2017-08-23 22:52:00 CET
Böckermann/Schümann begin with a win!
German guys at the double
Markus and Lorenz in action in the final match of day one at the Hamburg Finals
Father-to-be Markus Böckermann is hoping his World Tour Finals experience will be even extra special after he and teammate Lorenz Schümann won their opening match of the tournament underneath the Red Bull Beach Arena floodlights.
Böckermann’s girlfriend Juliana is due to give birth on Thursday – which meant he spent a lot of the first day of the tournament checking his phone in case he had good news to celebrate.
Instead he warmed-up for his and Schümann’s big game against fellow wildcards Ben Saxton and Chaim Schalk of Canada and came out after three enthralling sets smiling from ear to ear after a fine comeback win.
“It’s always hard when you lose the first set but we restarted again and found the right communication between each other and that's what worked well in the second and third sets,” Böckermann said after the 20-22, 21-13, 15-11 triumph.
“I was checking all day but Juliana is in good hands, she was with friends of ours and my parents so we’ll wait and see what Thursday brings.”
Lorenz was just as happy to have recorded what was a vital win with a match against European champions and Olympic silver medalists Lupo/Nicolai lying in wait on Thursday.
“We’re still unbeaten as a team!” joked the 25-year-old. “It was the perfect start and the crowd were great, they really helped.
“Playing against Ben and Chaim was tough. I’ve played them before and lost in a tight game so I knew if we could play very, very well then there’s a possibly to beat them and we did it.
“As far as playing with Markus for the first time it was also perfect. We of course know each other well – we’ve been training together with other partners for the last three years. Now to play alongside him is a good experience for me and that helps a lot in many situations.”
The German duo’s victory ended a good day for the host country with Ludwig/Walkenhorst and Dollinger/Erdmann also recording victories.
Play continued on the Red Bull Beach Arena on Thursday with pool play matches starting on the side court at 10am before the main arena opens its doors at 4pm. Catch every game live on BeachStream.
