KZN Closed Squash

It was a week of hard squash for Sharon and I since we were both playing in the Kzn Closed squash champs. For me that meant a semi-final on Saturday morning and hopefully a final on Sunday.

We arrived at the courts just before 10am and my opponent was already warming up with another player. I quickly pulled on my kit and joined him on the court. After a quick warm up we got down to the nuts and bolts and started our match.

Unfortunately for Sharon she was the only player sitting around and was forced to mark the match. Thankfully another player arrived shortly after we started and aided her in the tough job of marking she’d been forced into. That said she did a very good job and I was exceptionally proud of her for marking well above her level.

The match was tough (as I expected) but thankfully I managed to play a good game and came out victorious (having my fiancee as the marker couldn’t have hurt too much). On the downside I did wedge my foot in a corner while picking up a tight drop and bruised it quite badly.

After Sharon’s match, which she sadly lost, we headed for the Pavilion where I picked up some Myprodol for the pain and some gel inserts for my shoes. The rest of the day was all about rest and trying to give my foot as good a chance as possible to recover for the following day’s finals.

When I woke up on Sunday morning my foot felt a little better but there was a large bruise around most of the heel. With both Sharon and my matches being at 1pm we had some free time so we headed for the courts via Mugg and Bean where we had a fantastic breakfast in preparation.

Since my court was occupied upon arrival I took the opportunity to watch the first game of Sharon’s match. She won it rather convincingly and so I felt good as I walked away to start my final. I popped a few Myprodols, put in my gel heel, and limped onto the court.

Sadly Sharon lost the next 3 games of her match and as such came last. On the up side it meant that she joined the crowd on the stands and gave me some much needed support as I battled Neville with a sore ankle.

Having played him on several occasions I knew it was a match I should win. That said, anything is possible in a final and the sore ankle certainly wasn’t helping. I gave it 110% and thankfully managed to pull through 3-1, winning my section of the tournament. Winning always feels great but it was especially good on this occasion.

The rest of the day was spent at the courts watching the other matches and enjoying a few hard earned beers after a long week of squash.

We finally got out of there at around 5:30pm and headed for my mom’s house; it was mother’s day after all. We dropped off some chocolates and a plant and had a few drinks with her before calling it a night and heading home. Finally, some time to relax.