2025 IBF World Championships – Team Australia: Morning Brief Day 5
By Matt Stevens
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2025 IBF World Championships – Top Bowl, Kowloon, Hong Kong – Day 5
Day 5 begins in Hong Kong with Australia carrying positive momentum into the next stage of the Championships. Yesterday saw the completion of the Women’s Doubles qualification, with #BecSquared – Bec Whiting and Bek Martin, securing Australia’s place in Round 2 after finishing 22nd overall.
With the women now shifting into preparation mode for Sunday’s Matchplay, today the attention turns to the men, who take on their Doubles qualification across three squads. All three Aussie pairings will hit the lanes, each aiming to post a score strong enough to break into the Top 24 and progress to Round 2.
It’s another big day ahead for Team Australia as the Doubles action continues at Top Bowl.
What Happened – Women’s Doubles Qualification
Day 4 belonged entirely to the women as they stepped onto the lanes for the first team discipline of the Championships: Doubles. With all matches now shifting into the Baker format, consistency, chemistry, and execution became the deciding factors across the seven-game qualification block.
Australia opened the day with #BecSquared – the pairing of Bec Whiting and Bek Martin – who were the lone Aussie duo in Squad 1. The Victorian pair put together a composed and balanced block, producing three 200+ games across their seven, closing strongly with a 232 finish. Their total of 1,368 placed them 10th in the squad, setting a competitive benchmark early and leaving them with a nervous wait to see whether the total would hold inside the Top 24 required to advance.
After #BecSquared set the tone in the opening squad, Australia returned to the lanes in Squad 2 with two more pairings – Jamie Phelan & Siarn Ottaviano, and Dena Buxton & Samantha Clifton – both aiming to post a score strong enough to climb into the advancing positions.
Both pairs produced competitive stretches throughout their blocks, showing patches of strong scoring and signs of growing rhythm in the Baker environment.
Jamie Phelan and Siarn Ottaviano were particularly unlucky not to progress, posting 1,337 to finish 27th overall, just 12 pins shy of the Top 24 advancement line.
Dena Buxton and Samantha Clifton were equally close, finishing only marginally further back with 1,317 for 29th overall, showing late-block momentum with a strong 219 finish.
Despite the narrow misses from both Squad 2 pairings, Australia will still be represented in the next stage of the Doubles event, with #BecSquared safely progressing to Round 2. Their total of 1,368 held firm across both squads, placing them 22nd overall and inside the Top 24 cut. Bec and Bek will return to the lanes on Sunday for the Matchplay Group stage, giving Australia another opportunity to push toward the medal stages in this Championship discipline.
Squad 1 – Bec Whiting and Bek Martin – 22nd Overall (QUALIFIED)
| 168 |
| 202 |
| 186 |
| 195 |
| 202 |
| 183 |
| 232 |
| Total – 1,368 |
| Average – 195.43 |
| Squad Position – 10th |
| Pins behind Squad Leader – 115 |
Squad 2 – Jamie Phelan and Siarn Ottaviano – 27th Overall
| 223 |
| 165 |
| 190 |
| 194 |
| 173 |
| 203 |
| 189 |
| Total – 1,337 |
| Average – 191 |
| Squad Position – 16th |
| Pins behind Squad Leader – 156 |
Squad 2 – Dena Buxton and Samantha Clifton – 29th Overall
| 202 |
| 154 |
| 152 |
| 212 |
| 206 |
| 172 |
| 219 |
| Total – 1,317 |
| Average – 188.14 |
| Squad Position – 17th |
| Pins behind Squad Leader – 176 |
Summary
- #BecSquared (Bec Whiting and Bek Martin) advanced to Round 2, finishing 22nd overall with 1,368
- Jamie Phelan and Siarn Ottaviano finished 27th overall on 1,337 – just 12 pins outside the Top 24 cut line
- Dena Buxton and Samantha Clifton finished 29th overall on 1,317, closing with a strong final game.
- Australia posted three competitive blocks across both squads, showing consistent improvement in Baker format play
- The women will now shift focus towards the next stages of the Championship, with #BecSquared returning for Round 2 on Sunday
🎳 Day 5 Preview – Men’s Doubles
After the women took centre stage on Day 4, Day 5 now turns the spotlight back onto the men as they begin their Doubles qualification. With three squads spread across the day, Australia will field all three of its combinations as the athletes navigate seven Baker-format games in pursuit of a place inside the Top 24 and a ticket to Round 2.
The men enter the Doubles discipline with confidence after solid Singles performances and a perfect game from Blake Walsh in Round 2. Today’s challenge shifts to teamwork, rhythm, and lane play as the Baker format demands shared execution and strong communication across every frame.
With each pair moving across seven pairs of lanes, adaptability will again play a crucial role as scoring pace and transitions unfold across the blocks.
🗓️Saturday 29 November 2025 – Day Schedule (AEST)
(The times below are AEST e.g. Brisbane. Hong Kong is 2 hours behind Brisbane)
- 09:30-11:00 – Lane Maintenance
- 11:00-11:10 – Warm Up
- 11:10-13:30 – Men Doubles Qualifying Squad 1 (7 Games)
- 13:30-14:30 – Lane Maintenance
- 14:30-14:40 – Warm Up
- 14:40-17:00 – Men Doubles Qualifying Squad 2 (7 Games)
- 17:00-18:00 – Lane Maintenance
- 18:00-18:10 – Warm Up
- 18:10-20:30 – Men Doubles Qualifying Squad 3 (7 Games)
🇦🇺 Australian Schedule – Doubles (AEST)
| 11:10-13:30 – Men’s Doubles Qualifying Squad 1 (7 Games) |
| Julian Dinham & Luke Doyle |
| Lanes 27, 24, 18, 17, 15, 10, 34 |
| 14:40-17:00 – Men’s Doubles Qualifying Squad 2 (7 Games) |
| Jordan Dinham & Jesse Ellis |
| Lanes 8, 11, 17, 18, 20, 25, 29 |
| 18:10-20:30 – Men’s Doubles Qualifying Squad 3 (7 Games) |
| Jackson Buckingham & Blake Walsh |
| Lanes 21, 18, 12, 11, 9, 32, 28 |
🎳Doubles Event – Format Overview
All games will be bowled in Baker Format.
Round 1 – Qualification – Maximum Three doubles teams per federation. All teams will bowl seven games baker format in one block.
Round 2 – The Top 24 teams in the final qualification standings will qualify for round 2. They will then be divided into 4 groups of 6 teams evenly based on the rankings from qualification.
Teams will bowl 5 games round robin and be awarded 3 points for a win, and 1 point for a tie. The team with the most points at the end of round two in each group will then advance to the semi-finals.
Semi-Finals
- SF1 – 1v4
- SF2 – 2v3
Best of three games. Winners advance to Grand Final, losers to be awarded Bronze medals.
Grand Final
The winner of each semi-final will advance to the Grand Final.
- Final – Winner of SF1 vs Winner of SF2
Best of three games.
📲 How to Follow
Stay connected with the latest stream links, results, briefs, schedules through the Team Australia Hub on the TBA website.
We will now provide a Morning Brief in the morning each day of the Championships.
💚💛 Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! 💚💛
