Awande Malinga cruised to victory as the U19 champion on the final day of the Growthpoint SA Junior National Squash Championships at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on Sunday, 20 August 2023.
Malinga won the title for the second year in a row when she easily overcame Boland’s Dene van Zyl in her final pool game 3-0 to ensure she finished top of the standings.
In the U17 category, KwaZulu-Natal’s Cevana Naidoo reigned supreme and went through four days of play with a clean record, completing her mission by defeating Border’s Cara Knott in three games on Sunday.
The U15 finals saw Makayla Naidoo (KZN), Cevana’s younger sister, who said she had lost most of her matches against Northerns rival Elzandri Janse van Rensburg, looked to be heading for another defeat at 2-0 down.
But she showed great courage and fighting qualities to turn the tide, using deep and accurate drives to put her opponent under pressure.
Results: Growthpoint South Africa Junior Squash National Championships
U15:
Pool A: Makayla Naidoo (KZN) bt Elzandri Janse van Rensburg (Northerns) 3-2 (10-12 8-11 11-8 11-7 11-9).
Final positions:
1 Makayla Naidoo (KZN)
2 Elzandri Janse van Rensburg (Northerns)
3 Kate van Biljon (Border)
4 Starla Phillips (Northerns)
Pool B, Final positions:
1 Hanrie Duits (Eden)
2 Anushka Janse van Rensburg (Northerns)
3 Tara Neville-Smyly (WP)
4 Danika Theron (Eden)
U17:
Cevana Naidoo (KZN) bt Cara Knott (Border) 3-0 (11-4 11-7 11-6)
Brianna Robinson (Eastern Gauteng) bt Sasha Earl (Border) 3-2 (6-11 8-11 11-4 11-6 11-2)
Final positions:
First playoff pool: 1 Cevana Naidoo (KZN), 2 Chante Leppan (Northerns), 3 Cara Knott (Border)
Second playoff pool: 1 Lucy Malherbe (WP), 2 Brianna Robinson (Eastern Gauteng), 3 Sasha Earl (Border)
Third playoff pool: 1 Anke Garbers (Free State), 2 Lia Viljoen (Boland), 3 Laura Smit (Joburg Squash)
U19:
Pool A:
Awande Malinga (Northerns) bt Dene van Zyl (Boland) 3-0 (11-2 11-3 11-6)
Elske Garbers (Northwest) bt Kelly Emslie (Border) 3-1 (11-4 10-12 11-7 18-16).
Final positions:
1 Awande Malinga (Northerns)
2 Elske Garbers (Northwest)
3 Dene van Zyl (Boland)
4 Kelly Emslie (Border)
Pool B:
Nicola Bentley (KZN) bt Jordin Phillips (Northerns) 3-0 (11-2 11-7 11-5)
Ashton Weir (Northerns) bt Cailyn Nieuwoudt (WP) 3-0 (11-6 11-9 11-4).
Final positions:
1 Ashton Weir (Northerns)
2 Nicola Bentley (KZN)
3 Jordin Phillips (Northerns)
4 Cailyn Nieuwoudt (WP)
Photo 1 Caption: Northerns player Awande Malinga was crowned the U19 girls’ champion when the final day of the Growthpoint SA Junior National Squash Championships took place at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town on Sunday. Photo: Petri Oeschger / Supplied
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