Parkinson happy to be anxious as he advances in Fiji
@ThomasBoswell1 self that is a real good thing. It is a positive for me.
“If I am getting nervous, it means I still want to win and I am happy with that.
“Hopefully my wins do not come with a six and a four but I’d like to get some good scores.”
Dora posted the highest single-wave score (6.83) of the Round 2 heat but it wasn’t enough as Parkinson put together waves of 6.33 and 4.33 to record a total of 10.66 and edge out the Brazilian who finished with 10.33.
Parkinson, the 2012 world champion, is ranked sixth this year and will have the opportunity to better his position when he faces Frenchman Jeremy Flores in Round 3.
It was a mixed day for the Australian WSL contingent with Matt Wilkinson (16.84) cruising past Miguel Pupo (5.67) while Owen Wright’s world title campaign took a hit after he was bundled out by Ian Gouveia in Round 3.
Wilkinson put Pupo in a combination situation and the Brazilian had no answers.
“I had a plan to put some turns down at the start,” Wilkinson said.
“I got two sevens right off the bat so I could wait for waves.
“I think Miguel had a plan to be patient but I got a few under his priority. “It was such good fun.” Wright recorded a historic perfect 20 on his way to winning the Fiji Pro in 2015 but exited the competition in 13th, his worst result on tour this year.
“Pretty bummed with that,” Wright said.
“It is just a result but it hurts because it is a perfect lefthander. That is just how things go sometimes.
“The season has been great so far. For me it was a lot about recovery and I feel like I turned a corner just in Brazil where I felt a little bit out of that recovery stage and more into building.
“I feel more aggressive and attacking heats.
“At the start of the year I had some good results but I never felt that ‘go for it’ feeling.
“I am excited to compete now and excited for the tour.”