Top seeds Alex Haydon and Joseph White have won the 2023/24 World Championship Oceania Qualifying Event after sealing victories over Sarah Cardwell and Rhys Dowling, respectively.
Australia’s Haydon fought back from a game down to defeat compatriot and No.2 seed Cardwell, while White overcame No.6 seed and fellow Australian Dowling in a hard-fought four-game encounter at the Carrara Squash Centre.
The pair have now gained passage to compete in the 2023-24 CIB PSA World Championships, which will be held in Cairo between 9-18 April.
The women’s final saw the two top seeds enter the match full of confidence, with neither having dropped a game all week. However, that streak was soon broken for Haydon as Cardwell nicked a tight opening game 11-8.
From there, though, Haydon only moved from strength to strength as the match continued. The 22-year-old took a crucial second game 11-9, before moving into the lead for the first time in the match when sealing the third 11-3. Haydon, the World No.79, finished off a superb week by taking the fourth game 11-6 and sealing victory after 38 minutes of action.
Meanwhile, in the men’s final, White ended the superb run of Dowling on the Gold Coast, taking the match by an 11-8, 11-8, 6-11, 11-6 scoreline.
Dowling, who stunned No.2 seed Temwa Chileshe in the semi-finals, couldn’t replicate these heroics against World No.90 White, who stamped his authority on the match right from the get-go by taking the first, and soon doubling his advantage in two nip-and-tuck games.
Although World No.175 Dowling put up some stern resistance, bringing the match back to 2-1, it was White who eventually sealed victory in just under an hour of play, booking his spot in the line-up for the prestigious 2023/24 World Championships.
Result: Men’s Final
[1] Joseph White (AUS) bt [6] Rhys Dowling (AUS) 3-1: 11-8, 11-8, 6-11, 11-6 (54m)Result: Women’s Final
[1] Alex Haydon (AUS) bt [2] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) 3-1: 8-11, 11-9, 11-3, 11-6 (38m)
