Pablo Paulino and Kieren Perrow prevail in Round 3 of Mr. Price Pro Ballito
The latest edition of Mr. Price Pro Ballito continued with the third and fourth heat of Round of 24 (Round 3) at Surfers Beach in Ballito, South Africa, on Thursday, July 7.
Brazil’s Jesse Mendes downed his countryman Pablo Paulino in the third heat to advance to the next stage and removing his rival from the competition.
In the fourth heat, Australia’s Kieren Perrow went against his compatriot Nic Muscroft, eventually winning it and securing a slot in Round of 12 (Round 4). The defeat brought Muscroft’s latest ASP Prime event campaign to an end.
Of the two Brazilians going head-to-head in the third heat, Paulino seemed to be the likely winner of the battle. He had the scales tipping in his favour due to the confidence earned after a convincing Round 2 victory, while his rival had made his way into Round 3 after finishing in second place during his Round 2 heat.
Despite the unconvincing entry into third round, Mendes got over his nerves and managed to take down his in-form and high-on-confidence rival.
Almost halfway through the heat, Mendes locked a wave to earn himself 6.83 points and later collected another 5.83 points off his second wave to finish with a heat-total of 12.66 points. In response, Paulino scored 5.17 points off his first wave and 4.17 off his second, finishing 3.32 points short of victory and surrendering victory to his compatriot.
The next heat pitted Perrow against Muscroft in a battle for survival. Both the Australians were in excellent form and it was hard to pick a favourite.
Muscroft got off to a good start, catching a wave to earn 5.50 points and put his rival below him on the scoreboard. However, the 37-year-old tour veteran, Perrow, rose up to the challenge and responded with a 6.17-point wave, reversing the situation and transferring the pressure to his countryman instead.
Perrow soon widened the gap between him and his competitor by adding 4.33 to his account and getting to a heat-total of 10.50 points. Muscroft needed a 5.01 off his second wave to down his rival, but only managed to collect 3.67 points from his second wave and was forced to surrender victory to his compatriot.
Talking to the media after the heat, Perrow said, “I was really excited for that heat, I love surfing man-on-man heats because surfing is at that level where you want to be able to catch the waves you want and surf them as good as you can. The level at the Prime events is really high, the young guys coming through are absolutely ripping and I enjoy surfing against them because it really pushes your surfing.”
Perrow's experience played a huge role in determining the fate of the heat and eliminating his rival from the competition.
For more updates on Round 3 of Mr. Price Pro Ballito, stay tuned to bettor.com.
Tags: