2024 Imagine Cruising World Indoor Bowls Championship – Day Seven Recap
Two times winner Mark Dawes made a shock exit from the 2024 Imagine Cruising World Indoor Bowls Championships open singles yesterday (Thursday). He was defeated by New Zealand qualifier Martin Kreft. Let’s take a look at what happened on the portable rink with the World Bowls Tour’s Anne Dunwoodie.
GILLETT DOES THE BUSINESS
WBT ranked number two Les Gillett powered his way into round two of the Imagine Cruising World Indoor Bowls Singles Championship, producing a procession of precision bowls to hold off Hartlepool qualifier David Bolt 10-5, 7-6.
Fifty-three-year-old Gillett from the Melton & District club stood all-square with Bolt at 3-3 after four ends of the opening set, but back to back trebles saw him take a 9-3 advantage and he went on to take the set two ends later with a single that put the result beyond doubt.
Gillett – who won the World Singles title in a memorable final – drawing shot with the very last bowl against Paul Foster MBE in 2022, continued to deny Bolt in the second set, and despite a good fightback by the South Shields Viper bowler, he narrowly missed out with Gillett signing off as the winner 7-6.
Bolt later conceded: “I never really put Les under any pressure and I never capitalised when any opportunity arose, so in that respect I’m disappointed”.
Gillett waits for the winner of the current match between Canadian qualifier Dylan Jacobs or 2006 champion Mervyn King – with their second round game taking place at 10am on Wednesday 17th January.
Prior to that however, Gillett will line up in the Mixed Pairs this afternoon (12th January) at 3-45pm alongside Katherine Rednall against Wayne Willgress and Nicole Rogers.
KING SETS UP SECOND ROUND WORLD SINGLES HEAD-TO-HEAD AGAINST GILLETT
Mervyn King, a local Estate Manager from Stiffkey in Norfolk, came through his opening match of the Imagine Cruising World Indoor Bowls Open Singles Championship against Canadian qualifier Dylan Jacobs, a cook from the Woodstock Lawn Bowling Club in Ontario, in the second match of day seven at Potters Resorts.
King, currently standing at 14 on the WBT Ranking List, won this title in 2006, beating Robert Paxton 2-1 in a tie break.
He started that journey to regain the crown and looked in great form when he took the first set 12-4.
However, it was a different story in the second set, with Jacobs hitting back from 0-3 down after the first two ends but then rolling in a 1, 3 and 1 to take a 5-3 lead.
The match swayed one way then the other, tying at 5-5 after six ends and 6-6 on the penultimate end.
Jacobs held a set lie but King responded to count the vital shot with his third delivery but it was a disappointing finish for the Canadian, whose last bowls fell agonisingly short to leave King as the winner 7-6.
King’s second round match will be against 2022 champion Les Gillett, but as the Mixed Pairs and Ladies Open Singles gets underway for the next few days, they won’t cross swords until Wednesday 17th January at 10am.
MARSHALL STAYS IN THE FRAME FOR ANOTHER CRACK AT A SEVENTH WORLD INDOOR SINGLES TITLE
Regarded as the GOAT in bowling circles because of his phenomenal record both indoors and outdoors, six times World Indoor Singles holder Alex Marshall MBE came through his opening match of the Imagine Cruising World Indoor Bowls Singles after a testing struggle against 2010 World Singles Champion and world ranked number 11 – Greg Harlow 9-8, 9-3.
Despite some brilliant bowling, both players agreed that they had to work hard to come to terms with the rink.
Marshall led 6-2 in the opening set after four ends but Harlow replied with a 2, 1, 2 and 1 to forge into an 8-6 lead playing the last end.
He held a set lie in a tightly packed head, but Marshall smacked the head with his last delivery and counted a magical set winning treble to steal the set 9-8.
The Scot started well in the second set taking a 4-2 lead after four ends and going on to post a 9-3 result to win the match – but it was a tale of two jack lengths in the set with Marshall delivering a shorter 23 metre jack and then Harlow throwing his jack to 29 metres.
KIWI QUALIFIER KNOCKS OUT TWICE FORMER WORLD INDOOR SINGLES CHAMPION
Kiwi qualifier Martin Kreft left twice former World Indoor Singles Champion Mark Dawes reeling on the ropes after a knock-out 4-11, 6-5, 2-1 victory in his opening match at the Imagine Cruising World Indoor Bowls Singles Championships.
Dunedin based Kreft got off to a good start, narrowly trailing 4-5 after six ends, but it was Dawes who scored on the remaining three ends to win 11-4.
There was nothing to separate the players in the second set with singles scored all the way to the penultimate end with Dawes holding sway at 5-3.
Kreft though rolled in a sensational treble on the last with a delicate movement of the jack to his waiting pack with his last bowl to win the set 6-3 and force a three end tie break.
Kreft won the toss and took the jack but it was Dawes who took first blood.
Dawes gave the jack to Kreft on the second but the New Zealander counted the second end and he wrapped up his victory when he counted the vital shot on the third and deciding end.
The 48-year-old Corrections Officer won his Dunedin PBA Area Qualifier and then claimed his spot at Potters from the PBA NZ finals at Invercargill, beating David Clark in the final.
He now moves through to a second round match against Alex Marshall MBE on Thursday 18th January at 10am.
NICKY BRETT ENDS THE HOPES OF BELFAST QUALIFIER ALASTAIR COLEMAN
Number six seed Nicky Brett ended the hopes of Belfast Qualifier Alastair Coleman in the last match of day seven of the Imagine Cruising World Indoor Championships at Potters Resorts, Hopton-On-Sea, winning his World Singles opener 13-2, 9-6.
Brett, a frequent winner on the World Bowls Tour, was like a man on a mission in the first set, and was relentless, winning the first set 13-2 in just seven ends.
The second set though was a whole lot tougher with Coleman finding some grace on the rink.
Brett always led, but he had to pull out some big shots to deny Coleman on several ends.
Back to back singles on the sixth and seventh ends gave the Irishman a glimmer of hope that he could take the set when he got to within 6-7 of Brett, but the Englishman did enough on the last two ends to avert any danger and he claimed the match 9-6.
His second round opponent will be Scottish qualifier Billy Mellors – they meet on Thursday 18th January at 3pm.
RESULTS – DAY 7 (Thursday 11th January):
Les Gillett (Eng/2) bt David Bolt (Eng/Q) 10-5, 7-6.
Mervyn King (Eng/14) bt Dylan Jacobs (Canada/Q) 12-4, 7-6.
Alex Marshall MBE (Scot) bt Greg Harlow (Eng/11) 9-8, 9-3.
Martin Kreft (NZ/Q) bt Mark Dawes (Eng/5) 4-11, 6-5, 2-1.
Nicky Brett (Eng/6) bt Alastair Coleman (Ire/Q) 13-2, 8-6.
Caption: Mark Dawes (left) and Martin Kreft
