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Monte Carlo Classic 2022
Women's Draw
28 Nov-02 Dec
Monaco, Monte Carlo, $20k |
ROUND TWO
29 nov |
QUARTERS
30 nov |
SEMIS
01 Dec |
FINAL
02 Dec |
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[1] Lucy Turmel (ENG)
11-6, 11-6, 11-6 (26m)
Taba Taghavi (FRA) |
Lucy Turmel
11-5, 7-11, 11-7 ret. (33m)
Rana Ismail |
Rana Ismail
11-9, 11-6, 8-11, 11-3 (35m)
Marie Stéphan |
Rana Ismail
11-7, 10-12, 11-7, 11-9 (50m)
Mélissa Alves |
[8] Rana Ismail (EGY)
11-7, 11-4, 11-6 (17m)
[9/16] Ali Loke (WAL) |
[7] Alicia Mead (ENG)
11-7, 11-3, 11-3 (21m)
[9/16] Léa Barbeau (FRA) |
Alicia Mead
11-9, 11-7, 11-7 (30m)
Marie Stéphan |
[4] Marie Stéphan (FRA)
8-11, 11-5, 11-7, 11-7 (47m)
[9/16] Katerina Tycova (GER) |
Nour Heikal (EGY)
11-4, 11-6, 11-7 (20m)
[3] Emilia Soini (FIN) |
Nour Heikal
11-9, 11-5, 11-8 (28m)
Menna Hamed |
Nour Heikal
6-11, 14-12, 11-4, 11-5 (44m)
Mélissa Alves |
[6] Menna Hamed (EGY)
11-7, 11-9, 11-9 (29m)
[WC] Nour Ramy (EGY) |
[5] Torrie Malik (ENG)
11-6, 11-7, 11-8 (24m)
Jacqueline Peychär (AUT) |
Torrie Malik
9-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-4 (40m)
Mélissa Alves |
[9/16] Élise Romba (FRA)
11-3, 11-4, 11-4 (20m)
[2] Mélissa Alves (FRA) |
[1]
Lucy Turmel (ENG) bye
Taba Taghavi (FRA) bt [9/16] Sofía Mateos (ESP) 11-8, 11-4, 11-3 (27m)
[9/16]8888888 Ali Loke (WAL) bt Caroline Lyng (DEN) 11-4, 11-4, 12-10
(28m)
[8] Rana Ismail (EGY) bye
[7] Alicia Mead (ENG) bye
[9/16] Léa Barbeau (FRA) bt Bruna Marchesi Petrillo (BRA) 11-1, 11-3,
11-6 (28m)
[9/16] Katerina Tycova (GER) bt [WC] Ella Galova (FRA) 11-9, 9-11, 11-3,
11-9 (52m)
[4] Marie Stéphan (FRA) bye
[3] Emilia Soini (FIN) bye
Nour Heikal (EGY) bt [9/16] Klara Møller (DEN) 11-2, 11-3, 11-1 (14m)
[WC] Nour Ramy (EGY) bt [9/16] Akari Midorikawa (JPN) 11-8, 6-11, 11-7,
11-9 (30m)
[6] Menna Hamed (EGY) bye
[5] Torrie Malik (ENG) bye
Jacqueline Peychär (AUT) bt [9/16] Au Yeong Wai Yhann (SGP) 11-6, 11-6,
11-9 (25m)
[9/16] Élise Romba (FRA) bt Ninon Lemarchand (FRA) 12-10, 11-6, 11-6
(25m)
[2] Mélissa Alves (FRA) bye |
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Alves Claims Biggest Win Since 2019
Frenchwoman Melissa Alves secured her biggest win on Tour in three
years, as she downed Rana Ismail to claim the Monte Carlo Classic title
on Friday evening.
Alves, the World No.30, came into the Challenger 20 level competition at
the Monaco Squash Club as the No.2 seed, and she started off her week
with a bye through the opening day’s action.
He first match of the competition came in the second round, where she
got the better of compatriot Elise Romba inside 20 minutes, dropping
just eleven points in an 11-3, 11-4, 11-4 victory.
She then also won in straight games against England’s No.5 seed Torrie
Malik, before taking down the unseeded Nour Heikal. The young Egyptian
had already caused a couple of upsets in the early rounds, but Alves
made sure there would not be another, winning in four to book her place
in the final.
The final saw the Frenchwoman taken on No.8 seed Rana Ismail, who had
gotten the better of another Frenchwoman, in Marie Stephan, in the last
four. Alves won the opening game 11-7, but saw the young Egyptian fight
back to take the second on a tie-break. Alves regrouped, though, to win
the third 11-7, before moving through to win the fourth as well to claim
the title.
The win is the joint-biggest of the World No.30’s career, and is her
seventh overall. It is the second Challenger 20 level crown that Alves
has won, following her success at the Nash Cup in 2019.
