Bayley, Davies eager for season debut at Slovenia Open

“You’re only as good as your last training session, so you can’t afford to take your foot off the gas and think you are better than you are because there are young players coming through and they’ll pick you off.”

World champion Will Bayley and No. 1 ranked Rob Davies of Great Britain head a strong 14-member squad for the para-table tennis Slovenia Open, which begins Wednesday (6 May).

The four-day event is one of three this month, as more than 400 competitors (including 10 current world champions) will commence in Lasko for one of the most competitive tournaments of the season. The Slovenia Open will not only provide a benchmark for the European Championships on 9-18 October in Velje, Denmark, but also have a bearing on qualification for the 2016 Paralympic Games.

Bayley looks to defend his class 7 singles title this week and make a belated start to his season, having missed the Italian Open due to a minor foot injury.

“I feel really sharp and I’m looking forward to Slovenia,” Bayley said. “It is always one of the toughest tournaments of the year and in some ways just as hard as the Europeans because you’ve got players there from outside Europe who are really strong and have different styles, so it will be a really good test for me.”

Slovenia will also be Bayley’s first tournament since winning the world title in China last September.

“I don’t feel any different,” the 27-year-old said. “You’re only as good as your last training session, so you can’t afford to take your foot off the gas and think you are better than you are because there are young players coming through and they’ll pick you off.”

One of those young players is 16-year-old Billy Shilton, who will partner with Bayley in the team competition now that former teammate Paul Karabardak has been reclassified in class 6.

“Paul was a fantastic team partner and was like an older brother to me, and now, it’s like I’m the older brother in the relationship, and I’ve got to lead by example,” Bayley said. “(Billy’s) been running rings around me in training, and I think we can cause a few surprises this season.”

European champion Davies will also be making his first appearance of the season after a minor injury ruled him out of Italy. The former rugby player took silver at the World Championships last year and said the break has, in fact, helped him prepare mentally.

“Starting last season as world No. 1, there was more pressure on me and I struggled a bit to deal with it. … I was maybe thinking too much about losing my No. 1 ranking, but I’ve worked on that since and I feel more positive and confident,” said Davies, who added that his strongest challenger for that No. 1 ranking is Frenchman Jean-Francois Ducay.

Great Britain Performance Director Gorazd Vecko said this month’s tournaments will help him asses where his team stacks up with the rest of the world.

“All the best European players will be (at the Slovenia Open), so if we can get medals in Slovenia, then we know the athletes’ preparation is going well,” Vecko said. “And if the results are disappointing, then we will know what we need to work on with the athletes at the end of May.”