All but two of the players lining up in the quarter-finals of the Central Gauteng Open are South Africans after rousing performances by locals in the second round of the new PSA World Tour Challenger 5 event at Parkview Squash Club in Johannesburg.
Top seeds Shaun le Roux and Clinton Leeuw are on course to meet in the all-South Africa final – favourite le Roux beating fellow South African Zuko Kubukelim, a qualifier, 9-11, 11-4, 11-7, 11-9 while second seed Leeuw (pictured) also despatched a compatriot and qualifier Andrew Martin 11-6, 11-8, 11-7.
But the best results of the day were produced by former Tour stars Craig van der Wath and Rodney Durbach, both from South Africa.
Event promoter Van der Wath, fresh from title success in last month’s World O45 Masters, came from a game down to upset Pakistan’s No7 seed Kashif Khan 10-12, 11-8, 11-9, 11-3 – while 40-year-old Durbach, a former world No23, defeated fellow countryman Rudi Willemse 10-12, 11-7, 11-6, 11-6.
Quarter-final line-up:
[1] Shaun le Roux (RSA) v Rodney Durbach (RSA)
Thoboki Mohohlo (RSA) v [5] Christo Potgieter (RSA)
[3] Aamir Malik Khan (UAE) v Craig van der Wath (RSA)
[2] Clinton Leeuw (RSA) v Panos Hadjiphilippou (CYP)
2nd round:
[1] Shaun le Roux (RSA) bt [Q] Zuko Kubukeli (RSA) 9-11, 11-4, 11-7, 11-9
Rodney Durbach (RSA) bt Rudi Willemse (RSA) 10-12, 11-7, 11-6, 11-6
[5] Christo Potgieter (RSA) bt [Q] Jimmy Schlebusch (RSA) 11-7, 8-11, 11-6, 11-8
Thoboki Mohohlo (RSA) bt [Q] Michael Tootill (RSA) 11-7, 5-11, 11-7, 11-4
[3] Aamir Malik Khan (UAE) bt [Q] Jacques Kruger (RSA) 11-7, 11-5, 11-8
Craig van der Wath (RSA) bt [7] Kashif Khan (PAK) 10-12, 11-8, 11-9, 11-3
Panos Hadjiphilippou (CYP) bt [8] Omar Khaled Kheiralla (EGY) 11-8, 11-6, 11-3
[2] Clinton Leeuw (RSA) bt [Q] Andrew Martin (RSA) 11-6, 11-8, 11-7
1st round:
[1] Shaun le Roux (RSA) bye
[Q] Zuko Kubukeli (RSA) bt Fernando Molina (ARG) 11-6, 6-11, 11-8, 11-2
Rudi Willemse (RSA) bt [Q] Gary Wheadon (RSA) 0-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-6, 11-5
Rodney Durbach (RSA) bt [6] Jean-Pierre Brits (RSA) 11-9, 11-4, 11-5
[5] Christo Potgieter (RSA) bt Kelvin Ndhlovu (ZAM) w/o
[Q] Jimmy Schlebusch (RSA) bt Ahmed Effat Ashoush (EGY) 11-3, 12-10, 11-6
[Q] Michael Tootill (RSA) bt Omar Shehata (EGY) 11-7, 11-6, 11-4
Thoboki Mohohlo (RSA) bt [4] Ahmed Atef Abdel-Fattah (EGY) 6-11, 4-11, 11-3, 11-8, 11-7
[3] Aamir Malik Khan (UAE) bye
[Q] Jacques Kruger (RSA) bt Youssef Mohamed Ghareib (EGY) 11-9, 10-12, 11-9, 6-11, 11-8
Craig van der Wath (RSA) bt Tristan Eysele (ENG) 12-10, 11-9, 7-11, 11-4
[7] Kashif Khan (PAK) bt [Q] Gary Naidoo (RSA) 11-9, 11-5, 12-10
[8] Omar Khaled Kheiralla (EGY) bt Jamie Sutcliffe (ENG) 9-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-0
Panos Hadjiphilippou (CYP) bt Sunday Akintoye (NGR) w/o
[Q] Andrew Martin (RSA) bt Moustafa Bayoumy (EGY) 11-8, 6-11, 11-9, 11-6
[2] Clinton Leeuw (RSA) bye
Qualifying finals:
Gary Wheadon (RSA) bt Neil Oosthuizen (RSA) 12-10, 11-6, 11-2
Gary Naidoo (RSA) bt Michael Camden-Smith (RSA) 11-5, 11-6, 11-6
Zuko Kubukeli (RSA) bt Michael Wood (RSA) w/o
Michael Tootill (RSA) bt Craig Wapnick (RSA) 11-9, 15-13, 11-6
Jimmy Schlebusch (RSA) bt Lawrence Kuhn (RSA) 11-3, 11-3, 11-8
Devon Hendrikse (RSA) bt Kyle Maree (RSA) 11-7, 11-8, 11-9
Jacques Kruger (RSA) bt Rudolph Coetser (RSA) 11-6, 6-11, 11-8, 2-11, 11-3
Andrew Martin (RSA) bt Panos Hadjiphilippou (CYP) 11-7, 11-5, 11-4
