Ranking

Dubai, United Arab Emirates –

With the outdoor site that was created for this year’s medal rounds International Bowling Federation Super World Championships, there were opportunities and there were challenges.

It is possible to be both starlit and star struck simultaneously.

On Saturday night, however, the brightest stars were those born on the two lanes built earlier this week under desert skies at Expo 2020 Dubai.

Not only did Lithuanians Aidas Daniunas and Laurynas Narusis conquer the elements and win their country’s first gold medal at the IBF Super World Championships, but they did so against some of the world’s most prominent players.

Germans Janin Ribguth and Martina Shutz also outlasted two of Europe’s best players on their way to the women’s title, Germany’s first since 2005.

In the two-player version of the Baker format, one team member plays the odd frames and the other team member plays the even frames. They had to alternate throughout the day during qualifying.

The semi-finals and finals were held on a two-lane open-air setup and were broadcast live at StrikeCloud.com.

The custom site was created specifically for the 2021 IBF World Super Championships medal rounds and built into the Sports, Fitness and Wellbeing Hub of Expo 2020 Dubai, a multicultural event that includes exhibits from over 190 countries and will last six months.

The prime location means the ability to introduce bowling to tens of thousands of Expo visitors every day.

Ribguth and Shutz were the first to win their gold medals on Saturday. They beat Sweden’s Sandra Andersson and Joline Persson Planefors, 2-0 (193-181, 234-161), and deprived Sweden of a second consecutive victory in the women’s doubles.

The Germans started the first game of the title tilt at best of two with four consecutive goals, and they needed all the cushion from the start, as the unconverted divisions in their last three frames almost left the game s’ escape.

Andersson and Planefors nearly wiped out the deficit with three straight goals, starting at seventh frame, but a pair of single skittles missed in the game, one at first frame and one at 10th frame, turned out to be their loss in the 193 – 181 loss.

Spare errors and foot problems plagued the Swedish players in the deciding game, as Ribguth and Shutz struck eight times and took a 234-161 victory.

The Germans started the night with another big game, scoring nine times in a 254-194 semi-final victory over Finns Ani Juntunen and Peppi Konsteri. Andersson and Planefors secured their place in the final by beating Danes Cecilie Dam and Mika Guldbaek, 211-145.

Daniunas, a left-hander, and Narusis, a 16-year-old two-handed player across the lane, looked unfazed by the timing and surroundings as they dispensed top qualifiers Jesper Svensson and Pontus Andersson, 2- 0 (224-223, 237-176), in the best-of-two gold medal match.

The first game ended again in spectacular fashion, with Andersson in his final quarter with a chance to win it for Sweden.

He needed a strike and at least an eight count and a reserve to win the game. He delivered the strike, but his second offer drifted up and left the combination 3-6-7-10. Although he converted the split, it was not enough.

The Lithuanians were clean in the win, while a missing 7 from Svensson in the third quarter played a role in the loss.

In Game 2, Daniunas and Narusis used a six-strike streak from fourth frame to put the game out of reach.

To advance to the final, Daniunas and Narusis dominated the other Swedish duo, William Svensson and James Blomgren, 243-226. Blomgren won the gold in singles on the same lanes on Friday night.

Svensson and Andersson earned their title shot with a 244-187 win over United States team Andrew Anderson and Kristopher Prather.

The appearance marked Anderson’s second straight round of doubles medals at the World Championships, but he and Prather, a debutant at the event, couldn’t get any momentum after hitting their first two frames.

“We had a good ball reaction in practice and started off with some good shots, but a few unfortunate breaks and 10 pins allowed the momentum to change, and we just couldn’t get it back,” Anderson said. “I feel pretty defeated right now, but the Trios team have another chance tomorrow. We will try to bounce back and I hope to hear our anthem on the podium.”

Anderson and Prather, as well as Svensson and Blomgren, won bronze medals for reaching the semi-finals. Anderson teamed up with EJ Tackett for the silver medal at the 2018 event in Hong Kong.

Anderson and Team USA rebounded from the loss to win the gold as a trio, assisted by Kyle Troup.

The storyline is possible again in 2021, as Anderson and Prather head to the trio medal round on Sunday night, where they will be joined by Jakob Butturff and AJ Johnson.

“Right now I’m a little disappointed with myself and feel like I’ve let Andrew down, and I’m not sure yet what to do to reset myself for tomorrow and refocus for the trios and the other events, ”said Prather. “I feel like I have a lot of expectations, instead of being in the moment, and it shows. I just have to be better.”

They will return to the custom site in Dubai, and the round is expected to start at 6 p.m. local time (9 a.m. Eastern time). The semi-finals and the final of the women’s trios will also take place.

The women of Team USA entered the week in Dubai as the reigning double trio champions, but were eliminated in the quarterfinals.

Before Saturday’s double ended, all 64 men’s teams and 45 women’s pairs completed 10 Baker qualifying matches at the Dubai International Bowling Center, before the respective fields were placed in the top 32 for the matches.

The advancing teams were split into four groups, each with eight tandems, and they all played seven preliminary round games on Tuesday night.

Points were awarded for each match play victory, and the top two teams from each group, based on points, advanced to the bracket-style quarter-finals.

After the trios are over on Sunday evening, only teams and mixed teams will remain on the 2021 World Super Championships schedule. Both will finish on Monday. Doubles, Trios, and both team events all feature variations of the Baker format from start to finish.

Additional medals will be awarded in Dubai to the most valuable athletes and the most successful federations.

Competition at the Super World Championships resumes early Monday with the match play portion of the team event, followed by quarter-final matches to determine the four teams that will travel to the outdoor venue for the semi-finals.

Colombian women and Italian men are the reigning tag team champions.

The IBF Super World Championships are the first of three events held in Dubai. The inauguration Para Bowling World Championships shares the stage throughout the weekend, with singles starting on Saturday night. the IBF Masters World Championships (formerly Senior) will help conclude the visit to the United Arab Emirates.

IBF provides live coverage and comprehensive results on StrikeCloud.com.

For more information on IBF, visit bowling.sport.