South African teenager Tenille Swartz has lifted her maiden title in only her second appearance in a WISPA World Tour squash event, after beating Italy’s Manuela Manetta in the final of the Women’s Meersquash Open in Hoofddorp, northern Netherlands.
In this new event on the WISPA calendar, Swartz, a 19-year-old qualifier from Parys, made her breakthrough in the quarter-finals when she beat top-seeded New Zealander Louis Crome to 9-5, 9-2, 5-9, 3-9, 9-3.
In the semi-finals, Swartz brushed aside Elise Ng, the No 5 seed from Hong Kong, 9-2, 9-4, 9-0 in 27 minutes – while third seed Manetta needed more than twice the time to see off local star Margriet Huisman 9-4, 7-9, 9-6, 9-6.
In the final, the South African controlled the tired-looking Manetta from start to finish with her fighting mentality and great drop shots. After 33 minutes of impressive squash, Tenille Swartz claimed the first tournament title of her career 9-4, 9-3, 9-5.
It was a victory which is sure to see the Dutch-based teenager, who is currently ranked 134 in the world, make her top 100 debut in the next WISPA world rankings.
Results: Women’s Meersquash Open, Hoofddorp, Netherlands
Semi-finals:
[Q] Tenille Swartz (RSA) bt [5] Elise Ng (HKG) 9-2, 9-4, 9-0 (27m)
[3] Manuela Manetta (ITA) bt Margriet Huisman (NED) 9-4, 7-9, 9-6, 9-6 (57m)
Final:
[Q] Tenille Swartz (RSA) bt [3] Manuela Manetta (ITA) 9-4, 9-3, 9-5 (33m)
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