(Photo World Squash)
It was another thrilling day in Niagara-on-the-Lake that saw seeds progress into the quarter-finals of the World Squash Junior Team Championships.
With the men’s round of 16 getting underway and the women’s pool stage reaching its conclusion at White Oaks Resort & Spa, there was no shortage of drama as teams battled for places in the quarter-finals.
Among those to book their place in the last eight were the Canadian women’s team, who produced an impressive victory over No.9 seeds Brazil.
With the tie being contested over three matches and the string draw set at 2-1-3, it was the second match between Canada’s Joelle Kim and Brazil’s Laura Silva that stole the spotlight on Court 8.
Canada, who had already taken a 1-0 lead thanks to Veera Dhaliwal’s straight-game victory over Alix Borges, only needed Joelle Kim to win the second match to secure their place in the last eight.
Starting quickly, Kim looked to have one foot in the quarter-finals after opening up a 2-0 lead, putting Canada within touching distance of second place in Group 1.
However, Laura Silva had other ideas, with the Brazilian No.1 string fighting back brilliantly to take the next two games 11-9, 12-10 and force a decider. With tensions rising on both benches, the fifth game went all the way to a tie-break before Kim held her nerve to seal a dramatic 14-12 victory.
With second place confirmed, Canada completed a 3-0 sweep as Sasha Lee defeated Sara Guerra Barboza 11-6, 11-1, 11-4, boosting team confidence ahead of their quarter-final meeting with No.2 seeds Hong Kong, China.
Meanwhile, No.5 seeds India survived a scare against No.11 seeds Kuwait, recovering from an early setback to advance to the quarter-finals. Despite being the higher seed, it was Kuwait who started stronger as their No.2 string Abdullah Ali claimed a straight-game victory over Yusha Nafees.
Facing potential elimination if they lost the next match, India’s No.1 string Aryaveer Dewan levelled the tie with a commanding 11-5, 11-6, 11-5 win over Khaled Walead Al Fouzain.
With the tie level, it was No.3 string Gurveer Singh who kept his composure to defeat Abdul Rahman Al Sanea in straight games to send India into the quarter-finals.
“We were feeling a bit nervous at the start of the match,” India head coach Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu admitted after the contest.
“[Kuwait’s] Ali Abdullah came out fighting in the opening match and didn’t let us settle in the first match, but that’s the atmosphere that comes with team squash. Some of the teams come out fighting and they are able to catch you out.
“We were fortunate that our No.1 and No.3 strings were able to come back into the tie, staying focused, and it worked out for us in the end.”
Looking ahead to the quarter-final against England, who defeated Australia in straight matches, Singh Sandhu said: “England is a very strong team. Some of our boys played them last week in the individual event.
“So we are ready to go back, plan well and come back strong tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, India’s women’s team also progressed after a straightforward victory over South Africa and will face USA’s women’s team, who advanced after defeating Macau, China.
Malaysia’s men’s and women’s teams also secured quarter-final places with straight-match victories over Brazil and Chinese Taipei respectively, setting up ties against France’s men’s team and England’s women’s team.
Pakistan’s men’s team also advanced after edging hosts Canada in a hard-fought tie, with Abdullah Nawaz being pushed to five games by Calder Murray before prevailing 9-11, 11-7, 11-9, 6-11, 11-3.
Japan’s men’s team also booked their place in the next round after a hard-fought victory over Switzerland, with the No.8 seeds claiming the tie 2-1.
Defending champions Egypt continued to show their dominance as both teams advanced to the quarter-finals. The women’s team completed the group stage unbeaten with a comfortable 3-0 victory over event debutants Nigeria, while the men’s side booked their place in the last eight with a straight-match win over Ireland.
QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS
BOYS: France beat Malaysia 2-0; USA beat Japan 3-0; India beat Kuwait 2-1; England beat Australia 2-0
GIRLS: Malaysia beat England 2-0; Hong Kong beat Canada 2-0; USA beat India 2-1; Egypt beat Australia 3-0
