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 Kent
Open 2010
01-06 Jun, Maidstone, England, $10k |
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06-Jun,
Final:
Alan Clyne bt Jonny Harford 11-8, 11-3, 11-8 (35m)
FLYING SCOT CLYNE CLAIMS
KENT OPEN TITLE
By ALAN THATCHER
photos by Kim Roberts
Top seed Alan Clyne powered home to the $10,000 Kent Open
title with a straight-games victory over surprise finalist
Jonny Harford.
Clyne won 11-8, 11-3, 11-8 in 35 minutes, finishing strongly
in the first and third games and totally dominating the
second to win the inaugural PSA One Star tournament held at
The Mote Squash Club in Maidstone, England.
 The
23-year-old world No.62 from Edinburgh was in control
throughout most of the match, using his incredible speed and
court coverage to counter any attacking moves from the tall
Englishman who had enjoyed a walkover into the final
following the withdrawal through illness of No.3 seed John
Rooney.
Clyne dominated the front half of the court and whenever
Harford played anything loose or short, the Scotsman pounced
on the ball and won a succession of points with his
trademark killer drop shots.
Clyne's composure at the business end of games was obvious.
From 6-6 in the first game he tightened up to win four
points in a row and although Harford countered with two
stunning winners, Clyne had no trouble in seeing out the
game.
In hot, humid conditions, both players were literally
dripping with sweat as the second game started and Harford
was unable to withstand the ferocious barrage of front-court
winners flowing from the Scotsman's racket.
The game was over in five minutes and the crowd were willing
Harford to prolong the match.
He responded solidly and fought hard in the third game, but
he was unable to build on his 8-5 lead as Clyne regained
control to win six points in a row to claim the title.
A delighted Clyne said: "I was very pleased with the way I
played all week. The courts here at The Mote are excellent
and everyone at the club made us very welcome. It's always
great to see new tournaments added to the calendar and I am
sure all the players will look forward to coming back next
year."
Runner-up Harford was pleased to claim some valuable points
to help his climb back up the PSA rankings following a hip
operation. He said: "Alan played a fantastic game and I
couldn't get near him today. He was absolutely awesome at
the front of the court.
"I would like to thank The Mote Squash Club and the Kent SRA
for giving me a local spot in qualifying. It has really
helped me to get back into the game. I can only endorse what
Alan said about the hospitality at this club and the players
are all grateful for the way they have been looked after.
It's been a great tournament."
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Draw &
Results
Alan
Thatcher's
Kent Open
BLOG
#4: Rooney Regrets
Chinese ... Malaysia 1 Jonny 0 ...
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Kent
Open 2010
01-06 Jun, Maidstone, England, $10k |
Round One
03 Jun |
Quarters
04 Jun |
Semis
05 Jun |
Final
06 Jun |
[1] Alan Clyne (Sco)
4-11, 11-8, 11-2, 12-10 (53m)
Joel Hinds (Eng) |
[1] Alan Clyne
11-3, 11-6, 11-6 (35m)
[5] Ivan Yuen |
[1] Alan Clyne
6-11, 11-13, 11-1,
11-8, 12-10 (69m)
[6] Piedro Schweertman |
[1] Alan Clyne
16.00
[Q] Jonny Harford |
[5] Ivan Yuen (Mas)
11-3, 12-10, 11-4 (28m)
Karim AGA Samy (Egy) |
[4] Joe Lee (Eng)
6-11, 11-6,11-5, 11-8 (44m)
Neil Hitchens (Eng) |
[4] Joe Lee
11-9, 11-6, 11-5 (43m)
[6] Piedro Schweertman |
[6] Piedro Schweertman (Ned)
11-9, 8-11, 11-5, 14-12 (46m)
[Q] Wael Farag (Egy) |
[Q] Tom Pashley (Eng)
11-5, 7-11, 11-8, 11-3 (49m)
[8] Ben Ford (Eng) |
[8] Ben Ford
11-8, 11-8, 11-8 (41m)
[3] John Rooney |
[3] John Rooney
w/o ill
[Q] Jonny Harford |
Steven London (Eng)
11-4, 11-6, 11-6 (28m)
[3] John Rooney (Irl) |
[Q] Chris Truswell (Eng)
8-11, 11-2, 10-12, 11-8, 11-7 (54m)
Harinderpal Sandhu (Ind) |
[Q] Chris Truswell
11-5, 11-6, 12-10 (41m)
[Q] Jonny Harford |
