… Miller/Andrews to face Lowden/Squires for Doubles title
SEVENTEEN-year-old Shawna Gentle dethroned 2010 Ladies’ Champion Carol Humphrey in a high-quality final at the Pegasus tennis courts on Sunday evening to claim the coveted title. Humphrey who has been a fixture in the Ladies’ finals over the years battled hard in the first set against Gentle as the pair traded breaks before evening up the score at 5.
Gentle, who played a more consistent game in this tournament, showed that she has  matured as she played the pressure games well to take the first set 7-5 with some big groundstrokes.
In the second set Gentle sensed the opportunity of a win and upped the pace on her groundstrokes which made it harder on the older Humphrey who had her moments in the set.
The set had some long rallies as both players dug deep and in the end it was Gentle who prevailed 6-2 to take the Pegasus Open for the first time.
The Men’s Double category provided its customary entertainment with two close and high-quality semifinal matches.
In the first match top seeds Jeremy Miller/Jason Andrews got all they can handle from top junior pair Gavin Lewis/Daniel Lopes, whose game has improved leaps and bounds throughout the tournament.
The match featured both teams playing attacking tennis and it was a challenge to hold serve in the set. Tied at 4, the junior pair lost the critical ninth game and subsequently the set 6-4.
In the second set, Andrews, Lopes and Lewis all hit blistering forehand winners while Miller’s serve was always consistent. In the end Miller/Andrews secured a place in the finals when they took the second set 6-3 and will next face defending champions Godfrey Lowden/Phillip Squires.
Lowden/Squires had their hands full with Leyland Leacock/Gilbert Barckoy who played excellent tennis in the first set which they won 7-4 in the tie-breaker.
The pair’s volleying in the first set was exceptional and allowed them to edge out the defending champs in the tie-break. Lowden/Squires then stormed back as they comprehensively took the second set 6-0 with some aggressive yet smart tennis to force the deciding super tie-break.
Crucial double faults to begin the tie-break kept Leycock/Barckoy behind and the experienced Lowden/Squires gave their opponents no chance as they kept their lead and closed it out 10-6.