Squash Masters sweat it in Walvis

IF you walked onto the squash courts at Buccaneers Squash Club and Wasra over the weekend, you would be surprised to find all the older people sweating and running while the younger people watch and cheer.

The weekend was an all-veteran squash affair with the Liberty Life Masters tournament at Walvis Bay.
The event, which was running for the second year, was an opportunity for veteran squash players to showcase their skills against players in the same age group.
The tournament was divided into men’s and women’s categories with age group divisions.
The divisions for women were 30-39, 40-49 and 50-59.
The men’s divisions were 35-44; 45-54 and 55 to 64.
The women’s 30-39 age group was a battle between Windhoek and Walvis Bay, with top-ranked Isabella Schnoor vying for yet another title as she continues her domination of the women’s game in Namibia.
Schnoor, who has won every women’s tournament she has played in since returning to Namibia, is on course for a clean sweep of women’s tournaments.
The only person standing in her way is Jenny Pahl of Walvis Bay, who is one of the strongest female players in Namibia although she has not played any tournaments this year.
The men’s 35-44 age group saw the defending champion, Jacques Steenkamp, on a mission to defend the title he won in Windhoek last year.
In his way were veteran Nelson ‘The Hustler’ Herunga, who lost in the final to Steenkamp, and back from squash exile, veteran Frikkie Orban who is a previous Namibian number one.
The women’s 30-39 age group was won by hot favourite Schnoor who beat Jenny Pahl of Walvis Bay in straight sets 2-0.
Pahl, who seemed nervous and never really got going, could not keep up with Schnoor’s high tempo and tight low boosts that led to her downfall in the end. Schnoor, who only dropped one set against former Namibian number one Adri Lambert, had the game wrapped up in less than 30 minutes and cemented her number one status in Namibia.
The women’s 40-49 age group was won by Nancy Fernandes who dispatched all her opponents with relative ease without dropping a set.
The main women’s group, the 50-59 section, was won by F Rowett, the mother of Ian Rowett, who is the current number one ranked player in Namibia.
The men’s 35-44 age group was probably the most competitive with a large number of players equally balanced in strength and ability.
Steenkamp was challenged by Orban, who was staging a comeback to Namibian squash after a lengthy absence from the competitive squash arena.
Steenkamp made light work of the unfit Orban and sealed the game 2-0.
The men’s 40-49 age group was another tough battle that saw Wynand Breytenbach beat favourite Jaco De Witt 2-1to take that age group category.
The 55-64 age group saw yet another Rowett triumph and asserted the dominance of the Rowett family in Namibian squash with John Rowett defeating Karel Zehrit 2-1.
Tournament organiser Wynand Breytenbach thanked Gerome Mouton (senior manager) and Christelle Loots (managing director) of Liberty Life and Ronnie Eimbeck of Standard Bank Walvis Bay for making the tournament possible.
He further assured the players that the tournament would continue to grow and that Liberty Life was enthusiastic to sponsor the tournament every other year.
Namibian Squash Association chairman Gerdus Louwrens said it is sad that there are more senior players than young players in the country.
He said the NSA is addressing this and progress is being made.
The junior team going to Bloemfontein today is a step in the right direction, with close to 30 juniors expected to participate at the event in South Africa.