SA Country Districts men on track for another Jarvis squash titles
Pretoria,Tswane, South Africa: The Joburg Squash women’s team continued their impressive form with their third straight win as they comfortably defeated Eastern Province A (EP) on the third day of the Growthpoint Squash Interprovincial in Pretoria on Wednesday.
Only Hayley Ward, at No 1, had any success for Eastern Province (EP) as she outduelled Teagan Roux 3-0 in a well-fought contest.
EP No 5 Dani Shone also fought hard before going down in five games and it was Joburg Squash’s ability to win the tight moments that took them to a resounding win.
The 17-7 result saw them create a 15-point lead over second-placed South African Country Districts A (SACD), who were equally dominant in outclassing Northerns A 17-5.
It has set up a mouthwatering clash on Thursday between the three-time defending champions and the Johannesburg outfit, who know that a victory will secure them the Kaplan Cup title.
But it will never be easy against an SACD side who remain composed despite the target on their backs after a series of triumphs in South Africa’s prestigious team event.
Only Dene van Zyl lost as Northerns No 4 Lara Patrick continued an excellent week. SACD No 5 Keschia Scorgie was stretched to five games, but for the rest the signs for their rivals were ominous.
In the men’s Jarvis Cup, the powerful SA Country Districts A side continue to sweep aside all competition, this time routing their closest blue group rivals Joburg Squash A 20-2.
The defending champions have not lost a match so far and will be confident of reaching yet another final after Thursday’s playoffs.
Joburg Squash still qualified for the top four playoffs and will switch their focus to making sure they advance to Friday’s tournament decider, putting what happened on Wednesday behind them.
Northerns A pulled off a superb win over Zambia A to top the red group, setting themselves for a Thursday showdown with Joburg Squash A.
The home team No 1 Damian Groenewald again proved to be the hero for his side, holding his nerve under pressure to beat Zambian rival Kundanji Kalengo 3-0, with the tie deadlocked at two matches each.
There was also a fascinating battle between SA Country Districts B and Western Province A, which ended 10-10 in games. But the SACD side won three of the five matches to take the five bonus points, pipping their rivals for the second spot in the red group.
It was a gripping finish as SACD B No 1 Ian Oosthuizen held on in heroic fashion after losing the first two games to Rodney Durbach.
The second game went to a remarkable scoreline of 20-18, but the WP man was not able to drive home that advantage as Oosthuizen surged back for a crucial win.
The results were:
Women’s Kaplan Cup
Joburg Squash A bt Eastern Province A 17-7 (Joburg Squash A first): Teagan Roux lost to Hayley Ward 3-0 (11-7 14-12 11-7), Jennifer Preece bt Jacqui Ryder 3-1 (6-11 11-9 11-8 11-6), Tayla Diepenbroek bt Anlen Jarman 3-1 (11-5 12-14 13-11 11-6), Shannon Harvey bt Kacey-Leigh Dodd 3-0 (11-5 13-11 11-5), Nadia Ramchandra bt Dani Shone 3-2 (5-11 11-8 7-11 11-4 11-6)
SA Country Districts bt Northerns A 17-5 (SACD A first): Lizelle Muller bt Helena Coetzee 3-0 (11-6 11-3 11-9), Alexa Pienaar bt Kim McDonald 3-0 (11-8 11-3 11-7), Shelomi Truter bt Mariska Wiese 3-0 (11-9 11-4 11-5), Dene van Zyl lost to Lara Patrick 3-0 (15-13 11-6 11-6), Keschia Scorgie bt Kaylee Hunt 3-2 (6-11 11-6 11-9 7-11 11-2)
Provisional log (matches in brackets): Joburg Squash A 52 (3), SACD A 37 (2), Northerns A 28 (3), EP A 18 (2), WP A 6 (2)
Men’s Jarvis Cup
Red group
Northerns A bt Zambia A 18-7 (Northerns A first): Damian Groenewald bt Kundanji Kalengo 3-0 (11-9 12-10 11-4) Ruan Olivier lost to Kelvin Ndhlovu 3-2 (7-11 11-8 7-11 11-0 11-9), Sipho Ncube bt Sam Siame 3-0 (12-10 11-8 11-8), Andrew Martin bt Manda Chilambwe 3-1 (9-11 11-7 11-4 11-8), Mark Schickerling lost to Ray Simbule 3-2 (11-9 5-11 12-10 4-11 13-11)
SA Country Districts B bt Western Province A 15-10 (SACD B first): Ian Oosthuizen bt Rodney Durbach 3-2 (7-11 18-20, 11-8 11-8 11-1), Jonathan Just lost to Gary Wheadon 3-0 (11-9 11-2 11-1), Luke van Vuuren lost to Mighael Lombard 3-1 (11-8 6-11 11-7 11-5), Reuel Videler bt Seth Flisberg 3-2 (15-13 3-11 5-11 11-2 11-7), Jimmy Schlebusch bt John-Ross Malloch 3-0 (11-1 11-6 11-3)
Provisional log: Northerns A 54, SACD B 36, WP A 31, Zambia A 23
Blue group
SA Country Districts A bt Joburg Squash A 20-2 (SACD A first): Dewald van Niekerk bt Christo Potgieter 3-1 (11-8 7-11 11-8 11-3), JP Brits bt Mark Dunn 3-0 (11-2 11-1 11-4), Rudi van Niekerk bt Dean Nortier 3-0 (11-5 11-8 11-2), Jonty Matthys bt Diodivine Mkhize 3-0 (11-5 11-8 11-2), Dylan Niemack bt Ethan Robinson 3-1 (11-2 7-11 11-5 11-9)
KwaZulu-Natal A v bt Eastern Province A 18-5 (KZN first): Matt Boote bt Warren Bower 3-0 (11-5 11-4 13-11), Daniel Smith lost to Dean Venter 3-1 (8-11 11-8 14-12 11-7), Luke Bakke bt Sips Mpini 3-1 (11-7 12-10 9-11 11-5), Justin de Neef bt Jason le Roux 3-1 (11-7 12-10 10-12 11-2), Adrian Hansen bt Tyrone Dial 3-0 (11-5 11-9 13-11)
Final provisional log: SACD A 60, Joburg Squash A 39, KZN A 26, EP 9
Ends.
FREE TO USE PICTURES
Captions:
Hayley Ward IPT 2023: Eastern Province A No 1 Hayley Ward was the only member of her team to have any success on Wednesday as she beat Joburg Squash A counterpart Teagan Roux 3-0. However, Joburg Squash took the tie 17-7 to top the log after the third day of the Growthpoint Squash Interprovincial in Pretoria.
Kundanji Kalengo IPT 2023: Zambia A No 1 Kundanji Kalengo plays a shot against Western Province A’s Rodney Durbach in the Growthpoint Squash Interprovincial in Pretoria this week. On Wednesday Kalengo could not hold off Damian Groenewald in the deciding encounter as Northerns A took their tie 18-7.
Picture credits: Reg Caldecott
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