The 2017 LIEBHERR European Champions at Luxembourg saw a mix of CEAT UTT players make a mark, earn rewards and conquer the continent in their national colours.

Here’s a round-up of how they fared:

Romania upset Han Ying’s Germany to lift title

Reigning European Champions Germany were stunned by a determined Romania at Luxembourg in Europe.

Shaze Challengers’ chopper extraordinaire Han Ying, the European number 3, faced 2 upsets in the final where she conceded her first match to Elizabeta Samara in 5 grueling games. When the final was locked at 2-2 in the overall matches, Monteiro Dodean Daniela comprehensively beat Han Ying 3-1 to take her team to the helm of the championships.

It came as shocker for Han Ying, who, until the final, had not lost a single match in the Championships. The top-ranked German had a 10-match unbeaten streak which came to an unfortunate end in the final.

Liu Jia, Sofia Polcanova steer Austria, Polina Mikhailova’s Russia go down in SFs

DHFL Maharashtra United’s Liu Jia and RP-SG Mavericks’ Sofia Polcanova helped Austria top Group C with clinical performances in the women’s singles. Under 21 number 1 Sofia Polcanova played a pivotal role in a thrilling second match against Portugal where she carried Austria single handedly by winning both her matches. However, Austria’s challenge came to an end in Round 2 against the Dutch.

Oilmax-Stag Yoddhas’ Polina Mikhailova had mixed fortunes in Group D for Russia where she conceded a few games but won when it mattered. Mikhailova clinched both her matches in the 2nd round against Hungary and drove Russia to the semis where they lost to eventual champions Romania.

Freitas, Monteiro, Apolonia take Silver

Portugal had a splendid run in Europe before they were stalled by a ruthless Germany who trounced them 3-0 in the finals of the European Championships.

Dabang Smashers’ Marcos Freitas, Maharashtra United’s Joao Monteiro, and RP-SG Mavericks’ Tiago Apolonia combined to form the Portuguese national team who topped the charts in Group B.

The trio whitewashed Slovenia in the first match but faced stiff competition from Austria in the second. Freitas started off with a 3-1 win over Austrian Gardos Robert before Monteiro and Apolonia both went down in two grueling matches.

But Freitas came back and toppled RP-SG Mavericks’ Austrian national Stefan Fegerl 3-2 in the 4th match to draw level. Apolonia then beat Robert 3-2 in the decider and pocketed the match in favour of Portugal. In their final Group B game, Portugal only dropped a game to thrash Slovak Republic 3-1, advancing to the 2nd round.

A 3-1 win over Croatia set up Portugal’s mouth-watering SF clash against France which eventually fell 3-2 in their favour. But in the final, the trio had no answer to Germany and ended up conceding the match in straight sets to finish with a silver.