East Glos Junior and Senior Mavericks reach finals of prestigious squash events
By Fiona Geaves, East Glos Performance Coach
It’s been a successful period for East Glos Mavericks players, with standout performances from both the junior and senior squads as they reached finals in major events last weekend.
Junior Mavericks shine at Ipswich Gold
(1) Matthew; (2) Daniel and Logan (R)
East Glos Junior Mavericks players delivered an impressive set of performances at the Ipswich Open, highlighted by a title win and another finalist finish.
Leading the way was Matthew Hong Ki Leung, who captured his first gold U17 title with an outstanding run through the draw. Matthew was in commanding form throughout the tournament, progressing to the final without dropping a single game.
In the final, he faced local favourite William Burton, who had already produced some remarkable results, defeating both the 3/4 seed and the #1 seed on his way through. The final proved to be Matthew’s toughest test of the weekend. With the match level at 1–1, Matthew raised his level superbly, showing great composure to take the final two games and secure the U17 gold title.
The Junior Mavericks had further success in the BU13 event. Daniel Stevenson also enjoyed an excellent tournament. He came through the early rounds confidently to reach the final, displaying controlled and composed squash throughout.
In the final, he faced the #1 and season-long rival, Logan Willstrop. The opening game was closely contested with some high-quality rallies, but Logan edged it and gradually took control to win the match 3–0. Despite the result, it was a fantastic achievement for Daniel, reaching his first gold final and continuing to show strong progress among the best players in his age group.
Senior success at the Mozart Open
Will Salter at the Mozart Open. Photo: Gintare Karpaviciute
Will Salter delivered a superb performance on the professional circuit at the Mozart Open PSA $6k, held in Salzburg, Austria.
A comfortable 3–0 first-round win for #6 seed Will set up a match with the #2 seed. With Will leading 2–1, his opponent was forced to retire, sending Will into the semi-finals against the #3 seed Aqeel Rehman.
Will started the semi-final brilliantly, racing into a 2–0 lead and holding match ball at 10–8 in the third. A narrow loss in the third and a tight 11–9 fourth pushed the match to a decider, but Will regrouped impressively to take the fifth 11–5 and book his place in the final.
In the final, he faced Heston Malik, who had also beaten several seeds on his way through the draw. Heston won 3–1, but it still capped a hugely successful tournament for Will, with victories over higher-ranked players.
Reflecting after the event, Will said: “I’ve been putting some solid training weeks together recently and improved a lot in my game, so it’s nice to see that translate onto the court with some good results. Last week, I beat the world #115 in Poland 3–0 and was 2–0 up against the world #100, so I knew I had a chance to do well here too. I’m now at a career-high world ranking of 145, and with tournaments in Sweden and Brazil over the next two weeks, it’s an exciting time for my squash career”.
Watch Will’s entertaining VLOG on his Salzburg experience.