Taulo shatters Matewere’s General Alliance Insurance Squash dreams

The General Alliance Insurance Squash Championship ended in resounding victory for Aubrey Taulo at Blantyre Sports Club (BSC) on Friday following a 3-0 triumph over last year’s champion James Matewere in the finals.

Matewere hoped for a third title defence in the16-contestant A-category but instead he was mercilessly beaten by inspired Taulo, who was searching for his first national glory in four years.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the final was not that Matewere lost, but that he lost easily. It was expected to be a close encounter but many hoped that Matewere would once again carry the day as he did last year when he defended the crown with a narrow 3-2 victory. Nevertheless, the first seed realised the second seed was too hot to handle in their latest meeting.

Taulo was in an excellent form so much so that even when Matewere led 8-4 in one of the three sets, he came from behind to win it 11-9.

“I was very much prepared for this final after I previously lost twice to Matewere and I am excited that it worked,” Taulo said.

On his part, Matewere said he was disappointed that he lost with a wide margin.

“It pains me a lot to lose a title defence with an embarrassing defeat. Although I did not have ample time for preparations due to some other engagements, I did not expect to lose in such a manner. I will do my best to recover,” he said.

The semi-finals were dominated by the Taulo brothers as three of them made it into the last four stage. Aubrey beat his elder brother Julius while Chisomo lost to Matewere in the semis.

In B-category, Alan Alidi took glory with a 3-2 win over Richard Kachepa while Frank Maliko beat Paticio Ndeule 3-0 to triumph in the C-section, which had two female players Lucille Kalele and Lusinda Manda Teylor.

While thanking General Alliance Insurance for the continued sponsorship of the annual K1 million competition, Squash Malawi president Mathews Mtumbuka urged up-and-coming players to pull-up their socks and challenge the old guards for the ultimate glory.

General Alliance assistant claims manager James Duncan said they are proud to be associated with the sport and “we promise to come back with a bigger and better sponsorship package next year”.