Caithness badminton trio compete in Glasgow Yonex Championships
Three of the leading Caithness badminton players – husband-and-wife duo Mark and Shona Mackay, along with 16-year-old Chloe Mackenzie – competed in the 2025 Glasgow Yonex Championships.
This “A” grade Badminton Scotland sanctioned event is held by Glasgow and North Strathclyde Badminton Group and attracts some of the country’s top competitors.
Shona was making her return to “A” grade tournaments after her injury at the Island Games in 2023.
Mark eased through the first two rounds of the singles to book a quarter-final tie against number two seed Angus Meldrum. There were some phenomenal rallies before Angus took the win 21-12, 21-15.
Chloe played number two seed Vibha Raman in her first singles match, losing 21-10, 21-7. The scores didn’t reflect the rallies the pair had, with the game lasting 27 minutes.
That put Chloe into the consolation event where she played Anshita Jaiswal. Chloe came out on top in the first set, then two closely contested sets followed before Anshita took the win.
Mark paired up with Ganesh Balaji in the men’s doubles and they had a dramatic second-round encounter with Sheunesu Kimbugwe and Mark Law. Mark and Ganesh lost the first set 21-6 but came back to win the second 21-17 before taking the third 22-20.
That placed them in the quarter-finals against Callum Crangle and Josh Taylor, the number one seeds. Callum and Josh took the win 21-17, 21-19.
The ladies’ doubles saw Shona play alongside Shetland’s Chloe Hitchin while Chloe paired up with Glasgow’s Anshita Jaiswal.
Shona and Chloe won their first match against Kathryn McGregor and Suzanne Zwane 21-15, 17-21, 21-16, putting them into the quarter-finals where they met 3/4 seeds Lanna Campbell and Katie Stewart. Lanna and Katie edged it 21-19, 22-20.
Chloe and Anshita took on Shona Brown and Anna Sugden in their first match, with Chloe and Anshita winning 21-16, 21-11. That gave them a quarter-final tie against 3/4 seeds Jody Barral and Frances McLure, with the experienced duo of Jody and Frances winning 21-8, 22-20.
The mixed doubles saw Mark and Shona win their first game 21-13, 21-5 against Humayun Rashid and Chelsea Byrne. They then lost out in the quarter-finals to the number one seeds Evan Kenny and Antonia Woods 21-13, 21-16.
