Great British table tennis double's duo forced to settle for Paralympic bronze in Paris

By Megan Armitage in Paris

Billy Shilton had mixed emotions after losing his semi-final match in Paris and winning Paralympic bronze.

Shilton and teammate Paul Karabardak fell 11-9 11-9 11-7 to Thailand's Rungroj Thainiyom and Phisit Wangphonphathanasiri in their men's doubles semi-final which meant that they claimed one of two bronze medals on show for table tennis at the Paralympics.

Despite taking the lead in all of their games, the duo were unable to overcome the first seeds and reach the final but Shilton admitted that he was equally proud of their performance as he roared to his second Paralympic bronze.

“I’m a bit emotional with the match but I’m unbelievably happy that Paul and I managed to win a bronze," he said.

"I’ve been thinking about feeling that feeling again of winning a medal since Tokyo and it’s a special thing so I’m absolutely delighted I can do it again with Paul."

Shilton won team bronze in Tokyo and was back on the podium in Paris in the men's doubles alongside Karabardak.

The duo started strong in their semi-final, eventually leading the way with just two points to play for but the Thai pair were ultimately too strong for the British duo.

"I think we got to 9-7 in both of the first two sets and we played really well up until that point," added Shilton.

"There was just a few balls at the end and we were a little inconsistent in patches but I’m proud of myself, I’m proud of Paul and I think we can be happy.

"When we look back in a couple of days when it all settles we’ll be happy we won a bronze for sure."

Karabardak, who won team bronze and singles silver at Tokyo 2020, noted his own disappointment in not being able to challenge for gold.

But after a quarterfinal showing against Brazil the previous day, coming from one game down to win, Karabardak admitted that he was still over the moon with his performance.

“I think when we were leading we could have been a bit more positive," he said.

"Had we taken one of those first two sets it might have been a different game. But that’s sport and we have to give them credit for taking their opportunities.

“It is disappointing but we played superbly against Brazil, we’ve done really well and we can be pleased with that bronze. It’s a great achievement for me and Billy.”

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