The national squash titles are still in familiar hands.
Karen Meakins clinched a record-breaking 12th National Championship and Gavin Cumberbatch won the men’s title for the third time when the curtain came down on the annual Barbados Olympic Association National Championships at the Barbados Squash Club on Sunday.
In the women’s final, Meakins, the top seed and defending champion, put down a dominant display against the enthusiastic No. 3 seed Alex Jordan, who was appearing in her first national final.
Meakins, who was named Barbados’ National Sports Personality two years ago, executed good length drives and straight volleys to cruise to an easy 11-3, 11-4, 11-1 victory in 17 minutes.
Ever since Meakins entered her first National Championship in 2001, she has never lost a match to a local player and has only dropped a single game in this event during that time.
In the men’s final, Cumberbatch, the 2007 Caribbean champion, won with a hard-fought victory over No. 2 seed and six-times champion Shawn Simpson in a match that was cut short after 25 pulsating minutes due to an injury to Simpson.
In what was shaping up to be the most competitive men’s final in years, both players started the match hitting the ball with great pace and traded powerful drives and volleys to either wing, as well as delicate drop shots into the front corners.
Cumberbatch won the first game 13-11 and took a 7-4 lead in the second game before Simpson pulled up clutching the back of his right thigh.
After a three-minute injury timeout, Simpson tried to continue but after one further rally he conceded the match with Cumberbatch winning 13-11, 8-4 (retired) in 25 minutes, much to the disappointment of the spectators. (HG/PR)
