‘Squash players benefited’

Press, 15 February 1982, Page 38

‘Squash players benefited’

NZPA staff correspondent Hong Kong New Zealand’s junior squash players had benefited greatly from the world junior individual and teams championships played in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore over the past two weeks, said their manager, Mr Neville Munro, in Singapore yesterday. In a telephone interview before the team played England to decide third and fourth places in the teams championships, he said that none of the four New Zealanders had “any real overseas experience’ beforehand. “They have learnt a lot of

what is involved in top level squash," he said. “The pressure was evident every time they stepped on to the court, particularly during the team events. “It must stand them in good stead for the future.” Mr Munro said that without the thorough preparation undergone before leaving New Zealand, the team would not have got through to the top four. He said that Robert Wyatt, aged 17, of Rotorua, who was nominated as New Zealand’s fourth player for the teams events, had done exceedingly, well and would replace Mark Crosbie, aged 18, of Christchurch, for the vital

final match with England. New Zealand on Saturday lost its chance of making the teams final when well beaten 3-0 by the top-seeded Pakistan team. In the opening match, Ahmed Gul was untroubled in beating Crosbie 9-3, 9-0, 90, and then the newly crowned junior world champion Sohail Qaisir clinched the tie by beating Danny McQueen, aged 17, of Rotorua, 9-1, 9-3, 9-3. Munro said McQueen had not been disgraced in the match. “He played perhaps as well as he has at any stage, but Qaisir was just too good,” he said.

In the final match. Umar Hayat beat Hugh Leabourn, aged 18, of Auckland, 9-6, 9-5, 9-5. In the other tie to find a finalist, the second-seeded Australians battled to a 3-0 win over England, with its respective top-ranked players, Christopher Dittmar and Christy Willstrop, giving little quarter in a hardfought encounter that lasted more than an hour. Dittmar finally won 9-3, 10-9, 9-7. Mr Munro said Willstrop had chances in the second game which if taken could have changed the whole complexion of the tie. The New Zealanders will return to New Zealand on Tuesday.