By Calvin Roberts
Seventeen-year-old Raphael de Groot continued his dream run whilst Kristian Jeffrey steamrolled his opponents when action in the 2008 Woodpecker Products-sponsored National Junior Squash Championships continued at the Georgetown Club courts Thursday evening.
After his stunning defeat of two-time Caribbean under- 15 champion Alexander Arjoon the previous night, de Groot faced last year’s national under-17 champion, Oliver Downes, who took the initiative in the early exchanges with the pace and accuracy of his shots putting de Groot on the defensive for most of the first game.
It was not until Downes got out to a 7-0 lead that de Groot started to cope with his opponent’s pace and went on a five point run, before Downes took back the serve and eventually closed out the game 9-6.
The second game was even from the beginning with both players investing in long hard rallies, moving their opponent to all corners of the court.
However Downes never let his opponent have the lead after going 2-0 up and went on to take the second game 9-5.
The third game followed the same pattern as the second with some gruelling exchanges which saw Downes taking the early lead at 4-1.
It was at this point that the tide began to change, as de Groot who displayed a relentless attitude in working Downes round the court and like a boxer who had invested in some early body punches, gradually took control.
He grinded out the third game 9-5 and blew away Downes 9-1 in the fourth to set up a fifth and deciding game, the first of the tournament.
Downes found his second wind in the fifth but de Groot intelligently returned to the strategy of working his opponent round the court to earn himself a second major upset in as many nights, with a 9-6 win in the fifth.
Jeffrey sent a stern warning to his competitors indicating that there will be no mercy shown during his last junior tournament with convincing victories over Alex Arjoon and Alonso Lawrie who he defeated in straight sets without conceding a point.
In fact, Jeffrey played three matches in the nights’ proceedings and it was only in his last match against Nichoals Narain that he conceded three points, one in the first game and two in the final but he still managed to come out on top in straight sets.
Results from Thursday nights’ action are
Girls under 11 & 13 combined
Victoria Arjoon defeated Larissa Wiltshire 9-0, 9-0, 9-0
Akeila Wiltshire defeated Taylor Fernandes 9-1, 9-1, 9-
2
Rebecca Xavier defeated Alexandra Phang 9-1, 9-0 9-0
Girls under 17 & 19 combined
Ashley Khalil defeated Ashley De Groot 9-3, 9-3, 9-3
Keisha Jeffrey defeated Mary Fung-A-Fat 9-4, 9-3, 9-5
Ashley Khalil defeated Kayla Jeffrey 9-6, 9-3, 7-9 10-8
Ashley deGroot defeated Samantha Fernandes 9-3, 9-0, 9-2
Boys under 13
Jean-Claude Jeffrey defeated Shaquille Bowen 9-0, 9-0, 9-0
Nyron Joseph defeated Daniel Persaud 9-1, 9-0, 9-0
Boys under 15
Nyron Joseph defeated Nicholas Peters 9-0, 9-0, 9-0
Abhishek Singh defeated Steven Xavier 9-1, 9-0, 9-6
Jason Ray Khalil defeated Jean-Claude Jeffrey 9-2, 9-2, 9-5
Boys under 17 & 19 combined
Kristian Jeffrey defeated Alonso Lawrie 9-0, 9-0, 9-0
Raphael deGroot defeated Oliver Downes 6-9, 5-9, 9-5, 9-1, 9-6
Kristian Jeffrey defeated Alexander Arjoon 9-0, 9-0 9-0
Oliver Downes defeated Alonso Lawrie 9-0, 9-0, 9-0
Kristian Jeffrey defeated Nicholas Narain 9-1, 9-0, 9-2
Jason Ray Khalil defeated Javid Rahaman 9-7, 9-3, 9-2
