SINGAPORE – History repeated itself in the Marigold National Squash Championships as top seeds Samuel Kang and Au Yeong Wai Yhann snagged their sixth consecutive men’s and women’s title respectively on Saturday.
Kang beat second seed Marcus Phua 3-1 (9-11, 11-3, 11-3, 11-6) to secure his seventh overall title, while Au Yeong swept past 14-year-old Ong Zhe Sim 3-0 (11-4, 11-6, 11-7) in the women’s final at the Kallang Squash Centre.
Kang, ranked No. 192 on the Professional Squash Association (PSA) Tour, described the triumph as his “toughest victory”. Two months before the tournament, he picked up a leg injury which was aggravated two days before the event. He said: “It’s been a tough two months as I was injured. I’m not really able to do any hard sessions and train for this tournament. But I just decided I’ll play no matter what condition I’m in.
“I was in a bit of pain especially on one leg. Thankfully things got better and I was able to recover and my body held up enough for me to get through the match today.”
Kang, 32, added: “In the past eight months, I went through a lot of changes outside of squash. I switched jobs, became a father and of course had to deal with the injury. And that led me to have to adjust my training to find a balance between pushing too hard and resting. So I’m still trying to work it out. It’s hard to do this full time because of money but I hope to return to the PSA Tour one day (he last played on it in 2019).”
Unlike Kang, Au Yeong, 24, is under Sport Singapore’s Sport Excellence (Spex) Scholarship which covers much of her expenses. She is 87th on the PSA circuit where she has played since 2017.
An undergraduate at University of the West of England Bristol, she said: “The juniors have been playing really well, so I was a little bit nervous. In the last few months I’ve made improvements and I was quite happy to set the intensity pretty high, and I felt like I managed to win it quite comfortably.
“My squash is moving in the right direction. I’m happy where I’m going and definitely I want to be on the Tour. But whether I’ll go completely full time or pursue my Masters I have not decided.”
Zhe Sim, a two-time national junior champion, hopes to follow in Au Yeong’s footsteps. She said: “I’m happy with my performance this week, but when I play Wai Yhann I’m always not that confident because she’s strong and professional. I still have a lot to learn.”
