WASA drown Hawks in Team Final

The WASA team of Curtis Humphreys, Yuuvrak Dookram and Kenneth Parmanand each won their matches against the Hawks team of Arun Roopnarine, Reeza Burke and Anson Wellington.

Humphreys beat Roopnarine 11-9, 6-11, 11-8, 12-10 while Dookram defeated Burke 11-13, 11-6, 11-8, 11-8. The closest fought contest see-sawed but ultimately saw Parmanand edge Wellington 10-12, 11-9, 9-11, 11- 6, 12-10.

WASA’s Curtis Humphreys said, “Being finalists last year we lost to a foreign team of Dexter St Louis and others 3-2, so it is refreshing to cop the that title.

Hopefully the likes of Dexter plus Khalil Asgarali will come next year and strengthen the competition.

“I’m not taking anything from Arima Hawks who on any given day could defeat us, but I’m extremely happy to be in winners row.” In Division Two, Aleena Edwards led the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT ) to pip Carenage Blasters 3-2. Edwards beat Blasters Nigel Morgan 15- 13, 12-10, 11-8. Blasters levelled when Jessie Dookie beat UTT ’s Kamal Hunt 7-11, 11-4, 11-5, 9-11, 11-5, and pulled ahead when Nicholas Alexis beat UTT ’s Daniel Clarke 11-7, 5-11, 11-8, 13-11.

Edwards got UTT level by beating Blasters Dookie 11-7, 5-11, 11-8, 13-11. The fifth match, the tie-breaker, saw the UTT ’s Hunt dominate Morgan in the first game, 11-3. Morgan came back 12-10 in the second set, but Hunt took the next two games 11-9 and 12-10.

In Division Three, Warrenville Table Tennis Club beat Couva Table Tennis Club 3-1.

For Warrenville, Musaahib Newaj beat Couva’s Harnarine “Robin” Moonasar 11-7, 11-6, 11-3. The tables turned when Warrenville’s Sayyid Baksh fell to Couva’s Satesh Jodhan 11-9, 11-8, 11-7. Warrenville’s Haleem Baksh edged his team ahead by beating Couva’s Mukesh Jodhan 13-11, 8-11, 11-5, 14-12. However at this point a complaint was made about the rubbers on a racquet used by Couva’s Moonasar who was due to play again, with Couva then opting to forfeit the match. Moonsar complained that he had been able to use his racquet hitherto in the tournament but just five minutes before his scheduled match had been told it was illegal.

A Table Tennis Association official told Newsday that the racquet was brought to their attention only when a complaint was made. He said the head referee then consulted a list issued by the International Table Tennis Federation and found that the said rubbers were not on the approved list. “It would not have been legal to use in any competition,” the official told Newsday.

In the awards ceremony, presentations were also made for the Women’s Finals matches played last Sunday, won by WASA, with Arima Hawks second and Gladiators third.