HANNAH SILCOCK says she is starting to get used to handling the pressure of being the player to beat after winning the women’s British Home Nations Championship.
The 16-year-old sensation defeated Ireland number one Mia O’Rahilly-Egan 3-1 (11-7, 8-11, 11-9, 11-9) in the final to claim her first senior title and become Jersey’s first women’s British champion.
Now based at Grantham College in Lincolnshire, Silcock also claimed bronze with her sister Kathryn in the women’s doubles, while Leon Pierre and John Le Fondre also won bronze in the junior boys’ doubles event having made the semi-finals before losing 3-0 to England’s Ralph Pattison and Isaac Kingham.
Silcock, who beat Wales’ Danielle Kelly 3-0 and England’s Mollie Patterson 3-1 to reach the singles final, said: “This is my third time competing at a British Home Nations event.
“In 2021, in Scotland, it was great winning the three golds at under-15 level for Jersey [singles, doubles and team] but, since moving to Grantham, I wanted to stretch myself, so we decided to enter the senior women’s event.
“I am really happy to be Jersey’s first woman’s British senior champion. Luc Miller won gold in the senior men’s in 2021 so it was nice that our coach Miguel Freitas asked Luc to coach me in the final.
“They both helped me greatly over the three days of competition.
“I was also really surprised to win 11 out of the 12 matches in the team event. I felt that I was playing well and to win both singles matches against England was special.
“Because of the 11 wins, I was seeded top in the singles event, which brought a bit of pressure. I have been playing more top-end tournaments now so I am learning to cope with being the top seed.”
Meanwhile, in the women’s doubles, the Silcock sisters beat Guernsey duo Charlotte Casey and Rebecca O’Keefe 3-1 in the quarter-finals, only to fall to England pairing Patterson and Mari Baldwin in the semis.
Jersey junior Esther Lewis also picked up a bronze medal in the girls’ cadet doubles, partnering with Wales’ Eleanor Turner-Samuels.
They beat Ireland’s Lily Parke and Eimear Hutchison 3-0 in the opening round before suffering defeat by the same score to Sienna Jetha and Hannah Saunders of England.
Miller, meanwhile, made the quarter-finals, but went on to lose out to the top seed, Shayan Siraj 3-0.
