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Harrogate Open 2022
Men's Draw
08 - 11 Dec
Harrogate, England, $3k |
Final:
[4] Finnlay Withington (ENG) bt [3] Perry Malik (ENG) 11-4, 9-11,
11-7, 11-3
Semi-finals:
[3] Perry Malik (ENG) bt [1] Lwamba Chileshe (NZL) 11-6, 11-6, 11-9
[4] Finnlay Withington (ENG) bt [2] Temwa Chileshe (NZL) 11-13, 4-11,
11-9, 11-3, 11-8
Quarter-finals:
[1] Lwamba Chileshe (NZL) bt [5] Lewis Doughty (ENG) 3-11, 11-8, 11-13,
11-2, 12-10
[3] Perry Malik (ENG) bt [8] Elijah Thomas (NZL) 11-8, 13-11, 11-7
[4] Finnlay Withington (ENG) bt [6] Alasdair Prott (SCO) 11-4, 11-6,
7-11, 11-6
[2] Temwa Chileshe (NZL) bt [7] Joel Arscott (NZL) 11-8, 11-7, 11-8
1st round:
[1] Lwamba Chileshe (NZL) bt Pablo Quintana Estevez (ESP) 8-11, 11-2,
12-10, 11-6
[5] Lewis Doughty (ENG) bt Aaron Allpress (ENG) 11-8, 11-5, 11-7
[8] Elijah Thomas (NZL) bt Mason Smales (NZL) 11-7, 12-10, 8-11, 11-2
[3] Perry Malik (ENG) bt Vini Rodrigues (BRA) 11-7, 11-5, 5-11, 11-9
[4] Finnlay Withington (ENG) bt [WC] Josh Rowley (ENG) 11-6, 11-7, 11-5
[6] Alasdair Prott (SCO) bt Jonah Bryant (ENG) 11-8, 11-5, 11-7
[7] Joel Arscott (NZL) bt Robert Thirst (ENG) 11-2, 11-4, 11-2
[2] Temwa Chileshe (NZL) bt Laouenan Loaëc (FRA) 11-5, 11-8, 11-8 |
Semi Finals
Malik and Withington Down Chileshes
Perry Malik (right) downed top seed Lwamba Chileshe
(left)
The tournament’s top two seeds are out! England’s Perry Malik and
Finnlay Withington knocked out the Chileshe brothers to reach the final
of the Harrogate Squash Open.
Malik came into the competition as the No.3 seed, and he came up against
top seed Lwamba Chileshe in the semi-finals. It was an assured
performance from the Englishman, who won in straight games 11-6, 11-6,
11-9 to move through to his third final of the year.
He will now face compatriot Withington, after the World Junior
Championship runner-up came back from two games down to beat Lwamba’s
younger brother Temwa.
It was the Kiwi, the No.2 seed for the competition, who claimed the
opening game on a tie-break, before then also winning the second
comfortably 11-4 to hold a commanding advantage. However, Withington
fought back to win a crucial third game 11-9, before then carrying that
momentum through the final two games of the match to win in five.
Finnlay Withington and Temwa Chileshe pose for a picture prior to their
Harrogate Squash Open semi-final clash
Finnlay Withington (left) beat Temwa Chileshe (right)
The final of the Harrogate Squash Open will take place between England’s
Perry Malik and Finnlay Withington on Sunday, December 11 at the
Harrogate Sports & Fitness Centre.
It will be the second meeting between the pair in a final this year. In
November, Withington took the victory at the Telsa Media David Lloyd
Purley Open, to secure his maiden Tour title. They will meet again on
Sunday, with the winner taking home the final Challenger Tour crown in
England in 2022. |
Quarter Finals
Top Seed Chileshe Survives Scare
Top seed Lwamba Chileshe had to come through a fifth game tie-break
against England’s Lewis Doughty to reach the last four in Harrogate.
The pair had only met once before on Tour, in the qualifying rounds of
the Squash XL Open in June 2018, with the Kiwi winning in five on that
occasion. The same story occurred in Harrogate on Friday evening, but it
was a much closer finale this time round.
It was a slow start for Chileshe, as he lost the opening game 11-3, but
he fought back well to take the second. Doughty then claimed the third
game on a tie-break 13-11, but once again, the New Zealander battled
back. The fifth also went to a tie-break, with Doughty having two match
balls. However, following a short injury break, Chileshe fought back
again to win the fifth 12-10, and to move through to the last four.
He will now face England’s Perry Malik in the semi-finals in Harrogate,
after the No.3 seed overcame another Kiwi, in Elijah Thomas. Malik won
in straight games, with a second game 13-11 tie-break win being crucial
in the victory.
