Preview the king to retain his crown in canada

Paul Fitzpatrick

Four down, one to go. Four world titles and a drive for five – and, in Calgary this week, four vanquished opponents and just one more standing between Paul Brady and a never-to-be-repeated fifth World Open Singles final.

It's worth taking in the context. Back when Brady was winning the U17 world title in Winnipeg in 1997, the top Irish adults were also-rans. Three years later, in his first tilt at the Open, he and Cork's Tony Healy made a semi-final and the handball world almost spun off its axis.

Three years after that, they met in the final, and the Cavanman won. He's been winning ever since.

Now, after a tumultuous nine days at the World Handball Championships in Calgary, Canada, the smoke has cleared and two men are left standing.

In the blue corner is Brady; in the red, Killian Carroll, the young pretender from Cork.

Brady dismantled Team Ireland captain Robbie McCarthy last evening with a classic display of relentless, smart, powerful handball. It wasn't vintage Brady – despite the scoreline – but, as he told the press on the eve of his departure, losing is not an option.

The diminutive Carroll's style is in contrast to Brady's explosive game; Carroll is slight and relies on speed and unfathomable retrieving ability. He is packing more power than he used to – he's just 21, remember – but is still not heavy-handed.

On that score, this a a heavyweight against a welterweight. But, when the pair meet in the centre and go toe-to-toe, it will come down to more than just raw power.

Brady may be a knock-out artist but he's also got court craft and he will know that the cat-like Carroll can feed off his power. So, as he did against McCarthy last night, the Cavanman may look to take the pace slightly off his serve and pin Carroll back with accurate lasers from the service box.

Power is nothing without control, and the Gunner has both.

The pair have squared off before - Brady beat Carroll, then really just a kid, at the 2012 Worlds in Dublin and sent out a real statement when easily dismissing him at the 2014 US Nationals in Minneapolis, but the youngster continues to improve.

Neutrals will hope that their lines meet somewhere on the graph but while Carroll is progressing, there are no significant signs of slippage from the champion.

A noted front-runner, Brady will be expected to come out shooting, to look to send Carroll into a retreat under heavy shelling.

Carroll struggled against the hard-hitting Luis Moreno of Arizona in the first game of their quarter-final on Wednesday, dropping it 21-7, but he weathered the storm and showed he is made of stern stuff.

Stage fright should not be a problem for the younger man; history tells us that Brady rarely under-performs in big games either. Therefore, a huge battle is likely.

Could there be a changing of the guard? Everything will have to go Carroll's way -he must make a high percentage of his kills and get his first serve in, early and often.

Brady, with his unparalelled bank of experience and that priceless knowledge of exactly what it takes to get over the line, is the safer bet to still be wearing the crown by nightfall.

Brady will bring his young foe into deep water and while the Cork man may not sink, he will not be comfortable. The champion has been finding a way to win for a dozen years and more and, with a county behind him, he should do so again.

A thriller, in the shade of the Rockies, is possible but the smart money is on the king retaining his crown. We wish him well.

 

TALE OF THE TAPE

Paul Brady

Club: Kingscourt, Co Cavan
Age: 35
Dominant hand: Right
Height: 5ft 10
Occupation: Schoolteacher
Path to the final:
Dft Ryan Pesch 21-3, 21-5
Dft Niall O'Connor 21-2, 21-4
Dft Charly Shanks 21-9, 21-18
Dft Robbie McCarthy 21-12, 21-7
Honours: Four-time World Open Singles champion, 10 x US Nationals, 10 x All-Ireland Senior Singles, 10 x All-Ireland Senior Doubles, one world Open Doubles

 

Killian Carroll

Club: Mallow, Co Cork
Age: 21
Dominant hand: Right
Height: 5ft 7
Occupation: Student
Path to the final:
Dft Loren Collado  21-7, 21-3
Dft Martin Mulkerrins 21-19, 21-13
Dft Luis Moreno 7-21, 21-9, 11-9
Dft Diarmaid Nash 21-13, 21-19
Honours: All-Ireland Minor Singles, World 19 and Under Singles, Irish Nationals Open Singles, Canadian Nationals Open Singles, Boston Open champion