May 20, 2009
Kangaroo Refuses to be Tied Down in Glasgow
 Pradeeban Peter-Paul |
 Homayoun Kamkar-Parsi |
 Xavier Therien |
Courtesy of ITTF
Championships in Glasgow on Wednesday May 20, 2009 beating Australia in a grueling contest the lasted just ten minutes short of three hours! It was eventual victory for the team of Pradeeban Peter-Paul, Homayoun Kamkar-Parsi and Xavier Therien against a trio that stared defeat in the face but simply refused to lie down.
“Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport”, but there was tying down the trio of William Henzell, Robbie Frank and Kiet Song Tran. They fought to the bitter end, the ageless Rolf Harris would have been proud of his countrymen.
Canadian Hero
Hero of the hour for Canada was Homayoun Kamkar-Parsi; it was his speed that saw him remain unbeaten, overcoming William Henzell in the opening match of the proceedings and reducing Australian hopes to ashes in the final duel of the marathon fixture.
Speed
A fast left handed attacking player, the angles he created from the backhand reaped rewards and in the area of service and a fast first attack, he was outstanding. However, the key to the victory was his ability to counter topspin over the table from the forehand; it was this stroke that left both William Henzell and Robbie Frank gasping for breath.
“How did he do that?” was the puzzled look on their quizzical faces.
He beat Henzell in a tough seven games encounter and with adrenalin gushing through the body, he overcame Frank in straight games; against the latter, he was frankly too good.
Recovery
The win recorded by Homayoun Kamkar-Parsi over William Henzell gave Canada the perfect start; Pradeeban Peter-Paul followed with a straight games win over Robbie Frank before Kiet Song Tran emerged from the billabong to record Australia’s first success.
Left handed, like Kamkar-Parsi, he beat Xavier Therien in four games and also like Kamkar-Parsi he was a few kilometers to fast.
Strange Match
The kangaroo unleashed, William Henzell put aside his earlier defeat and using his seemingly innocuous serving technique beat Pradeeban Peter-Paul in four games to level matters.
It was a strange match, Henzell dominated the first game to win 11-5; in the second he was down 0-6 and won 12-10, in the third he was ahead 7-4 and lost 10-12!
However, in the fourth game an element of sanity returned; he dominated from start to finish. He won the game 11-5 and Australian hopes rose.
Spare a Thought for Rolf Harris
It was not to be, Homayoun Kamkar-Parsi lassoed the kangaroo, he beat Robbie Frank, it was great sport but at last the kangaroo had been tied down.
It was tears for Rolf Harris.
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