Squash players Nazhir Smith and Emma Keane have had the tag of title favourites bestowed upon them for the annual Digicel Junior National Championships.

Featuring more than 40 youngsters vying for titles in ten different age categories, the two-day event will be held at the Bermuda Squash Racquets Club in Devonshire this weekend.

Smith and Keane, the No?1 seeds in the boys’ and girls’ under-19 divisions, are expected to claim top honours in their age groups, BSRA assistant director Runa Reta said yesterday.

“Emma Keane has been playing really well and is likely to face Susanna Armano in the final.

“In the boys’ under-19, Nazhir Smith is the top seed but he could be challenged by Kion Knight, who is the top seed in the boys’ under-17 division.”

Reta said Armano was likely to win the girls’ under-17 age group, while Dylan Pratt was the favourite in the boys’ under-15 competition.

Other No?1 seeds include Anaya Smith in the boys’ under-13, Charlotte Toogood in the girls’ under-13 and Matthew Elliott in the boys’ under-11.

Considering most of Bermuda’s top youngsters recently competed at the Canadian Junior Open in Niagra, Reta expects the standard to be extremely competitive with players motivated to claim a national title.

“It promises to be a great weekend full of high quality squash from our best young players on the island,” she said. “A lot of our kids have just come back from the Canadian Junior Open, so they’re all pretty sharp.

“And they’re obviously going to be playing pretty hard to win the national titles.”

With more than 100 youngsters enrolled in the BRSA’s “booming” junior programme, Reta is optimistic about the sport’s future on the Island.

“Our more elite national group is really coming along and we’ve started to include younger children aged around 11 and 12,” she said.

“We’re really trying to start them young and get them exposed to overseas tournaments like the Canadian Junior Open and local tournaments like this one.

“Our junior programme is absolutely booming right now and we have more than 100 children, which is great for a sport like squash. Hopefully in a few years time we can be even more competitive.”

The Championships will be held on Saturday and Sunday, starting at 9.30am on both days.