[Q] Jonny Harford (Eng)
11-9, 7-11, 11-4, 11-8 (65m)
[2] Muhd Asyraf Azan (Mas) |
02 Jun,
Qualifying Finals:
Jonny Harford (Eng) bt
Arthur Gaskin (Irl)
11-6, 6-11, 11-2, 11-0 (47m)
Wael Farag (Egy) bt Phil Nightingale (Eng)
11-8, 11-9, 11-3 (28m)
Chris Truswell (Eng) bt Issa Kamara (Sle)
11-3, 11-4, 11-4 (19m)
Tom Pashley (Eng) bt Mark Fuller (Eng)
11-4, 7-11, 8-11, 11-4, 12-10 (54m)
01 Jun,
Qualifying Round One:
Jonny Harford (Eng) bt
Bart Ravelli (Neth)
11-9, 11-0, 11-3 (31m)
Arthur Gaskin (Irl) bt Neil Baker (eng)
11-1, 11-6, 11-8 (23m)
Phil Nightingale (Eng) bt Alexei Severinov (Rus)
11-1, 11-7, 11-5 (24m)
Wael Farag (Egy)
bt Jonny Powell (Eng) 11-2, 11-7,
15-13 (22m)
Issa Kamara (Sle) bt James Evans (Eng)
11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 11-8 (36m)
Chris Truswell (Eng) bt Ryan Thompson (Nam)
11-13, 11-8, 11-8, 11-5 (55m)
Tom Pashley (Eng) bt Ben Coleman (Eng)
11-4, 11-4, 11-9 (38m)
Mark Fuller (Eng) bt Neil Cordell (Eng)
11-9, 11-9, 11-4 (29m)
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06-Jun,
Final:
Alan Clyne bt Jonny Harford 11-8, 11-3, 11-8 (35m)
05-Jun, Semis:
CLYNE FIGHTBACK CLINCHES
PLACE IN KENT OPEN FINAL
By ALAN THATCHER
photos by Kim Roberts
 Top
seed Alan Clyne fought back from two games down to beat
Dutchman Piedro Schweertman in the semi-finals of the Kent
Open.
The Scottish No.1 won 6-11, 11-13, 11-1, 11-8, 12-10 in 69
minutes of high quality squash that delighted a packed
gallery at The Mote Squash Club in Kent.
The entertainment value served up by both players more than
made up for the earlier disappointment of the sudden
withdrawal of No.3 seed John Rooney, who went down with food
poisoning overnight after a Chinese meal with his family and
friends in London.
That presented qualifier Jonny Harford with a walkover into
the final and the prospect of picking up some valuable
ranking points as he bids to climb back up the PSA world
ladder after several months out with a hip injury.
Clyne will obviously be favourite to become the first winner
of this new $10,000 PSA One Star tournament but Harford was
delighted to watch Clyne and Schweertman make such a massive
physical investment in the semi-final.
The No.6 seed from Amsterdam lost in straight games to Clyne
when they met in the recent final of the West of Ireland
open. This time he began strongly to take the first game and
hit back from 8-4 down to win the second 13-11 on a
tiebreak.
However, that phenomenal effort clearly took its toll as he
tired in the second game. It looked like Clyne might achieve
a rare 11-0 whitewash until the Dutchman scrambled a point
on game ball.
If Schweertman was taking a tactical rest it clearly had the
desired effect as he opened up an 8-5 lead in the fourth
game. He then showed commendable sportsmanship as he called
his own shot down just three points away from victory.
Clyne responded in magnificent style, reeling off six points
in a row to make the scores level at two games all.
The fifth game was a classic mixture of skill and attrition
as both players fought to a standstill. Clyne won the first
three points but Schweertman drew level and then moved ahead
at 6-5. Clyne then won four points in a row but Schweertman
turned the tables to reach match ball at 10-9.
Both players attacked throughout and a succession of
devastating winners were matched by some spectacular
retrieving.
Staring defeat in the face, Clyne once again showed his
phenomenal powers of recovery to force a tiebreak and win
the next two points to clinch victory.
The final will provide a massive contrast in styles, with
the tall, hard-hitting Harford seeking to overpower one of
the fastest and best retrievers in the game who possesses a
killer drop shot.
Plenty on offer
Despite the disappointment of Rooney's withdrawal, there was
still plenty of entertaining squash on display during the
day.
The Kent Open doubles was followed by a Challenge
Match between the Outer Kent League and the SE London
Priory League.
