Caversham teenager sets sights on women’s world title

CAVERSHAM’S Holly Ranson is taking time out until July as she concentrates on her A levels at Queen Anne’s School before returning to competitive action where she is aiming to finish in the top two in the British Racketlon Championships in ladies’ singles, doubles and mixed doubles as well as trying to retain her U21 world singles title in August in Rotterdam.

The 18-year-old is aiming to secure a place at Warwick University this September where she hopes to gain the opportunity to train with full time coaches for badminton and squash, as well as the table tennis and tennis squads, with a target to win the women’s world championships and the tour end final within the next three years.

Ranson currently holds the U21 singles, girls’ doubles and mixed doubles titles in racketlon, a multi-sport competition combining table tennis, badminton, squash and tennis.

Last year in Zurich Ranson competed in the Racketlon World Doubles Championships where she won the U21 mixed doubles title with her Austrian partner, and the U21 girls’ doubles title with her Danish partner.

Last summer she travelled to Rotterdam to play in the World Singles Championship, and despite spraining her ankle on the Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award expedition just three weeks before the event and being unable to train in the run-up to the tournament, she managed to play through the pain and won the U21 girls’ singles title for the second consecutive year.

After competing in international tournaments throughout last year, including in Warsaw, Berlin, Zurich, Vienna and Prague, Ranson finished in the top eight women in the world, that saw her qualify for the end of tour finals that took place in Mumbai, India in November.

In Mumbai, Ranson beat the world number two woman from Sweden on her way to the semi-finals where she lost a close match to a former two times world champion from Denmark. Ranson eventually finished third.

Ranson is currently ranked fourth in the world in women’s singles and doubles, and number one in the world for U21 girls’ singles and doubles. She has continued to train in all four racket sports and plays tournaments most weekends. She is currently ranked inside the top 30 in Badminton England women’s singles, and inside the top 15 for U19 singles with England Squash. She also qualified for and competed in English nationals for both badminton and squash in the U19 age group, and has represented Berkshire in senior county squash and badminton.