CAIRO, Egypt, July 25, 2025 (ePRESS) – Sri Lanka’s Junior National Champion, Matheesha Wijesekara, has made a strong impression at the 2025 World Junior Squash Championships by reaching the semi-finals of the Consolation Plate event held in Black Ball Sports Club in Cairo, Egypt on Friday.
Matheesha, 17-year-old student of Royal College Colombo, competing in one of the world’s toughest squash stages among 221 of the best junior players from across the world, continued his journey in the Consolation Plate after an early main draw exit.
In the opening round of 128, the Sri Lankan ace was defeated by France’s Thomas Garcia. However, he quickly bounced back in the plate round and began his climb. Despite a close loss to Germany’s Alexander Neumann—after taking the first set—Matheesha remained composed and focused in the Consolation Plate bracket.
He first outclassed Poland’s Mateusz Lohmann with an excellent 11/2, 11/8, 11/5 win. Then came a tricky four-setter against New Zealand’s Jack Lord. Matheesha cruised through the first two sets but lost the third under pressure. Showing grit, he sealed the match with an 11/7 victory in the fourth set, booking his place in the quarterfinals.
There, he met Swiss National player Nick Melvin Greter in what became a thrilling five-set encounter. Matheesha edged out a nail-biting first set 15/13, but the second set went the Swiss player’s way. Adjusting his tactics smartly, Matheesha returned with confidence to take the final two sets 11/7, 11/7, securing a deserved spot in the semi-finals.
He now faces a challenging test against England’s Michael Chak for a place in the final.
