Teen Ingledew, top seed Van Niekerk crowned SA squash champions

Teenage sensation Savannah Ingledew capped off a great week of squash at the Growthpoint National Championhips at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town when she was crowned the SA women's champion in spectacular fashion.

She was joined in the winner's circle by the top men's seed Dewald van Niekerk, who defeated Johannesburg's Christo Potgieter for the third consecutive year in the final and won 3-0.

The 18-year-old, originally from Pietermaritzburg, but now based in England, played with the confidence of a seasoned veteran.

She showed her exceptional talent by easily beating 22-year-old student from Potchefstroom Shelomi Truter 11-4, 11-5 and 11-3 in just 26 minutes in a remarkable final.

Before the tournament, she was seeded eighth, while Truter entered the tournament as the seventh seed. Few experts predicted before that these two would face each other in the final.

Ingledew becomes the first teenager to win the national title since Tenille Swartz 19 years ago. Natalie Grainger was originally thought to be the only previous teenager in the final three decades ago, but Swartz won the title as a 17-year-old in 2004.

"Yes, I am obviously delighted to be crowned SA Champion against the best women in the country. My growth over the past year or so has been exponential," an elated Ingledew said.

"I think playing against older players has helped me mature a bit. I learnt how to keep my composure and how to manage the pressure. I think I can only improve from now on," she added.

Van Niekerk made it a hat-trick of titles when he defeated the 36-year-old veteran 11-9 11-4 11-5. The 26-year-old from Johannesburg showed patience and control to keep his opponent out of the danger zones.

He obviously considers his third title as a major highlight