Jean Pierre Brits of South Africa rallied
from a 1-2 deficit to beat former Asian junior champion
Ravi Dixit 11-7, 10-12, 9-11, 11-8, 11-8 for the men’s
title, in the Khar Gymkhana-SYSKA Open Squash
Tournament.
Top seed Rahul Baitha of Jindal won
the boys under-17 title but not before enduring anxious
moments in a thrilling 9-11, 11-8, 11-9, 12-10 win over
second seed Diwakar Singh, while top seed Aishwarya
Khubchandani of Khar Gymkhana won the girls under-19
crown to warm up for the upcoming Dutch and Pioneer Open
tournaments and the 24th Asian Junior Championship in
Jordan.
Second seed Brits, who won the
semi-finals against Aditya Jagtap after landing in a
similar predicament, was forced to recover for the
second time in succession in a 65-minute, best-of-five
battle, for his maiden title outside South Africa.
The brilliant comeback ignited the championship
round that was going top seed Dixit’s way after the
Indian built a 6-4 and 7-5 cushion in the crucial fourth
game. Plagued by unforced errors and struggling to get
an edge until then, Brits initiated another spectacular
recovery by winning three points in a row after 8-all
that included two stunning back-to-back drops to reach
game-ball.
Dixit enhanced his hopes again with an
envious 5-2 advantage in the decider until he hit the
tin on two successive occasions that brought Brits to
4-5. The shrewd Pretorian, who will feature in the World
Doubles Championship in Manchester in August, seized the
opportunity and once again snatched three points on the
trot after 8-all that was a reward for perseverance.