The other last four contest on Saturday will see the younger of the
Chileshe brothers, No.2 seed Temwa, also take on English competition. He
will face No.4 seed Finnlay Withington, after the pair came through
their respective quarter final match-ups.
The semis of the Harrogate Squash Open will take place at Harrogate
Sports & Fitness Centre on Saturday, December 10, with the Chileshes
taking on Englishmen for places in the final.
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Round 1
Chileshes Lead Seeds Into Quarters
Laouenan Loaec (left) and Temwa Chileshe (right)
The opening day of the Harrogate Squash Open saw all eight seeds safely
move through to the quarter finals of the Challenger 3 level
competition.
The Harrogate Sports & Fitness Centre is playing host to the last event
in England of 2022, and there were no surprises in Thursday’s action.
Top seed Lwamba Chileshe did have to fight his way through the opening
day, though. He fell behind to Spain’s Pablo Quintana Estevez, losing
the first game 11-8, but was able to fight back strongly. The Kiwi
claimed the second game 11-2, before winning the third on a tie-break.
That was crucial, as he kept the momentum in his favour to win the
fourth as well to book his quarter final spot.
He will be joined in the last eight by younger brother Temwa, who
defeated Frenchman Laouenan Loaec in straight games. Two more New
Zealanders, in Joel Arscott and Elijah Thomas, both also seeded for the
competition, made their way into the quarter finals as well, with the
latter overcoming compatriot Mason Smales in four games.
Elijah Thomas (right) and Mason Smales (left) before
their first round match
Elsewhere, the English trio of Lewis Doughty, Finnlay Withington and
Perry Malik all safely advanced to the last eight, with Scotland’s
Alasdair Prott rounding out the quarter final line-up.
The quarter finals of the Harrogate Squash Open will take place on
Friday, December 9 at the Harrogate Sports & Fitness Centre, with the
last eight going head-to-head for places in the semi-finals on Saturday.
For more information on the event, Where available see the
PSA Live Scores page, or
follow on
PSAChallengerTourLivestreams,
Facebook,
Twitter,
Instagram
&
TikTok. Selected
events will also be streamed live on
SQUASHTV.
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Preview
Prott Happy With 2022 Outcome
The Harrogate Squash Open is the sole event on the Challenger Tour this
week, with 16 players aiming to take home the glory at the Challenger 3
level event in England.
The New Zealand duo of Lwamba and Temwa Chileshe will be the top two
seeds for the competition, and will be among five players from the
Oceanic nation in action. Joel Arscott and Elijah Thomas will also be
seeded, with the latter taking on compatriot Mason Smales in the opening
round.
The English trio of Perry Malik, Finnlay Withington and Lewis Doughty
will also be among the seeds for the tournament, and will be joined by
Scotland’s Alasdair Prott.
We spoke to the Scot ahead of this tournament, and after making it into
the last four of his last three Challenger Tour events, he is looking to
push one step further into a first final, and possibly to a maiden Tour
title.
“I’m happy with my form over the last few tournaments. I feel like I’m
starting to see the things I’m working on in training coming through in
the way I play, which I’m really happy about,” Prott said.
“Making the semi-finals in my last 3 Challenger 5 events has been great
for me. I definitely feel like I’m right around the level I need to be
to start pushing for that first final on tour. After coming so close in
Romania I’m really keen to show that I can start to consistently get
this far and potentially even further in these competitions.”
“Obviously, making the final is the first step before I can think about
grabbing the first title on Tour. However, the improvements I feel like
I have made over the last few months if maintained in the near future
should hopefully put me in with a fighting chance of doing so.”
Over the course of 2022, Prott has enjoyed a steady rise into the
world’s top 200 for the first time in his career. He is looking to keep
that rise going over the near future, and to push into a higher ranking
bracket by the end of the campaign.
“2022 has been a great year so far for myself so I’m really hoping to
continue my form in Harrogate and finish the year well to give me the
momentum going into the New Year,” he explained.
“I think my progress through the rankings has been steady, maintaining
around the 200 mark over the last year. Now that I’m finishing up at
university I’m hoping to prove that I can continue my progress through
the rankings.
“I’m not one for making overly bold predictions but I’m hoping to
continue the way I have started this season and make a push to get into
the top 150 by the end of the 2022-23 season.”
The event takes place from Thursday, December 8 to Sunday, December 11
at the Harrogate Sports & Fitness Club in England. Follow the PSA
Challenger Tour on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates from the
event.
For more information on the event, Where available see the
PSA Live Scores page, or
follow on
PSAChallengerTourLivestreams,
Facebook,
Twitter,
Instagram
&
TikTok. Selected
Challenger Tour Events will also be shown live on
SQUASHTV.
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