The top five Men’s seeds all progressed with a minimum of fuss to Thursday?s quarter-finals when the 32nd edition of the Barbados National Squash Championships, sponsored by the Barbados Olympic Association, continued on Wednesday night, May 17th at the Barbados Squash Club.
Top seed, Gavin Cumberbatch, ran Don Benn to a standstill in three tiring games, while the #2 seed Shawn Simpson, slugged it out for three games against former national finalist Fabian Goodridge, who is making a come back to local competition. The #3 seed Mark Sealy faced a game ball in the third game but still progressed in straight games against Craig Archer 9/1 9/1 10/8, and under the watchful eye of a TV camera, the #4 seed, Marlon White dropped only two points while defeating Philip Lewis in straight games.
The remaining seeds struggled, with only the #5 seed John Cumberbatch making it safely into the quarterfinals tonight (Thursday). Cumberbatch defeated Norman Rice in straight games for the loss of only six points, but the #6 seed Richard Moorjani was defeated in four games by returning national, Ian Worrell, who was fitter and made fewer mistakes on the night. The #7 seed Jason Small was never in the hunt against former national player, Tim O?Neal, who is making a comeback to squash after a series of injuries that have kept him out of the game for the best part of two years. O?Neal looked sharp on the drop shot and volley and never allowed his opponent to settle into a rhythm and easily closed out the match in straight games. The wily veteran and #8 seed, Mickey Armstrong, tried hard against the current under-19 champion Alex Garcia, but Garcia?s speed and agility about the court, coupled with his excellent retrieving were enough to see him safely home in straight games also.
The remaining Men’s matches in the Men’s Plate 1st round were all relatively one sided, with Jason Gilkes, Ronald Watson, Roger Martin, Jasper Seymour, Ciaran Raymer all advancing to the Plate Quarter-finals on May 18th with straight game victories over Ricky Edwards, Ryan Foster, Sylvester Nurse, Jasper Seymour and Jonathan O?Dowd respectively.
Full results from Day 3 on May 17th were as follows:
Men’s 1st round: Gavin Cumberbatch defeated Don Benn (3-0) 9/2 9/3 9/2
Men’s 1st round: John Cumberbatch defeated Norman Rice (3-0) 9/3 9/2 9/1
Men’s 1st round: Alex Garcia defeated #8 Mickey Armstrong (3-0) 10/8 9/6 9/4
Men’s 1st round: Marlon White defeated Philip Lewis (3-0) 9/1 9/1 9/0
Men’s 1st round: Mark Sealy defeated Craig Archer (3-0) 9/1 9/1 10/8
Men’s 1st round: Ian Worrell defeated #6 Richard Moorjani (3-1) 9/3 4/9 9/6 9/8
Men’s 1st round: Tim O?Neal defeated #7 Jason Small (3-0) 9/6 9/2 9/6
Men’s 1st round: Shawn Simpson defeated Fabian Goodridge (3-0) 9/2 9/3 9/5
Men’s Plate 1st round: Jason Gilkes defeated Ricky Edwards (3-0) 9/1 9/1 10/8
Men’s Plate 1st round: Ronald Watson defeated Ryan Foster (3-0) 9/4 9/0 9/4
Men’s Plate 1st round: Roger Martin defeated Sylvester Nurse (3-0) 9/4 9/2 9/6
Men’s Plate 1st round: Jasper Seymour defeated Mylon Wason (3-0) 9/7 9/5 9/0
Men’s Plate 1st round: Ciaran Raymer defeated Jonathan O?Dowd (3-0) 10/8 9/3 9/6
Matches continue from 5:45 p.m. each night until Friday May 19th at the BSC. All finals will be contested between 1:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, May 20th.
