De Boulet, Espinoza cop Solo badminton ‘triple crown’

SHUTTLE FORCE Badminton Club’s Chequeda de Boulet and Allistair Espinoza took home the bulk of honours, securing a triple crown each on the final day of the TT Badminton Association (TTBA) Solo Senior Badminton Championship at the National Racquet Centre, Tacarigua, Friday night.

Espinoza won both the men’s singles and doubles titles, while de Boulet did the same in the women’s division. The pair ensured a clean sweep in the mixed doubles final.

Espinoza, badminton’s nominee for First Citizens Sports Foundation men’s player of the year, got past FMT’s Jade Allman (3) 21-19, 12-21, 21-17 in a gruelling men’s singles final. For the men’s doubles final, Espinoza joined forces with Zion St Rose for a comfortable 21-10, 21-17 victory over Travis Sinanan/Justin Siu.

Meanwhile, de Boulet once again defied the odds as the second seed in the women’s singles and women’s doubles competitions. De Boulet finished second in her group with two wins and one loss, which came against Nekeisha Blake.

However, de Boulet came out even stronger in the knock-out round, beating the other group winner and women’s singles top seed Avril Marcelle, 12-21, 21-13, 21-16, before meeting Blake again in the final. De Boulet held her nerve to win that contest, 21-18, 18-21, 21-19.

The women’s doubles was played in a round-robin format with de Boulet and her Shuttle Force team-mate Johannah Walker winning their three matches, one of which was a 21-17, 27-25 victory over top seeded FMT duo, Leanna Castanada/Latoya Walrond.

Espinoza and de Boulet capped a memorable tournament with a comfortable win in the mixed doubles final, the closing match of the three-day event, beating their Shuttle Force team-mates, Walker and Roger Moore, 21-12, 21-12.

It was a typically impressive tournament for Espinoza, who has been at the forefront of local badminton for the past several years, being a regular winner at national tournaments.

De Boulet’s recent achievements, on the other hand, epitomised her sharp rise to prominence in the sport.

The 17-year-old awarded one gold and two silver medals at the Caribbean Regional Badminton Confederation Junior International tournament in Suriname in August, before winning the Under-19 crown at the Solo Junior Badminton Championships two weeks before.

Meanwhile, there were two Masters divisions contested at the senior tournament.

The Masters +45 division was captured by Ronald Clarke and Andre Lewis (Fins), who won their four doubles matches.

The Masters +35 division featured two group stages and a knock-out round.

Rhea Khan (Petrotrin PAP) and Alan Umraw (Paragon) also finished undefeated with two wins from as many group matches, which was followed by a 21-17, 21-13 semifinal victory over Oxford pair Deepak Dawar/Jenish Maniyan.

Khan/Umraw then defeated Lewis/Navin Gayapersad 21-16, 21-16 in the Masters +35 title match.

Honour Roll

Masters +45

1st- Ronald Clarke/Andre Lewis (Fins)

2nd- Wilson Reyes/Allan Young (La Joya)

3rd- Kerio Bernard/McKenzie Joseph (Regal Smashers/Fins)

4th- Wilfred Fullerton/PJ Williams (Fins)

Matsers +35

1st- Rhea Khan/Alan Umraw (Petrotrin PAP/Paragon)

2nd- Navin Gayapersad/Andre Lewis (Fins)

3rd- Chris Joachim/Alister Urquhard (Other)

3rd- Deepak Dawar/Jenish Maniyan (Oxford)

Mixed doubles

1st- Allistair Espinoza/Chequeda de Boulet (Shuttle Force)

2nd- Roger Moore/Johannah Walker (Shuttle Force)

3rd- Jewhel Smith/Leanna Castanada (FMT)

4th- Navin Gayapersad/Avril Marcelle (Fins)

Women’s doubles

1st- Chequeda de Boulet/Johannah Walker (Shuttle Force)

2nd- Leanna Castanada/Latoya Walrond (FMT)

3rd- Shania Lee/Meera Mahabir (Samurai)

4th- Afiya Clarke/Rachel Ragoonanan (Other/Shuttle Force)

Men’s Doubles

1st- Allistair Espinoza/Zion St Rose (Shuttle Force)

2nd- Travis Sinanan/Justin Siu (CATT)

3rd- Jewhel Smith/Joshua Smith (FTM/Other)

3rd- Chris Joachim/Mikael Joachim (Other)

Women’s Singles

1st- Chequeda de Boulet (Shuttle Force)

2nd- Nekeisha Blake (FMT)

3rd- Johannah Walker (Shuttle Force)

4th- Avril Marcelle (Fins)

Men’s Singles

1st- Allistair Espinoza (Shuttle Force)

2nd- Jade Allman (FMT)

3rd- Nathaniel Khillawan (Shuttle Force)

4th- Mikael Joachim (Other)