Reigning Paralympic champion Will Bayley booted an advertising board with joy after progressing to the gold medal match of the class seven table tennis with a nail-biting win in Tokyo.
Kent-born Bailey was forced to save a match point as he survived a stunning comeback from China’s Liao Keli in an enthralling semi-final, where the momentum shifted throughout.
He was in a commanding position at 2-0 and eventually prevailed 3-2, edging the deciding game 12-10 before deliriously kicking his way out of the arena, for which he indifferently accepted a yellow card.
What a fighter!@WillBayleytt saves a match point then takes 5th game 12-10 to beat Liao CHN 3-2 & he is into his 3rd consecutive Paralympic final💪💪💪👏👏👏@ParalympicsGB @C4Paralympics @uk_sport @TNLUK @TableTennisENG pic.twitter.com/VmJYZyKUr5 — British Para TT (@BritishParaTT) August 28, 2021
The 33-year-old, who worked his way back from a serious knee injury suffered on Strictly Come Dancing in 2019 to be at the Games, will face another Chinese player, Yan Shuo, in Sunday’s final – his third in succession at the Paralympics – hoping for a repeat of his triumph in Rio.
Elsewhere in Japan on Saturday, Bailey’s team-mate Paul Karabardak and powerlifter Micky Yule each won bronze.
Karabardak lost his class six semi-final to American Ian Seidenfeld 3-0 but collected still his first Paralympic medal at the fourth time of asking.
Afghanistan veteran Yule, who lost his left leg after stepping on an improvised explosive device while serving with the Royal Engineers in 2010, managed 182kg on his final lift in the men’s -72 kg category.
And a powerlifting BRONZE for @MickyYule9!!!!!! 🥉 Scenes upon scenes here in Tokyo! 🇬🇧It’s a ParalympicsGB medal rush 🇬🇧 Get in, Micky! 👊#ImpossibleToIgnore #Paralympics pic.twitter.com/isBAX9Fj3x — ParalympicsGB (@ParalympicsGB) August 28, 2021
On the first day of triathlon, Fran Brown and Alison Peasgood narrowly missed out on podium places, finishing fourth in the women’s PTS2 and PTVI respectively in times of 1:19:42 and 1:11:47.
Peasgood was just two seconds off bronze.
Michael Taylor was eighth in the men’s PTS4 at Odaiba Marine Park and Dave Ellis did not finish in the men’s PTVI.
