In April, the PSA announced that the lovely country of Mauritius is going to host its first major Squash tournament in June 2020, as part of the World Tour series sanctioned by the Professional Squash Association.
As a country, Mauritius becomes the first East African country to host a major Squash event.
There is no doubt that Squash fans of Mauritius will be reaching for wallets and heading online to purchase tickets to the world’s top male Squash players competing for a prize fund of up $100,000.
For the tournament, known as The Necker Mauritius Open and hosted at a new multi-sports complex, the RM Club, construction works are due to begin in the Rivière du Rempart district of Mauritius in June 2019.
From national tournament in World Tour event
The popularity of Squash in Mauritius is very strong as the country has been hosting a number of Squash invitational events for years in which some of Squash’s most elite players have played in front of the local Squash fans.
Xavier Koenig is the leading Squash player in the country. He played in both the 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Other players from the great country include Charles Mamet, Hugo Bigara, Maxine Windelberg, Nadeem Hosenbux, Richa Beenessreesingh, Sheen Ramdenee, and Vanessa Florens. Meanwhile, Gerald de Comarmond represents the country in Masters Squash.
As for national Squash tournaments, Mauritius hosts the Racing Squash Open and Necker Pro Squash Open.
Source: Christian B YouTube
In terms of clubs, the countries leading Squash venues are:
- Municipality of Vacoas/Phoenix Center
- Gymkhana Club Center– an exclusive country club
- Dodo Club Center
- Grand Bay Yacht Club North
- Ispa Club North
- Tamarin Squash Club
With the new RM Club, it will be seen as the flagship club of the country.
Boost for the grassroots development
With the tournament, it is hopeful to get Mauritius on the map of Squash and be an inspiration to the junior Squash development programmes in the country. In addition, give the Mauritius Squash & Rackets Association (MSRA) some extensive PR coverage.
At present the Mauritius Squash & Racket Association has 2 squash academies, thus a 3rd will be launched end of 2019 just in time for Necker Open in 2020.
For media coverage of the tournament, both SQUASHTV and the PSA World Tour official Facebook page will broadcast the event live, thus giving Squash fans the opportunity to view via their devices, wherever they are in the world.
Final Thoughts
Like most countries, any major sports tournament will have a legacy and prove to the masses that sport brings success and people together in a social way.
There are currently between 50-100 senior squash players regularly playing tournaments in Mauritius but over 100 players of all ethnicities who play socially in different clubs around the island.
In conclusion, we hope that the Necker Mauritius Open becomes a tournament open to both male and female Squash players, in addition, it would be great to see a junior open allowing the grassroots development a chance to play other players from other countries.
Either way, countries like Brunei and Mauritius are emerging as the new Squash territories and long may it continue.
