Penman takes top spot in his final JC Lindsay Scottish Junior Open

There was a festive feast of squash on offer on finals day at Edinburgh Sports Club as the JC Lindsay Scottish Junior Open 2023 reached its thrilling conclusion.

A great day of action rounded off three days of top-class squash with over 185 players from more than 30 countries playing a total of 429 games.

There was significant Scottish representation across the event, with Kyle Penman and Robyn McAlpine reaching the boys and girls under 19 final respectively.

The indefatigable Penman stormed through a tough draw to secure the win, becoming the first Scot in his category to do so in nine years, in his final outing in the event.

In a strong final performance, he triumphed 11-4, 11-2, 11-5 to secure his first gold medal finish in the Scottish Junior Open.

This was the Bridge of Allan squash ace’s return to action in Scotland following his move to the University of Pennsylvania earlier this year.

Kyle said: “It feels good – after losing last year with the home crowd, I was gutted – but it feels good to be back this year.

“I put a bit of pressure on myself to perform, but I’m just happy that I could come through a tough draw and finish off just how I wanted.

“This event means a lot to me – for the past few years I’ve always been in the running for it and just missed out – to come away with a win today, I’m really happy with myself.”

 

In the GU19, Robyn McAlpine faced India’s youngest ever Commonwealth Games athlete Anahat Singh in a repeat of last year’s under 17 final.

In a tough match, the Indian prodigy triumphed in three straight games 11-6, 11-1, 11-5.

Robyn will take heart from her strong performances over the course of the tournament, with some great wins recorded on her road to the final.

Beyond the Scottish interest, it was a fantastic day all-round for India and Pakistan with their young players securing eight out of the ten titles up for grabs, with five and three respectively.

The BU17 attracted a raucous crowd, who got right behind Pakistan’s Sakhi Khan Tareen with their wholehearted support.

His American opponent Anay Sawant put up a strong fight, but the Pakistani player triumphed

His friends, family and supporters roared, as he powered to victory 12-10, 11-5, 11-7.

Malaysia’s Puteri Rania Zahirah Mior Ahmad Nazril clinched the GU17 championship against Singapore’s Wai Iynn Au Yeong.

Despite winning three games in a row, it proved a close match with 11-7, 11-8, 13-11 the final score.

Subhash Choudhary and Shiven Agarwal played a fiercely competitive final in the BU15 final.

Neither player gave an inch in a battle over the course of five games, with both giving their all on court.

This was surely a contender for match of the tournament, with a sizeable crowd on the edge of their seats throughout.

There was delight for Subhash who would win 5-11, 11-4, 6-11, 11-8, 11-5.

The GU15 winner was Pakistan’s Mehwish Ali who beat Canada’s Olivia Bolger in straight games.

An unfortunate injury for the young Canadian delayed the game, and made a difficult match even more challenging.

She battled on, but was unable to hold off the Pakistani star who won 11-8, 11-5, 11-8.

Top seed Aadya Budhia showed great resilience to fight back from behind twice and beat her Malaysian opponent Niea Chew in the GU13.

Every game was close, with Aadya eventually winning 9-11, 11-8, 8-11, 11-8, 11-9 – undoubtedly one of the most closely fought games at this year’s event.

In an all-Indian BU13 final, played between two close friends, Shresht Iyer beat Shreyansh Jah in a match which highlighted great squash with fair play at its heart.

Shresht took the first two games and staved off a comeback when Shreyansh increased the pressure by winning the third.

11-8, 11-8, 3-11, 11-8 the final score – with a warm embrace to round off a brilliant match.

Pakistan’s Mahnoor Ali was GU11 Champion, winning the round robin without dropping a single game along the way.

The BU11 winner was top seed Prabhav Bajoria, who beat second seed Aaditya Shah in a thrilling five-set match.

In yet another clash between two Indians, it looked like Shah was going to come out on top after racing ahead in the first two games, but Prabhav showed great resilience to win 5-11, 9-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-6.

A full run down of results can be found here.

Images from this year’s event will be shared on the Scottish Squash Facebook page in the coming days.

Watch out for the official podcast from the event which will be shared on Spotify in due course.