Australia’s Geoff Davenport got his quest to make WSF World Masters Squash Championships history off to a successful start on day two in Amsterdam.
Davenport beat Sweden’s Jonas Frick 11-5, 11-2, 11-5 in the men’s 65+ second round to remain on course for an all-time record seventh World Masters title. The Sydney-based 66-year-old, who won his first world age-group title in Finland in 2003, says getting his name to the top of the tournament’s all-time roll of honour has become “a little bit of an addiction.”
He said: “This tournament is what really motivates me to keep training and go through all the pain. Basically I want to get into the history books. It drives me.
“I started off wanting to win one title and when I achieved that it became addictive. It’s just wonderful playing in it every couple of years and catching up with people you haven’t seen for a while. To have so many entries this year is fantastic.”
Davenport is currently level with South Africa’s Craig van der Wath and fellow Aussie Brian Cook on six titles. Although van der Wath is not competing this year, Cook is in Amsterdam and begins his own quest for a seventh title in the men’s 75+ draw on Saturday against USA’s Daniel Souza.
The women’s record of five titles is jointly held by Ann Manley and Averil Murphy of England and Barbara Sanderson of Ireland. Only Manley is present in Amsterdam; she is 75+ top seed and her attempt to become the outright women’s record-holder starts on Saturday against Sweden’s Margaretha Borgvall.
Germany’s Simon Nordstadt, meanwhile, is just beginning his Masters squash career. In fact, it was his 35th birthday on Monday, meaning he qualified as a Masters player by just three days and is the youngest player at the tournament. “I was a referee at the European Masters last year in Hamburg and somebody told me the dates. It was absolutely perfect!” he said, reflecting on a positive experience despite a loss today to Mexico’s Fernando Lopez Hidalgo.
Two familiar names made serene progress in the women’s 40+ draw – Mexico’s ex-world no.11 Samantha Teran and South Africa’s former PSA no.28 Siyoli Waters.
Teran retired from the PSA Tour in 2019 and had a baby girl, Leonor, 15 months ago. She had a walkover in the first round today. “I used to live in Amsterdam and train with Liz Irving and Nicol David, so this is like my second home. I couldn’t resist coming back,” she said.
Waters, who now works for a non-profit organisation supporting women and children in Cape Town, beat Dutch 17/32 seed Cora De Bruin-De Vette in straight games. Waters is one of a contingent of over 100 South African players in the tournament.
“There’s something amazing about this event,” said the 41-year-old. “It’s exciting to know there’s another 40 years of squash ahead of me! All these people are here to do their best, so there’s a nice blend of a great vibe with competitiveness.”
Elsewhere on day two, men’s 60+ top seed and defending champion Willie Hosey of Ireland (aiming for a fifth World Masters title) won 11-3 11-3 11-3 against France’s Jean-Marc Fournier.
Christian Drakenberg of Sweden, the men’s 45+ top seed, was pushed hard by Kuwait’s Hussain Safar Mohammad but came through 11-5, 11-6, 11-7. “It would mean very much to me to win a second Masters,” said the owner of Stockholm Squash Club.
“This is the pinnacle. I tell people at home, ‘You have to go!’ They think they might not be good enough but it doesn’t matter because all levels of people come to compete. We all have a beer together – even the top seeds! The social side of it is just as important as the matches.”
The 2024 WSF World Masters Championships resume with day three tomorrow, 17 August, with play beginning at 10:00 local time (CEST).
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The 2024 WSF World Masters Squash Championships are taking place at the Frans Otten Stadion from 15-22 August. Keep up with all the action at wsfworldmasters2024.nl
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