One Guyana President’s Cup Squash Championships…
THE largest turn-out of the One Guyana President’s Cup Squash Championship watched as Nicollette Fernandes and Jason- Ray Khalil emerged winners of Men’s and Women’s singles titles, when the action-packed tournament climaxed in the finals yesterday.
In the women’s final, the scores did not truly reflect the magnitude of competition between Number Two seed Mary Fung-a-Fat and World Masters Women’s Singles Champion, the evergreen Nicolette Fernandes.
Fung-a-Fat displayed wonderful manoeuvres and tenacity, but Fernandes made phenomenal use of the Court, and produced precise shot selection and exquisite backhand drives as the 41-year-old Caribbean Squash sensation looked supremely fit and in total control.
Mary, on the other hand, tested Nicollette with well-placed drop shots, but Nicolette, aging like good wine, countered them like a 21-year-old, showing she has not lost much of the speed from the days when she dominated Caribbean Squash while winning the only gold medal for Guyana at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games in Colombia.
The once 19th ranked female player in World, Fernandes made her 30-year-old opponent, who won Silver in Women’s Plate competition Commonwealth, look like an ordinary player despite her excellent determination and guile.
Nicollette won 11-5, 11-7, 11-1 in yesterday’s Women’s final at the National Racquet Centre.
In a riveting Men’s Final, the game highlighted several very long rallies Jason-Raj Khalil defeated the experienced and skillful Shomari Wiltshire in match that went to four games.
Wiltshire raced away to a convincing 11-8 in the opening game, before Khalil powered to 11-6, 11-7 and 13-11 in a pulsating final game, which could have gone the other way for fifth and deciding game.
But that was not to be, as Khalil captured his second Men’s title, winning the National Singles when his sister Ashley Khalil won the Women’s Singles.
The pint-sized multi-talented Zion Hickerson, just back from Maimi, where he participated in Tennis, won the Boy’s U15 final, while fast-improving Emily Fung-a-Fat won the Girls U-15 and U-19 Titles, and Demetri Lowe took the Boys’ U19 title.
National Sport Commission’s Director of Sport Steve Ninvalle and Cristy Campbell were among those who presented the Medals.
Ashley Khalil and Ashley DeGroot had won the Women’s Doubles, while Alex Arjoon and Jason-Ray Khalil won the Men’s Doubles.
