Nineteen-year-old collegiate squash star Alex Arjoon won his second straight national squash title at the Georgetown last weekend, punctuating his awesome performance with an impressive win against Nicolette Fernandes on the final day of the tournament.
Although Arjoon did not need to defeat Fernandes to retain his title as she was not actually in contention for the men’s title, he felt as though he had to win his match against her to cement his designation as the national champion. The situation was unique as the world ranked women’s squash star has been competing in the men’s category for the past four years for competitive match practice. What was apparent was that Fernandes’ skill was well beyond that of the local female players competing in the women’s category and even far above many of the competitors in the men’s draw.
For this reason, Arjoon stated that he was very satisfied having played Fernandes in the tournament finale as she represented the best available challenger.
“As far I’m concerned she is absolutely the best challenger here… you tell me which other man here could beat her,” Arjoon affirmed. Although Fernandes had not been competing for a place, Arjoon said he knew she was going to be his biggest test of the tournament on the road to retaining his title. According to Arjoon, who had defeated Fernandes in last year’s semifinal, playing against Fernandes brought out the best in him as a player.
Arjoon, who just completed his first year at number eight nationally ranked squash school Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania, USA, had to undergo surgery to his lower back earlier this year. Currently the number four player on his school’s team, the left-handed squash player said that his preparation for this year’s nationals was hindered due to his recent injury. Additionally, Arjoon said that he was not mentally or physically at his best entering the tournament.
Nevertheless, the former Caribbean Under-15 champion easily won all his matches against opponents of his gender in straight game fashion. Fernandes was the first opponent to steal a game from the two-time national champion and she even had him trailing 2-1 entering the fourth game of the match.
“I didn’t feel mentally or physically stable before, but going up against someone like Nicolette [Fernandes] forces you to be stable. You have to step up against her because it’s like even if you are not focused, playing against her forces you to be focused,” said Arjoon who is the nephew of regional squash maestro Roger Arjoon who has won Caribbean titles at both the junior and senior level.
Arjoon insisted that anyone who viewed him playing against Fernandes as rudimentary as man versus women, thereby giving him the automatic advance, must be totally ignorant of the game of squash and superior talent of Fernandes.
Arjoon, who is expected to compete at the Caribbean Area Squash Association (CASA) Senior Caribbean Squash Championships next month, said that the fact the Fernandes is a professional player and former world number 27, should not be taken lightly.
“She is like a role model to me, not just because of who she is and what she has accomplished on the world scene but in terms of training and preparation. I wish I had half her professionalism as a player,” Arjoon added.
In this, his first year as a legitimate senior competitor, Arjoon said that the recent win against Fernandes was a major confidence booster. Arjoon credits most of his success to the love, support and encouragement provided by his family and close friend Deje Dias. Arjoon also stated that the local junior programme has been inspiring to him as a player and is one of the main factors why he returns home to compete each summer. As a member of many of the championship teams during Guyana’s dominant streak as seven-time overall junior CASA champions, Arjoon said that this has led to the formation of very close family-like ties between players. It is for this reason that he said he will also continue to give his support to the present junior team, which also includes his younger sister Victoria, so that they can sustain the momentum.
