A tournament held in Turkey has determined Europe’s strongest tennis clubs among senior players
The European Masters Club Championships, featuring tennis club teams from across Europe, was held over two weeks from 28 October to 9 November in Belek, Turkey, at the Megasaray Tennis Academy. The teams consist of male and female players aged 30 to 70, competing across multiple age categories.
Given the location of the competition, it wasn’t surprising that most of the participants were Turkish clubs. This was a case where quantity led to quality, with Mete Tenis Kulubu standing out as the most successful, winning three titles across all categories. The Argayon Tennis Club from Belgium took second place, securing two titles.
In the youngest 30+ category, the Slovenian club CTA&GFTA claimed an effortless victory, defeating each of their group stage opponents 5-0. This was due to the confident performances of Ziga Derzic, Matic Sotler, and Ficko Gregor in the singles matches, as well as Dejan Cokan, Tjas Ramsak, and Nejc Maric in the doubles.
In the women’s tournament, the German club Eintracht Frankfurt achieved an equally impressive triumph, winning all their matchups 3-0 thanks to the strong play of Anna Depenau and Anna Pock in both singles and doubles.
In the men’s 35+ tournament, Turkish teams dominated, particularly representatives from the Mete Tenis Kulubu, which fielded two squads, labeled A and B, out of the four participating teams. Playing in a round-robin format, Mete Tenis Kulubu A emerged victorious in the decisive match, winning 5-0. Their success was led by singles wins from Luca Serena, Adem Ozmeral, and Ergun Zorlu, who also secured a doubles victory alongside Sami Beceren.
In the women’s section, the Swiss club TC Bonaduz defeated Sweden’s Gustavsbergs Tennis Club 3-0 in the final, with wins from Manuela Pinchera and Christiane Hoellring in singles, and Rita Zenunaj and Simona Demont in doubles.
In the men’s 40+ category, with fewer teams participating, the winner was decided during the group stage: the Turkish club Mete Tenis Kulubu claimed first place. The Slovenian club SD Izlake – Zagorje ob Savi finished second. In their head-to-head match, the Turkish team prevailed 4-1, with victories from Ugur Oz, Teodor Dacian Craciun, and Bora Gerceker in singles, and a doubles win by Teodor Dacian Craciun and Bora Gerceker.
In the women’s tournament, three groups competed, with group leaders advancing to the final stage. ASD Tennis Event Borgotrebbia from Italy emerged as the overall leader, defeating Spain’s Real Club de Tennis Barcelona 2-1 in the decisive match, thanks to singles and doubles wins from Anna Sabrina Ferrari and Emanuela Faletti.
In the men’s 45+ category, the Austrian club Tennisclub St. Valentin and the Turkish Mete Tenis Kulubu topped their groups and advanced to the playoff final, defeating British clubs along the way. In the final, the Austrians won 3-0 with singles victories from Wolfgang Schranz, Stefan Koubek, and Bohdan Ulihrach.
In the women’s tournament, the decisive match featured the Swiss club TC Kloten against the Turkish club Mete Tenis Kulubu, with the Turks triumphing 3-0, led by singles and doubles wins from Hahn Sylva and Ipek Senoğlu Turna.
In the men’s 50+ tournament, the group leaders were the Turkish club AYD Tenis ve Spor Kulubu and Belgium’s Argayon. In the final, Argayon secured a 4-1 victory with two singles wins from Damien Wantiez and Patrick Daufresne and two doubles victories involving Didier Lechaude and Patrice Delstanche.
The women’s tournament concluded with the Italian club Match Ball Firenze Country winning the decisive match 3-0 against Turkey’s Zekeriyakoy Spor Kulubu, thanks to the strong performances of Valentina Padula and Silvia Sanna in both singles and doubles.
In the Men’s 55+ category, TC Lido Luzern from Switzerland defeated Argayon from Belgium with a final score of 4-1. Martin Arnet and Andreas Linder led the way in the singles matches, while the doubles team secured the overall victory, ensuring a strong finish for TC Lido Luzern.
In the women’s category, the final saw Turkey’s Zekeriyakoy Spor Kulubu face Austria’s TC Kitzbuhel, with the Austrian team celebrating a 3-0 win. Sylvia Haslgruber and Brigitte Marksteiner played key roles in both singles and doubles matches, securing the victory.
In the men’s 60+ category, Argayon from Belgium topped the first group, while Leicestershire Tennis and Squash Club from the UK led the second group. In the final match, the Belgian team secured a 3-2 victory with singles wins from Paul Hoofmann, Patrick Daufresne, and Guy Cloquet.
In the women’s category, Lidingo Tennisklubb from Sweden emerged victorious, defeating Italy’s Societa Sportiva Valfontanabuona thanks to strong performances from Anna Carin Mansson and Lena Stannow in both singles and doubles.
In the men’s 65+ category, the group leaders were St Georges Hill Lawn Tennis Club from Britain and Tennis Club de Lyon from France, both of whom dominated their opponents in the round-robin stage. In the final, the French team triumphed with a 3-2 victory, securing the win with singles successes from Jerome Vanier and Thierry Senglet, and a doubles win.
In the men’s 70+ category, TC Rot-Weiß Bad Oeynhausen from Germany claimed victory after finishing at the top of the group stage. They secured first place by defeating their main rival, the Turkish Pamukkale Tennis Club, with convincing singles wins from Dan Nemes and Jurgen Ackermann, as well as a doubles victory from Paul Torre and Joachim Kubeng.
Unfortunately, due to a shortage of tennis players, no competitions were held in the women’s 65+ and 70+ categories.
Contribution to Tennis Europe Awards
The tournament results contribute to the overall Tennis Europe Awards ranking as follows: the winner receives 20 points, the runner-up earns 10 points, and semi-finalists are awarded 5 points. If there was no knockout stage, the same points were given to the top four places.
Turkey secured first place with 215 points for the Tennis Awards, thanks to the strong participation of Turkish teams. The UK team finished second with 65 points, while Switzerland, Belgium, and Italy shared third place with 50 points each.
Read more about the ranking of nations in our Tennis Europe Awards section.
Cover photo: megasaraytennisacademy.com
