg Scammell built up a substantial lead and looked to be in complete control but as the leg was edging towards its conclusion Saptarshi began to relax and was hitting more winners and Scammell was struggling to get his first leg over the line. Somehow we ended up at deuce but the drama only intensified as the Finalists exchanged blows with Saptarshi nicking his customary net or edge at a crucial moment to stay in the leg – we were warned! At 22-22 and Scammell having missed out on 2 leg points Saptarshi took control and stole a leg that should never have been his – superb endurance from the Mumbai Magician. An even more determined and angrier Scammell went on a blitz at the start of leg 2 with Saptarshi unable to stay in touch. By the time Saptarshi had caught up his handicap he found himself 17-0 to the deficit and in desperate need of a local miracle. He managed to nick the next couple of points to dent the over enthusiasm at the opponent’s end of the table but surely it was just a matter of time. But then it was up to 5-17, and then 8-17 and Scammell seemed bereft of his earlier exuberance and he was the one with the pang of worry etched onto his face. As Sanjay racked up the points the drop in energy levels from Scammell was palpable and amazingly Saptarshi levelled out at 18-18 – a truly amazing comeback, and with minimal use of nets and edges for a change, more accuracy and shot selection of the highest order. But we weren’t finished – Scammell took a 19-18 lead and there was still hope in the room. He went for a cross court winner that had Saptarshi flailing but the ball just missed the edge by a cats whisker – the ifs and maybes of sport! So at 19-19 and with his body seizing up Scammell went all out attack and Saptarshi somehow retrieved a forehand smash and the return just clipped the edge to give Saptarshi a very unexpected but extremely well earned match point….. Which of course he took forcing an error from the drained and bewildered Scammell. A very memorable Final that was full of skill, emotion, and the ebbs and flows of sporting chance. Congratulations to both players.
Danbury Handicap Singles Champion 2026 – ‘The Breaker of Hearts’ – Sanjay Saptarshi
Pic 1 – Action from the Final – Sanjay Saptarshi versus Alan Scammell
Pic 2 – The post match handshake
Report by Eamonn Hall
