The majority of the seeded players led by number-one ranked Jonathan Walker won their opening matches in straight sets in the men’s and women’s open sections of the All Jamaica Senior Squash Championship, which got under way Wednesday night at the Liguanea Club in New Kingston.
Walker defeated Mario O’Connor 3-0 11-2, 11-3, 11-3 in a match that showed the superior skill and fitness of a player that came into the championship with high expectations of taking his first All Jamaica title.
Walker was candid about his seeding and preparation for the championship.
“It’s a privilege to be the number one seed. Not gonna lie. I wasn’t expecting it. This year is kind of tough for seedings given some injuries and some people taking some time off, but I think I played really well for us at the Pan American Games and the Caribbean Championships this past year. I’ve been training for this tournament, and I’m excited to get out there. There’s a lot expected of me, and I think I’m ready to handle the pressure.
“My goal is to absolutely win this tournament. It’s gonna be hard Julian’s (Morrison) a great player. I’ve grown up with him. He’s one of my best friends.He knows my game in and out. I know his game in and out very well, so it’s gonna be competitive. That’s kind of the hard part of this tournament is that we all grew up together, we’re all really close, so we all know how each other plays, and it’s just gonna be a matter of who goes out there and plays better on that day.”
Number two seed Tahjia Lumley comprehensively defeated Govind Venugopal 11-2, 11-2, 11-3 while Julian Morrison, seeded at number three after missing the last two championships, made light work of Nirmal Balani with scores of 11-2, 11-3, 11-6. The first top seed player to drop a set was the number four seed, Dane Schwier, who lost his first set to the junior champion, Ethan Miller. The final scores in their match were 8-11, 11-3, 11-6, 11-9.
Fifth seed Adam Ardito defeated Shane Slater 3-0, and sixth seed Bruce Burrowes, who returned from injury, got the better of Liegh Dwyer, also by 3-0. The former outstanding junior player Tobias Levy, who is seeded at seven, got past Jake Mahfood 3-0. The final seeded player, Jerazeno Bell (8), defeated Fitzroy Smith in straight sets as well.
Among the women number two seed Kerrie-Gay Wright overpowered Varenyga Singh in four sets – 11-5, 11-5, 10-12 11-8. That was the only match to go to four sets as the other two ended in straight sets. The number three seed Ellie Wilson took out Alexis Robinson 11-5, 11-5, 11-4, and Nathlee Borleland, seeded at number four, defeated Priya Stoddart 11-5, 11-6, 11-3.
The next round of matches are scheduled for this evening at the Liguanea Club, starting at 5:45 with four matches playing simultaneously on courts one to four.
