Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa: Teenager Savannah Ingledew completed a stunning week of squash when she was crowned the Growthpoint SA Nationals women’s squash champion after a decisive win in the final at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on Saturday.
The 18-year-old, originally from Maritzburg but now based in England, was in control for much of the match as she defeated Potchefstroom student Shelomi Truter 11-4 11-5 11-3.
She was joined in the winner’s circle by top men’s seed Dewald van Niekerk, who defeated Johannesburg’s Christo Potgieter for the third year in a row in the final, winning 3-0.
Ingledew, who was only a late entry into the tournament, becomes the first teenager to take the national title since Tenille Swartz 19 years ago. Originally it was thought that Natalie Grainger was the only previous teenager to reach a final three decades ago, but Swartz won the title as a 17-year-old in 2004.
The former KZN Midlands player described her journey through the tournament as “just amazing”.
In the final, she complemented great composure with accurate strokeplay, punishing anything midcourt from Truter as she dictated the pattern of the match.
Her seventh-seeded opponent, 22, has emerged as a player for the future this week, but Truter could not break down Ingledew’s solid game plan.
Having placed a lot of focus on her career in the last two years, Ingledew said she couldn’t believe how her game had developed during this period.
“It has grown exponentially, and I am grateful for this opportunity to play against some of the top players in the country,” she said. “I think playing against older players has help me to mature a bit and to learn how to keep my composure and to manage the pressure that you face.”
Van Niekerk, based in Johannesburg but who also campaigns overseas, was back to his rock-solid game plan after being pushed all the way by Damian Groenewald in Friday’s semifinals.
Potgieter is no slouch, and he gave as good as he got in the opening game, but Van Niekerk showed patience and control to keep his opponent out of the danger zones, winning 11-9 11-4 11-5.
Afterwards he said it was again a highlight for him.
“Winning just one national title is a great thing so to win three in a row is something special,” Van Niekerk said. “I have learnt never to look too far ahead and just to take it one game at time. “Today I just concentrated on keeping it deep on a consistent basis because Christo is very dangerous if you give him an opening, especially down the backhand side. “So, it was a case of just trying to step it up, to make it quick and to get it to the back. “I’m very happy with the outcome.”
Saturday’s third round results were:
Women
Final: 8-Savannah Ingledew (KZN Midlands) bt 7-Shelomi Truter (SA Country Districts) 3-0 (11-4 11-5 11-3)
3rd place playoff: Teagan Roux (Joburg Squash) w/o Milnay Louw (Northerns)
5-8 playoffs: Hayley Ward (Eastern Province) bt Helena Coetzee (Northerns) 3-0 (11-5 11-7 11-3)
Final 5-8 positions: 5 Hayley Ward (EP), 6 Helena Coetzee (Northerns), 7 Keschia Scorgie (SACD). Alexa Pienaar (SACD) withdrew due to illness.
Men
Final: 1-Dewald van Niekerk (SA Country Districts) bt 2-Christo Potgieter (Joburg Squash) 3-0 (11-9 11-4 11-5)
3rd place: 3-Ruan Olivier (Northerns) bt 4-Damian Groenewald (Northerns) 3-1 (11-9 7-11 12-10 11-5)
5-8 playoffs: Rudi van Niekerk (SA Country Districts) bt Justin Gouweloos (KwaZulu-Natal) 3-0 (11-7 11-4 11-7), Jonty Matthys (SA Country Districts) bt Lawrence Kuhn (Free State) 3-0 (11-4 11-5 11-9)
Final 5-8 positions: 5 Jonty Matthys (SACD), 6 Rudi van Niekerk (SACD), 7 Lawrence Kuhn (Free State), 8 Justin Gouweloos (KwaZulu-Natal) .
Ends
FREE TO USE PICTURES:
Captions:
Teenager Savannah- Teenager Savannah Ingledew (KZN Midlands) seeded eight completed a stunning week of squash when she was crowned the Growthpoint SA Nationals squash champion after a decisive 3-0 win over Shelomi Truter (SACD) seeded seven in the women’s final at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on Saturday. Ingledew won 11-4 11-5 11-3.
Savannah Teenager-
Van Niekerk- Top seed Dewald van Niekerk (SACD) won his third consecutive Growthpoint SA Nationals squash championship title after a dominant 3-0 win over second seeded Christo Potgieter (Joburg Squash) in the men’s final at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on Saturday. Van Niekerk won 11-9 11-4 11-5.
Van Niekerk2- Top seed Dewald van Niekerk (SACD) won his third consecutive Growthpoint SA Nationals squash championship title after a dominant 3-0 win over second seeded Christo Potgieter (Joburg Squash) in the men’s final at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on Saturday. Van Niekerk won 11-9 11-4 11-5.
Winner1- Savannah Ingledew (KZN Midlands) won the women’s singles title of the 2023 Growthpoint SA Nationals squash championships played at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town.
Winner2- Dewald van Niekerk (SACD) won the men’s singles title of the 2023 Growthpoint SA Nationals squash championships played at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town.
Winners1- The winners of the 2023 Growthpoint SA Nationals squash championships played at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town are from right women’s singles, Savannah Ingledew (KZN Midlands) and men’s singles, Dewald van Niekerk (SACD).
Winners2- The winners of the 2023 Growthpoint SA Nationals squash championships played at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town are from right women’s singles, Savannah Ingledew (KZN Midlands) and men’s singles, Dewald van Niekerk (SACD).
Picture credits: Petri Oeschger
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