Unbeaten Boris Lalov retains top honour

The 2009/10 Singles League, sponsored by Camray, came to a close recently.

This competition was made up of seven separate divisions and mid-week matches were played regularly at the Cottonera Sports Complex.

Males and females competed in the same division. One point was awarded for each set won. Each fixture consisted of two sets, thus creating the possibility of a drawn result.

This variation from standard badminton practice made the competition even more exciting as some established players unexpectedly lost valuable points against apparently inferior opposition.

Boris Lalov (Msida Arrows) retained the first division title after ending his commitments unbeaten with 10 points, having won four and drawn two of the six matches he played.

Stefan Salomone (Birkirkara BC) was the runner-up, two points behind Lalov. His match record showed four wins and two losses.

The second division title was won by Stephen Ferrante (Msida Arrows) at the end of a hard-fought decider against Samuel Cali (Birkirkara). Both players had ended their matches unbeaten and on equal points at the top of the table, having drawn their direct encounter during the league.

Ivan Salomone (Birkirkara) topped the standings in the third division. He was closely followed by Michael Bugeja (Shuttles), a single point behind the winner.

The final placings in the remaining divisions were as follows:

Division 4 - 1. Arif Rochman; 2. Marika Micallef (both Birkirkara BC).
Division 5 - 1. Sigmund Saliba (Msida Arrows); 2. Dominique Francica (Pawla Wolves).
Division 6 - 1. Catriona Francica; 2. Cheryl Dimech (both Pawla Wolves).
Division 7 - 1. Owen Grech (Pawla Wolves); 2. Lisa Formosa (Birkirkara).

In a statement, Badminton Malta expressed their satisfaction at the high standard of play shown by all the players throughout the competition.

They also thanked Camray Co. Ltd whose valuable support made this event possible.