Star players Karim Samy, Wael Farag and Malaysian Asyraf
Azan happily joined in the fun. Farag beat Azan and Samy
beat Tim Garner, captain of Priory champions Dulwich, to
record two wins for Outer Kent but the Priory boys had too
much strength down the order and won 6-4.
The pros then joined a dozen Kent players for a Lightning
Round which featured Azan and county junior Elliot
Knight in the final.
Wael Farag enjoyed a long spell of court time but be was
finally shifted from the showcourt by Azan. But the final
result brought the biggest cheer of the day as 16-year-old
Knight won the decider and the cash.
Harford then joined The Mote's Jonny Powell in a fun doubles
match against Team Malaysia, with Azan and Ivan Yuen winning
two games to one before top seed Alan Clyne took to the
court for his semi final against Piedro Schweertman.
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Alan
Thatcher's
Kent Open
BLOG
#4: Rooney Regrets
Chinese ... Malaysia 1 Jonny 0 ...
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04-Jun, Quarters:
TOP SEED CLYNE POWERS HOME
By ALAN THATCHER
photos by Kim Roberts
 Top
seed Alan Clyne was too fast and too accurate for
young Malaysian Ivan Yuen, completing a clean sweep of
straight-game results in the quarter-finals of the Kent
Open, a new $10,000 One Star event on the PSA World Tour
taking place at The Mote Squash Club in Maidstone, Kent.
Clyne won 11-3, 11-6, 11-6 in 35 minutes to confirm his
status as the tournament favourite. From 3-1 down in the
opening game he dominated throughout, never allowing his
opponent to put more than two points together as he
controlled the scoreboard.
Clyne has one of the best counter-drops in the game and
showed that as he nullified the Malaysian's touch play at
the front of the court.
He now takes on tough Dutchman Piedro Schweertman,
who produced a performance of power and precision to
overcome England's No.4 seed Joe Lee.
Lee lost a tight first game and will be kicking himself for
blowing a 6-2 lead in the second.
Schweertman maintained his ice-cool composure to dominate
the third game but he will need to repeat that form to
trouble Clyne, who beat him in straight games in the recent
final of the West of Ireland Open in Galway.
 Jonny
Harford outplayed his Birmingham housemate Chris
Truswell to reach the semi-finals. In the battle of two
qualifiers, Harford was always the more consistent player,
mixing accurate drops with tight, deep drives to clinch a
deserved victory which gives him bragging rights in the
Edgbaston suburb of Birmingham.
Harford meets John Rooney in the semi-finals after
the Irish No.3 seed also won in straight games in an
identical match time of 41 minutes.
Ford, the Kent captain and county coach, began strongly and
opened up an 8-3 lead before Rooney began to work his way
into the match, amazingly winning eight points in row to
take the opening game 11-8.
Ford won the first two points of the second game but again
Rooney countered strongly to lead 7-2. This time it was
Ford's turn to fight back and a run of five points brought
him level at 7-7. Again the score see-sawed and Rooney
bagged the next three points to reach game ball. He clinched
the game 11-8 and Ford was facing a tough challnge getting
back into the match.
The third game was level pegging until 7-7 when Rooney won
four of the neext five points to clinch his place in the
last four.
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Alan
Thatcher's
Kent Open
BLOG
#4: Action packed super
saturday ...
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03-Jun, Round One:
SEEDS TUMBLE IN KENT OPEN AS HOUSEMATES CLEAN UP
By ALAN THATCHER
photos by Kim Roberts
 Birmingham
housemates Jonny Harford and Chris Truswell meet each
other in the quarter-finals of the Kent Open after knocking
out two of the top seeds in this new $10,000 PSA World Tour
event.
Harford produced a storming performance to remove Malaysia's
No.2 seed Muhamed Asyraf Azan and Truswell finished strongly
to oust No.7 seed Harinderpal Sandhu from India in a
thrilling five-game encounter.
Harford and Truswell both emerged from the qualifying
competition to delight the packed galleries with their
stunning victories at The Mote Squash Club in Maidstone.
A former world No.59, Harford's PSA ranking had slumped to
236 following a long injury lay-off. But he was clearly back
on top form as he outplayed world No.64 Azan, winning 11-9,
7-11, 11-4, 11-8 in 65 minutes.
He said: "I'm feeling pretty relaxed and just enjoying my
squash. I was delighted to be awarded a local spot in
qualifying and I'm happy to take each match as it comes.
Thankfully this win will give me some valuable ranking
points. I'm looking forward to playing Chris and no doubt
there will be some banter to go along with the serious stuff
on court. I guess that whoever loses will have to do the
hoovering for the next six months."
