Nikki van Dijk started her morning at Manly Beach by taking a group of groms out surfing. Later that day, she went head to head against Sally Fitzgibbons and was able to sneak away with the win in the quarterfinals of the Sydney Surf Pro.
“It was pretty stressful,” says WSL commentator Shannon Hughes. “I think it really tested a lot of their mental capacity today. Knowing it was going to be a challenge to find the right waves, they had to perform. A lot of surfers falling in moments that were extremely critical made it stressful for us as viewers and stressful for coaches and family members. But to see the ones that were able to tap into it and find some good ones was pretty phenomenal.”
Stand-out heats from the day included Alyssa Spencer versus Macy Callaghan with Spencer pulling off some high-impact moves in marginal surf to receive a big score and take the win. Michael Rodrigues delivered some surprisingly next level surfing for the conditions, turning in a 16.73 heat total, solidifying his spot as a favorite for a top three position this season. In the morning, Ryan Callinan delivered six airs in his heat alone. Careers were on the line in Sydney.
The WSL commentators were split on who they think will take the overall win. For the women, Hughes is giving the nod to Sarah Baum, Ronnie Blakey has his money on Caitlin Simmers, and Richie Lovett is pulling for Alyssa Spencer. For the men, the three agree that it’s anyone’s game.
Stay tuned.
