Busy Bee Blessing Muhwati

SOON after concluding his Information and Technology Management assignment Blessing Muhwati headed straight to another one.

But this one was not an academic assignment but the Zimbabwe Grand Prix Series tournament, hosted by Harare Sports Club last week.

The 22-year-old Muhwati, the country’s number one squash player, made light work of his opponents.

He won the Grand Prix and continued to improve his world ranking.

The University of Johannesburg student is now ranked 238 in the world having turned pro in March ranked 463.

“After a very proactive week and a little sleep . . . I am happy to walk away with the win,” said the South Africabased Muhwati, who eased 3-0 past Faisal Hassan to win the third edition of the Grand Prix Series.

The strain of balancing school and sport has strengthened Muhwati.

“It’s tough but I think it builds character. There is no time to slacken. Consistency in training and studying is the essential key.

“I headed to the tournament after spending hours working on my university assignment but I was never going to use that as an excuse.

“To me every match or game counts, I like to give my opponents my best,” said the former Prince Edward School pupil. Where would he want to end the year ranked?

“I would like to end up in the 100 and something. Considering we don’t have much time left and don’t have funding to travel, playing at the major tournaments will be impossible.

“If I happen to play tournaments it will be local tournaments in South Africa and maybe a few more closed PSA satellites,” said Muhwati who also won the Zimbabwe Closed Championship which was the country’s first ever Professional Squash Association tournament in July.