Truswell, the world No.137, was in an inspired mood to
achieve a notable victory against Sandhu, who is ranked 47
places above him in the rankings. Truswell hit back from 2-1
down to win 8-11, 11-2, 10-12, 11-8, 11-7 in 54 minutes.
Sandhu is a small but lightning quick competitor but
Truswell's superb volleying had him moving all over the
court.
Ironically, a third housemate, British Under-23 champion
Joel Hinds, failed to make it a hat-trick as he fell to top
seed Alan Clyne. Hinds fell away after a promising
start as Scotland's world No.62 clinched a fourth game
tiebreak to win 4-11, 11-8, 11-2, 12-10 in 53 minutes.
 At
one game all the match seemed evenly poised but Hinds
clearly looked tired as Clyne cruised through the third game
11-2. The fourth was much tighter and although Hinds was in
front for much of it he made mistakes at crucial moments.
Clyne was warned after flattening his much taller opponent
in the back right corner but held his nerve to win the
deciding tiebreak.
He now meets Malaysian fifth seed Ivan Yuen in what
is sure to be a high-speed encounter. Yuen had too much
guile and control as he nullified the hard hitting Egyptian
Karim Samy , winning 11-3, 12-10, 11-4 in 28 minutes.
Another Egyptian to exit was the hugely talanted qualifier
Wael Farag, who mounted fierce resistance before falling to
sixth seed Piedro Schweertman. The Dutchman combined
ferocious power with sublime touch to triumph 11-9, 8-11,
11-5, 14-12 in 46 minutes.
Schweertman now meets 20-year-old rising star Joe Lee,
the No.4 seed from Surrey, who beat fellow Englishman Neil
Hitchens in four games. Lee's clinging drops proved the
decisive factor andhe is clearly showing a massive
improvement in his movement around court.
 Ben
Ford, the 34-year-old Kent county capatin, enjoyed
massive vocal support from his home crowd as he beat Sussex
qualifier Tom Pashley in four games.
Ford began strongly and although Pashley won the second game
to draw level, he made too many mistakes as the silver fox
from Bexley produced an array of stylish winners.
Ford now meets 30-year-old No.3 seed John Rooney, who
ended the hopes of Kent wild card Steven London with a
straight-games victory in 28 minutes. Rooney is a class act.
It promises to be a great match but I have a feeling they
might have a slight delay to their published start time as
the Brummie housemates battle for bragging rights in
Edgbaston.
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Alan
Thatcher's
Kent Open
BLOG
#3: Brum Chums bring the
house down ...
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| |
02-Jun, Qualifying Finals:
PASH AND GRAB TIEBREAK
WINS IT FOR TOM
By ALAN
THATCHER photos by Kim Roberts
Tom Pashley fought back from match ball down to win a
dramatic fifth-game tiebreak in the qualifying finals
against fellow Englishman Mark Fuller to clinch his place in
the first round of the Kent Open, a new $10,000 One Star
event on the PSA World Tour taking place at The Mote Squash
Club in Maidstone.
 Pashley,
a 22-year-old left hander based in Halifax, clinched victory
12-10 after 54 minutes of high quality squash and was
rewarded with a place in the main draw against Kent veteran
Ben Ford, the No.8 seed.
Pashley won the opening game in emphatic style but the
determined Fuller hit back to win the next two games to
threaten a shock victory.
However, Pashley regained control to win the fourth and take
the match into a fifth-game decider. The score was neck and
neck until 6-6, at which point Fuller got his nose in front
and held match ball at 10-9. But he was unable to finish the
job off and Pashley came back to win the final three points.
Pashley's victory was the longest of the qualifying finals,
while Yorkshire neighbour Chris Truswell, who is
based in Leeds, achieved the quickest victory of the night,
overcoming Issa Kamara of Sierra Leone in just 19 minutes.
He will be looking forward to a high-speed contest against
India's No.7 seed Harinderpal Sandhu.
Talented Egyptian Wael Farag was happy to play a
waiting game as he nullified the threat of tall Surrey
player Phil Nightingale, winning in straight games to line
up a first round clash with Dutch No.2 Piedro Schweertman.
 England's
Jonny Harford continued his return to form after a
prolonged absence through injury by beating Ireland's Arthur
Gaskin in a match of astonishing contrasts. Gaskin led the
opening game 6-0 before Harford registered his first point,
but gradually the tide turned. Although Gaskin won that game
11-6, Harford gradually took control to win the next three
games 11-6, 11-2, 11-0 to book a place in the first round
against Malaysia's No.2 seed Muhamed Asyraf Azan.
