Bermuda’s budding squash players are eager to put their skills to the test against some of the best in the world when they participate in the 2023 Canadian Junior Open squash tournament.

Twelve players in categories from under-11 to under-19 are taking part in this year’s event under the guidance of Anaya Smith, a former participant at the prestigious international tournament, with action taking place from Saturday until Tuesday.

One of the youngest players in the team, George Quereshi, has been putting in the hard work, with morning sessions alongside his dad Aleem forming part of his preparations. Quereshi lost to fellow 10-year-old Mason Smith, his team-mate in the under-11 age group, in the final of the Bermuda Squash Club Championships last week.

“I've been playing early in the morning and getting in two hours every day,’’ Quereshi said.

“Mason, Ben, and myself have been doing pretty well and playing most of the days. I hope I do well and coach Anaya has been helping me with matchday practice.”

Owen Rosorea, 14, has been to Canada a couple times before but has expectations of doing better on this occasion.

“I’ve been putting in a lot of hard work in the gym and I'm moving around the court a lot more,’’ Rosorea said.

“I'm pretty optimistic and I've moved higher in my age bracket so I’m playing against people my age. Last year I was 13 in the under-15s and this year I’ll be 14. I think I can do well. Last year I had to play the No 1 seed, and I didn’t do great.”

One of the four female players, Rose Paulos, got to play against older opponents at last week’s club championships.

“I feel very privileged to get the opportunity,’’ she said. “I want to play my best out of the four girls and set a good example for younger girls who want to go in future.

“I've been doing a lot of squash and a lot of matches. I've been having some private lessons with my coaches and working on my technique before I leave.

“I really want to win my matches, but if not I want to play my best. The coach has been making me do a lot of fitness and working on my technique. I’m trying to get my swing right before I leave.”

One of the most experienced players in the team, 16-year-old Andrew Cox, acknowledged the wide gap that exists between the squash they play on island, compared with what they will encounter in Canada.

“It’s a different level than anything else we play, even the Caribbean Championships,’’ he said.

“Usually we come out in the top ten, but in Canada we just hope for the best score possible. Last year was probably my best in Canada. I played every day but I got unlucky with the draw and lost my first two matches. Then I got to play in the plate, where I did really well.

“I won the plate in the club championships and I lost to Noah Browne in the quarter-finals and he went on to win the whole thing.

“Before last summer, I went to a squash camp with David Palmer, a former world No 1 from Australia, at Cornell University, in New York.

“He taught me a lot of different drills and I've been implementing that into my game, which has helped me improve a lot.

“Naturally, I'm a really fit person so we've been working on my technique and also my composure on court as I tend to get a little sporadic.”

Smith is not focusing too much on the results, with the reaction from the players after their matches what matters to him.

“The Canadian Open is probably the fourth-biggest junior tournament,’’ Smith said.

“Because of that, you have players coming from New Zealand, Egypt, obviously Canada. You have them coming from all corners of the globe and the way it works out is that the US Open is a week after Canadian.

“This means you have players who really take this seriously and are playing at a higher level. It’s always a big tournament just for everyone to see other players their age.

“Obviously, going into a tournament like this you want to win but I like to see what you do after those results. It’s more about how they react after seeing the other players and the level that everyone else is at.

“We've spent the last four weeks working towards this tournament and everyone has their own different things to work on.

“The club championships is always a good thing to have before they go away. It gives them a chance to put forth what they've been working on in a tournament environment.”