Smashers's Hat-Trick close in on semi-finals

It was a perfect Saturday(6th December) evening for the Squashzone Smashers, as their leader Yogesh Thube blanked Rohan Agarwal at their home ground(Squashzone). Yogesh Thube defeated Rohan Agarwal of Cutting Grass 11-9,11-2,16-14 to win the battle of the captains and to keep his team's hopes of the semi-final berths alive.

When both of these experienced players took to the bright, colourful court of Squashzone, the crowd outside watched the match with enthusiasm and excitement;knowing that the match will be an amazing learning experience. Both of them have never faced each other in this edition of the league, and thus neither of them held the edge over the other .The first set was a very close one with both players being at level with each other for most of the game, though Yogesh Thube cut down on his errors in the later part of the game to win the set 11-9.

The second set was won comfortably by Yogesh,as he attacked the front court more to attain quick points. Yogesh Thube also took the advantage over his opponent,and he intercepted the cross-courts early at the T to push the ball into the front corners by his excellent volley drops. His attacking game which resembled the Egyptian style of play,made Rohan do some gruelling retrievals,though the retrievals did not come of much use. The defending champion of the league took the set 11-2.

The Smashers's captain then looked forward to finishing off the third set in the same fashion, but was forced into the tie-break by Rohan Agarwal. Rohan Agarwal displayed his nerves of steel by making a valiant comeback in the third set,inspite of the previous set 11-2. The crowd outside were sharing the similar intimate feelings with the two players inside,as the crowd had their teeth on their nail when the two players were battling the gruesome tie-break. Though in the end, Yogesh Thube emerged as the champion,and the tension and anxiety faded away from his face to reveal his unbridled happiness.

With this victory, the Squashzone Smashers are leading 9-0 over Cutting Grass with their other victories coming from the contributions of their C Division players:-Parth Agarwal and Chandramoulli Singh,both of them won 3-0 in their respective matches. The Smashers have their fingers crossed for their impending A Division player match which is due on this Thursday, as a triumph in that match will fit as the last nail in the chariot of a complete whitewash over Cutting Grass and also ensure a semi-final berth for the Squashzone Smashers.