UCT just miss out

In the blink of an eye: Nicky Keitsile and Samantha Oatley gave it their all, but let slip a match point in the semi-finals of the UCT Open doubles competition.

A few came within a whisker of title glory, but, alas, UCT students had to walk away empty-handed from the UCT Badminton Open, hosted by the badminton club on March 11 and 12. In the doubles competition, Steven Kuo (just off a plane from Taiwan) and Tim Long were beaten by the SACS team in a hard-fought semi-final. Ditto for women's pair, Nicky Keitsile and Samantha Oatley, who let slip a match point in losing to the eventual winners from Goodwood. In the singles events, Oatley was UCT's star performer. She made it into the semi-finals, but was knocked out by defending champion Debbi Godfrey of Cape Tech - the top-ranked U17 player in the country last year - who went on to reclaim her title. Thanks to the spacious sports centre, UCT is one of the few clubs in Cape Town that can put on a big show, reports event organiser Alapan Arnab. It turned out to be the biggest UCT Open yet, boasting a viewing feast of 157 matches. All of 17 men's teams and eight women's teams took part in the doubles events, and 26 men and 11 women vied for trophies in the singles competition.