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Alan
Thatcher's
Kent Open
BLOG
#2: Old Kent Roads,
Jonny Cash, Crazy World of, Whinger of the week, and more
...
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01-Jun, Day One:
JUNIOR JAMES SHINES IN PSA DEBUT
By ALAN
THATCHER photos by Kim Roberts
 James
Evans, at 14 years and six months one of the youngest
players ever to appear in a PSA World Tour event, came close
to recording a shock victory in the qualifying round of the
Kent Open.
Playing at his home club, The Mote Squash Club in Maidstone,
Evans showed flashes of attacking genius as he made Issa
Kamara fight all the way to book a place in the
qualifying finals of this new One Star event on the PSA
calendar.
Kamara, the 31-year-old from Sierra Leone, was relieved to
win 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 11-8 in four close games and paid
tribute to his young opponent.
He said: “I played James in Kent back in January and was
happy to win 3-1 that day as well. He has come on so much
since then and I was surprised at how much his attacking
game has developed. He was hitting nicks from all over the
court.”
Evans, who recently made a winning debut for the England
Under-15 squad, trains at The Mote with some bloke whose
name escapes me at the moment.
The youngster was delighted to play in a major world-ranking
event and said:
“It was a great experience to play in my first PSA
tournament and I was very happy with how I played. I didn’t
make too many mistakes. I was away at an outward bound camp
all last week with my school and because of a hamstring
injury I haven’t picked up a racket for two weeks so I know
I can do a little bit better than that.”
Kamara, who is now based in Turkey, faces England’s Chris
Truswell in today’s qualifying finals. The Leeds-based
Truswell took 55 minutes to beat Namibia’s Ryan Thompson in
the longest match of the evening, his 11-13, 11-8, 11-8,
11-5 victory lasting 55 minutes.
Top qualifying seed Tom Pashley, another
Yorkshire-based player from Halifax, beat 19-year-old Ben
Coleman from Essex in straight games to clinch a qualifying
final berth against Mark Fuller. The 25-year-old from
Nottingham beat the higher-ranked Neil Cordell from York in
just 25 minutes.
There were quick wins for Egypt’s Wael Farag and
Ireland’s Arthur Gaskin against Kent players Jonny
Powell and Neil Baker.
Farag meets Phil Nightingale, who overpowered Russian
No.1 Sergey Severinov, and Gaskin faces Jonny Harford,
who squeezed home 11-9 in the first game against Holland’s
Bart Ravelli before powering through the next two games for
the loss of just three points.
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Draw &
Results
Alan
Thatcher's
Kent Open
BLOG
#1: They Sphinx it's all
over ... Quality qualifying ... Smacks it like Whitey ...
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Scottish star Clyne is top seed
FLYING Scot Alan Clyne is the top seed for the
forthcoming Kent Open at The Mote Squash Club.
Clyne is one of the fastest and fittest players on the PSA
Tour and heads up a truly international field in this new
One Star world-ranking tournament, which runs from June 1-6.
The 23-year-old from Edinburgh was a semi-finalist in The
Mote Open invitation event last year, showing his enormous
potential in a narrow defeat to Australia’s Aaron Frankcomb
in a marathon two-hour battle.
Clyne faces a tough battle in the first round against
England’s Joel Hinds, the recent winner of the
British Under-23 Championship.
Kent county captain Ben Ford, from Bexley, is seeded
eight and plays a qualifier in the first round on June 3.
Wild card Steven London, from Beckenham, faces a
baptism of fire in his first PSA tournament against Irish
No.1 John Rooney, the No.3 seed.
After Clyne, the leading seeds include Muhd Asyraf Azan
(Malaysia), Joe Lee (England), Ivan Yuen
(Malaysia), Piedro Schweertman (Holland) and
Harinder Pal Sandhu (India).
Leading Mote players Jonny Powell and James Evans, plus
Rodmersham’s Neil Baker, will be keen to make an impression
during the qualifying competition which takes place on June
1-2.
Admission is free all week at The Mote and the tournament
follows the Kent Squash Festival, which has been running for
several weeks and has introduced squash and racketball to
students at more than 20 schools all over the county.
The Festival and the Kent Open have been funded by England
Squash and Racketball, with additional sponsorship from
Harrow Rackets and a number of private donations.
