After a slow start in the 1st game, Denis Gilevskiy settled nicely after playing some patient squash and won the 1st 11-6.In the 2nd, Denis
started well playing some lovely tight balls down the wall, with great weigh for a perfect length. However the Malaysian came back well and went 7-3 up. Chandaran was playing with more confidence and went on to win the 2nd 11-6, to level it 1 all in games.
Chardaran went out strongly in the 3rd and won in 11-6. His confidence building all the time. In the 4th, he was gaining momentum, very few mistakes and most of his shots coming off. He was very accurate and playing with an intensity to go 7-1 up. He was also playing some beautiful creative squash and went 9-4 up, He then played an unbelievable rally, retrieving brilliantly to go 10-5 and match ball. Denis did his best to stay in it and got 2 points, but Chandaran closed it out 11-7 to win the title 3-1.
Denis played magnificent squash all week, today just wasn’t his day, Hard Luck. All of us in Irish Squash are so, so proud of you. Well done!!
Semi finals day today, for the elite. A nervous tension could be felt around the glass court at the University of Birmingham, exciting atmosphere building and we were lucky enough to have an amazing player to support on his quest for a second ‘world title’..
Denis was typically relaxed before his battle, a testament to his maturity, considering the enormity of the occasion.
When play began it seemed that Denis was playing all the right shots, at the right time. Applying pressure to the key areas and generally controlling the early stages. It did get tougher as the match progressed and the fight was on as the two warriors traded games to the end. The 5th set was when Denis excelled and shut out the Egyptian completely. He found the front of the court with more ease and venom, ran away with it really.
Complete ecstasy in his camp, another final to look forward to! Tune in at 12.20pm to support!
Elsewhere, in West Warwick’s club, Gavin L’Strange has a tough loss, Gav is in his weak year though, he’ll be back for more next year!
Jack, Sean and Alex all had good wins in the early part of the day, unfortunately only Alex kept to his winning ways as Sean lost to a strong French opponent who he would fancy his chances against next time around. Jack, after his tough 1st round draw, went on to win the remainder of his matches. That’s impressive mental resolve, he’ll be all the better for pushing through those plate matches!
Elliot had a bye in the morning and his reward was to play the talented Jonah Bryant this evening. Jonah won the U13 event last year, found himself in an unusual position, exiting early this year, but had a good battle with Elliot. Elliot lost 3-0 but definitely a match to learn from!
Scott had a bye against his old foe, Scot, Alasdair Prott, and will face tough English opposition tomorrow afternoon to try finish his event on a high.
Sam had a physically demanding match against a tough Canadian tonight, unfortunately losing in 3 and having to pull out of the tournament.. the body will need a few days to recover from the work load he put in, an amazing tournament for Sam, establishing himself amongst the worlds best!
Conor had a topsy turvy performance against Josh Owen of England.. came back from 0-2 and fought all the way in the 5th.. the body suffering, he couldn’t pull it out of the bag tonight. Great effort though. He’ll play Gabe Yam tomorrow, another one of the worlds best, that’ll be a nice test for the legs in the morning. No doubt Conor will be up to the task and set a good precedent for Denis in his final!
Exciting day for our sport tomorrow, a privilege to be part of such a great event and such a great group of Irish players!
Best of luck to Denis on his quest!
David Noone
National Junior Coach