Centurions & Buccaneers Secure Extra Points In A Thrilling Night Of Squash

An exciting evening for the 2025/26 Optasia Squash Super League campaign, as the Bristol Buccaneers were able to pick up the extra points this evening despite the draw with Crawley Magik, whilst the Chichester Centurions secured the bonus point after staging a comeback against Leamington Royals in a thrilling night of squash.

With both ties ending level, it was the number of games won that separated the teams, with the Buccaneers and the Centurion each doing enough across their matches to secure the all-important extra points, in what was a memorable evening in the campaign

Read below for the report and results from this Optasia Squash Super League fixture.

If you missed out on the action, full replays will be available to view on the England Squash YouTube Channel.

To keep up to date with all the latest information, follow the Squash Super League on X, Facebook, Instagram or TikTok.

Crawley Magik v Bristol Buccaneers

Opening the contest for Crawley Magik was their Club Hero Bailey Malik, who was up against the Buccaneers’ Baptiste Bouin.

The opener game of the tie started quickly, with Bailey Malik determined to get points on the board in front of a home crowd, claiming the first 11-2.

This momentum seemed to carry into the second game for the Englishman, who was able to take a strong 3-0 lead. However, this momentum would be halted temporarily as Bouin would bring the scores back to 3-3.

Nonetheless, his efforts seemed to come to nothing as Malik continued to show his dominance, winning eight of the next 11 points.

In the second match of the evening, the U19 2026 British Junior Open Champion Lauren Baltayan faced off against Reka Kemecsei, with the young Frenchwoman putting on a strong performance for the Buccaneers.

The young French star was able to take a healthy four-point lead in the opener, extending this to 9-5, before winning the first 11-6. Whilst Baltayan started strong in the opener, this wasn’t repeated in the second, with Kemecsei putting her game advantage under threat, as she took a 7-5 lead.

However, Baltayan was able to show a true determined spirit, fighting her way back into the game and securing vital points for the Buccaneers, as she went on to win the next six points to claim the match 2-0.

Following the opening matches was the women’s tie between Torrie Malik and her compatriot Georgina Kennedy, which proved to be a tightly contested battle.

Despite Torrie Malik taking a 7-5 lead in both games, it was the England No.1 who was able to claw her back into the contest, beating her opponent on the tie break on both occasions.

In the final match of the night at the K2 Crawley Sports Club, Curtis Malik was able to secure an impressive comeback victory over the former World No.1 and World Champion, Mohamed ElShorbagy.

The headline match in Crawley did not disappoint, with the two men battling it out for over 20 minutes in the opening game, with ElShorbagy showing true determination to come back from 5-9 down to win 11-10.

Nonetheless, with points still on the line for Crawley Magik, the World No.23 was able to put on a spirited performance in front of the home crowd, withstanding the pressure, to win the next two games 11-10 and 11-9

The opening match victory proved vital for the Buccaneers, as, despite ElShorbagy losing the tie 2-1, it meant that they would secure the extra bonus point.

Results:

Club Hero

Bailey Malik [CM] bt. Baptiste Bouin [BB] 2-0: 11-6, 11-7

Women’s U25

Lauren Baltayan [BB] bt. Reka Kemecsei [CM] 2-0: 11-6, 11-7,

Women’s Pro

Georgina Kennedy [BB] bt. Torrie Malik 2-0: 11-10, 11-10

Men’s Pro

Curtis Malik [CM] bt. Mohamed ElShorbagy 2-1: 10-11, 11-10, 11-9

Chichester Centurions v Leamington Royals

Chichester Centurions staged an impressive comeback against Leamington Royals, with the Royals coming from two matches down to tie the contest *2-2. A rematch from last year’s 2024/25 Grand Final, the Centurions were able to avenge their defeat last season and pick up huge points, which may prove valuable as we move closer to the end of the campaign.

And despite the Centurions being 2-0 down in the tie, the efforts from World No.6 Sivasangari Subramaniam and World No.11 Jonah Bryant, who battled hard on the court, were enough to level the scoreline.

In the opening match of the evening, Leamington Royals Women’s U25’s Olivia Besant secured an impressive 2-0 victory over Centurions Harriet Broadbridge. Despite the threats from the 16-year-old in the opening game, putting unwanted pressure on her opponent, Besant was able to overcome any potential upsets and win the opener, 11-9. And after winning the first, the 21-year-old would grow her lead further and win the second 11-4.

In the second match of the night, the Royals were able to extend their lead further in the Club Hero encounter, as Rory Richmond would fight off a home crowd favourite, Tim Vail, in a three-game match.

With the crowd fully behind Vail, even getting a few standing ovations for his incredible shots, it seemed that Richmond would be pushed to the limit, with Vail’s 11-9 win in the second taking the match to a third and final game. Nonetheless, despite the best efforts from the crowd and the man on court, the Scotsman was able to do enough to extend the Royals’ lead.

With the Royals winning the first two matches, World No.6 Sivasangari Subramaniam needed to win to keep the Centurions in the contest. The subsequent women’s match proved to be a good battle between the Japanese No.1 and Subramaniam, with the Malaysian No.1 edging out her opponent in both matches to win 11-6, 11-10.

Heading into the final match of the night, Jonah Bryant was able to restore the tie back to level-scoring after he was able to battle through a hard-fought contest against Declan James. The 21-year-old’s efforts were rewarded as his two-game victory, winning 11-9, 11-9, was enough to secure the Centurions the additional point on the leaderboard.