KZN and Central Gauteng take command of the T

KWAZULU-NATAL men’s and Central Gauteng women’s sides emerged victorious at the end of the 57th Jarvis/ Kaplan Cup interprovincial squash championships in Pietermaritzburg yesterday.

The men’s final was completely dominated by defending champions KwaZulu- Natal A, spearheaded by Steve Coppinger and Laurans Jan Anjema, with Western Province fading.

Rodney Durbach, the experienced WP No 4, drew first blood as he accounted for Andrew Martin in straight games. Durbach raced through the first two games 11-6 11-4 before Martin, who had been battling to find form throughout the week, found his length and timing, but eventually lost the game 13-11. KwaZulu-Natal’s Dutch import Anjema levelled the tie when he defeated Pierdro Schweertman in four games.

Ranked 24 in the world, 2016 national champion Coppinger was in rampant form as he disposed of national teammate Shaun le Roux for the loss of only six points, triumphing 11-2 11-2 11-2.

It was left to captain Adrian Hansen to put the final nail in WP’s coffin as he outplayed Zuko Kubukeli 11-6 11-4 11-4 to give KwaZulu-Natal their fifth victory in the last 10 years.

Third place was taken by SACD followed by Central Gauteng in fourth.

Despite losing to Northerns 15-8 on the first day of the event, Central Gauteng women’s A side bounced back to defeat Province 16-7 in their final showdown.

Lume Landman had little trouble in beating WP’s Sacha West in straight games, but 2015 national champion Alex Fuller notched a win for the coastal side by disposing of Cheyna Tucker in straight games.

Competing in her first Jarvis/ Kaplan Cup, Heba el Torky of Egypt – ranked 23 on the globe – managed to subdue Siyoli Waters in four games to give Central Gauteng the edge at 2-1 in matches.

In an evenly-matched encounter, WP’s Miranda Lang balanced the scale as she dug deep to triumph 13-11 in the decider against Michelle Kohne, the Central Gauteng B side No 1. Kohne replaced an injured Mariske Wiese.

The pressure then fell on Elani Landman (Central Gauteng) and Karen Blom (WP), but it was the positive attacking play of Landman that steered the women from up north to victory as she outplayed Blom in straight games.

Northerns, who registered an easy 17-4 win over Eastern Province A, slipped into second place, with by Province and EP following in third and fourth respectively.

For the first time in the 57-year history of the tournament, Midlands A, who defeated Border A 15-5 in yesterday’s B section final, will gain promotion next year to the A section.

EP B women’s team annexed the B section, followed by Midlands A and Central Gauteng B.

The men’s C section was a closely-contested affair with Border B edging through to win the section with 96 points, followed by Easterns A on 95 and Central Gauteng in third with 81.

Next year, Midlands B will also gain promotion to the men’s C section after they walked away with top honours in the D section courtesy of a comfortable winning margin of 16 points.

In second place was Central Gauteng D with EP B finishing in third place.