Mudge Breaks Gary Waite's NAO Doubles Title Record With Greenwich Win from SDA Media January 29, 2014
- With his three-game Chilton North American Open final win Monday
evening alongside partner Ben Gould over Jonny Smith & Greg Park,
Damien Mudge has broken Gary Waite’s record of ten North American Open
titles with his eleventh in the seventy-fourth iteration of one of the
most storied events on the Squash Doubles Association (SDA) tour.
Together, Waite &
Mudge won six consecutive North American Opens from 2000-2006. Of
Waite’s other four titles, three took place from 1997-1999 with Mark
Talbott with his first in 1994 with Scott Dulmage.
Building on his six
titles with Waite, the thirty-seven-year-old Australian picked up his
seventh and eighth titles—shifting to the left wall from the right—with
Viktor Berg in 2008 and 2010 before notching his ninth and tenth on the
left wall with current partner Gould in 2011 and 2012.
“Gary was a great
doubles player and friend who taught me a lot on and off court, and
someone whom I looked up to,” Mudge said. “I’m grateful to have the
opportunity to beat his record, which I didn’t think would happen. It
was a special moment.”
Although pleased with
their seventh title of the season, Mudge & Gould’s run was anything
but easy as the joint No. 1’s were stretched to close four-game matches
against Fred Reid & Raj Nanda in the quarterfinals 15-10, 15-10,
11-15, 15-10, and against seasoned veterans Chris Walker & Clive
Leach in the semifinals 15-9, 15-14, 13-15, 15-10.
SDA NAO final
trophy“We both struggled at certain times this weekend and I didn’t
feel either of us were near our best at any stage during the
tournament,” Gould said. “But, the one thing we do better than other
teams is keep our heads, acknowledge what is not working, adapt and
work out ways to win while not playing well. It’s so important to have
a supportive partner like Damien during those moments.”
The bottom half of the
draw included a number of significant upsets culminating in world No.
12 and 13 Jonny Smith & Greg Park reaching their first final of the
season as a tandem.
Smith & Park upset
world No. 9 and 10 Imran Khan & Mark Chaloner in a three-game
quarterfinal before dispatching the surprise of the tournament, Baset
Chaudhry & Michael Ferreira, 15-7, 10-15, 15-11, 11-15, 15-13 in
the semifinals.
SDA NAO semiIn their
first competitive appearance as partners, qualifiers Chaudhry &
Ferreira won just as many matches as Mudge & Gould having won two,
three-game qualifying matches, knocking out two seeds and joint world
No. 5’s Manek Mathur & Yvain Badan in three games, then eliminating
higher-ranked Shaun Johnstone & Jacques Swanepoel in the
quarterfinals.
Tour focus now shifts
to the $40,000 David Johnson Memorial at Heights Casino in Brooklyn,
New York, after an eighth successful tri-club hosted Chilton North
American Open doubles and Harrow Greenwich Open singles at the Field
Club of Greenwich, Greenwich Country Club, and Round Hill Club.
The tour is once again grateful for the squash-hotbed that is Greenwich, Connecticut.
“I just enjoy being
part of a prestigious and long standing event,” Mudge said. “The
Greenwich community is very knowledgeable about Doubles Hardball and
the history associated with the event, so with that being said everyone
really gets behind it.”
“The NAO is a special
event for Damien and I,” Gould said. “The Greenwich community has one
of the largest pools of doubles players and enthusiasts in the country.
The NAO has been a staple on our tour for many years and the playing
body truly appreciates their ongoing support of our game.”