Tournament Director Alan Thatcher said: “We are
delighted to have attracted such a high-quality field and
our ambition is to make the Kent Open a major annual event
on the world squash calendar.
“The courts at The Mote are in superb condition after a
major refurbishment and we look forward to seeing a packed
gallery for six days of superb entertainment.”
Ahead of the main draw final on June 6, the successful Kent
junior squad will be playing a Challenge Match against the
SE Region.
The finals weekend will also include doubles, racketball,
coaching clinics and a Radar Gun Challenge to see if any
players can get near to the current world record of 172mph
set by Scotland’s John White.
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Alan
Thatcher's
Kent Open
BLOG
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Kent Open Finals Weekend
Schedule
Sat June 5:
11-3 Big Brunch Doubles
3-5: Outer Kent v Priory League Challenge
4.15: Lightning Round. Max 20 players. £5 each. Winner Takes
All !! Rules: First to 3 points in each game. Winner stays
on. Last man (or woman) standing wins the cash.
5pm and 6pm: Two main PSA Kent Open semi-finals
Followed by BBQ and Tournament Party
Sunday June 6:
12 noon Doubles semi-finals and final
1-4: Kent Under-15 squad v England Squash SE Region
Challenge Match
3: Racketball Exhibition
4pm: Kent Open Final
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KENT OPEN WORLD TOUR EVENT
The forthcoming Kent Open (to be held at The Mote Squash
Club in Maidstone from June 1-6) is now a One Star world
ranking event on the PSA World Tour. This provides the
opportunity to see six days of top-class squash in the
county and we expect the event to be supported by squash
enthusiasts from all over Kent.
KENT FESTIVAL: BRINGING ON THE NEXT GENERATION
The Kent Squash Festival is already under way with coaching
and development projects taking place all over the county,
including coaching courses involving more than 20 schools.
This is a massive project, superbly co-ordinated by Steve
Franks and involving as many Kent coaches as possible.
The Kent Squash Festival is designed to promote squash and
racketball all over the county, with a special emphasis on
junior development and attracting new players to our sport.
KENT OPEN
Steven London from Park Langley has been awarded the wild
card into the Kent Open first round, which is a major boost
for him in his early days as a PSA member, and it would be
nice to see a large crowd coming down from Priory land to
cheer him on.
We will also be holding a Kent Doubles Championship during
the tournament weekend and we are setting up a Priory v
Outer Kent Challenge for the top players in each division
and age groups on the Saturday. All the players will be
expected to stay and support the Kent Open semi-finals and
the Tournament Party that evening!
This is the biggest project ever undertaken by the Kent SRA
and we are now promoting it solidly for the two months
leading up to the pro tournament.
We will be adding extra Festival events in the next few
weeks to involve as many players as possible, from a variety
of different age-groups, so please keep an eye out for
announcements.
ENGLAND SQUASH AND RACKETBALL
We are indebted to England Squash and Racketball for their
generous support for funding the Kent Squash Festival and
providing substantial financial support for the Kent Open.
We are building a fantastic partnership and our intention is
to provide a genuine link between the professional game and
the sport's grass roots. We want to help every squash club
in the county to attract new members and keep their courts
busy.
JUNIOR EVENTS
Youngsters taking up the game will be able to watch some of
the world's leading professionals in action during the Kent
Open and our current crop of highly talented county junior
squad members will all be given the opportunity to get on
court with the pros during junior coaching sessions which
will be held every day during the tournament.
Junior events will include a Kent Invitation tournament,
Kent v SE Region Challenge, plus numerous other activities
for new and existing players.
We will be adding extra Festival events in the next few
weeks to the programme during the Kent Open to involve as
many players as possible, from a variety of different
age-groups.
MINI SQUASH FESTIVAL
A Mini Squash Festival will be held at The Mote on
Wednesday, May 26, from 12.30pm to 3pm. This will involve a
large number of the juniors who are currently receiving
introductory lessons at school sessions all over the county.
We are also expecting several big names from the world of
squash will be there on the day, so please come along and
support the event if you can.
KENT OPEN TICKETS:
The Kent Open provides the opportunity to watch top-class
squash in a world ranking tournament - free of charge! There
can't be many events that provide such an amazing bargain.
If any clubs would like to bring a group along during the
weekend, please let me know in advance so that we can make
the necessary seating (and catering) arrangements.
TOURNAMENT PARTY
The Tournament Party will be held on the Saturday evening
(June 5) immediately after the semi-finals. We would love to
see the club packed out for the last major squash event on
the world calendar before the World Cup football takes over!
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