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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Semi Finals
Alves and Ismail Set For Battle
Rana Ismail celebrates
France’s Melissa Alves and Egypt’s Rana Ismail will do battle in the
final of the Monte Carlo Classic on Friday evening.
Ismail came into the competition as the No.8 seed, and after getting the
better of a struggling Lucy Turmel in the quarter finals, she then
overcame the challenge of No.4 seed Marie Stephan in the last four on
Thursday evening.
The young Egyptian started strongly in their semi-final contest, and
clinched a crucial first game 11-9, before then doubling her lead after
winning the second game 11-6. Stephan fought back to take the third but
her comeback was cut short, as Ismail rattled through a quick-fire
fourth game to secure the victory.
She will now face Frenchwoman Melissa Alves in the final on Friday
evening, after the World No.30 overcame the unseeded Nour Heikal. The
Egyptian had caused a couple of upsets already in the tournament, and
looked strong early on after winning the first game 11-6.
She then had her chances to win the second game as well, but Alves came
through it on a tie-break 14-12, and that set her up for the rest of the
tie. The Frenchwoman, who is the No.2 seed for the event, dropped just
nine points in the match, to win in four and to book her spot in the
final.
The final of the Monte Carlo Classic will take place on Friday, December
2, with France’s Melissa Alves and Egypt’s Rana Ismail doing battle for
the title at the Monaco Squash Club. |
Quarter finals
Unseeded Heikal Gatecrashes Semis
After causing an upset in the second round, Egypt’s Nour Heikal continue
her knockout run, this time downing the No.6 seed, Menna Hamed, to reach
the last four.
Heikal defeated Finnish No.1 Emilia Soini in the second round on Tuesday
evening, and she came up against compatriot Menna Hamed in the quarter
finals. Hamed came into this tournament as the No.6 seed, and having won
the PSA Cognac at the weekend.
However, Heikal was in great form once again. The first game was tight,
with the young Egyptian taking it 11-9, and from there on, she was in
control. She went on to take the match in straight games, to move
through to the last four of the Challenger 20 level competition.
She will now take on Frenchwoman Melissa Alves in the semi-finals, after
the tournament’s No.2 seed downed England’s Torrie Malik. It was the
Englishwoman who won the first game, but Alves fought back to win in
four in 40 minutes to advance.
The other semi-final will see Rana Ismail take on Marie Stephan in
another France-Egypt clash. Ismail took on top seed Lucy Turmel in the
quarter finals, but after the Englishwoman suffered an ankle injury in
practice, she was unable to move at her best. After going 2-1 down in
the contest, Turmel retired to protect her ankle, allowing Ismail to
move through to the last four.
The Egyptian will face Marie Stephan on Thursday in Monte Carlo, after
the Frenchwoman, and No.4 seed, overcame England’s Alicia Mead. After a
tight first game, which Stephan won 11-9, she was able to keep control
of the match, and went on to claim victory in straight games.
The Monte Carlo Classic continues on Thursday, December 1 with the
semi-finals of the Challenger 20 level competition. Both matches will
see French players take on Egyptians for spots in Friday’s finals.
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.
|
Preview
Moller Delighted After First Tour Title
Klara Moller in action in Angers
The first of three tournaments taking place on the Challenger Tour this
week will be the Monte Carlo Classic, which begins on Monday, November
28.
The tournament has a rich history, dating back to it’s first edition in
1996, and it has attracted some of the sport’s biggest names, with
several World No.1s taking home the crown from the principality.
Laura Massaro is a three-time champion, with Cassie Campion, Vanesa
Atkinson, Sarah Fitz-Gerald and Nouran Gohar also having their names on
the trophy. Dutchwoman Natalie Grinham is the tournament’s only
four-time winner, having taken victory in Monte Carlo in 2006, 2007,
2011 and 2012.
This year will see the 25th edition of the competition, and the first
since 2019. It will be a Challenger 20 level tournament, with England’s
Lucy Turmel as the top seed. France’s Melissa Alves and Marie Stephan,
along with Finnish No.1 Emilia Soini will make up the top four seeds.
After taking her first two wins on Tour this month, England’s Torrie
Malik will also be seeded, alongside compatriot Alicia Mead. The
Egyptian duo of Rana Ismail and Menna Hamed, the latter of which is in
the final of the PSA Cognac on Sunday afternoon on the Western side of
France, 1000km away.
Japan’s Akari Midorikawa, Welshwoman Ali Loke, Singaporean No.1 Au Yeong
Wai Yhann, Germany’s Katerina Tycova, Spain’s Sofia Mateos, Austria’s
Jacqueline Peychar and Danish No.1 Klara Moller will all be in the 9/16
seeding bracket for the competition.
We spoke to the Dane ahead of the tournament, who is back to focussing
on her squash once again. She claimed her first Tour title at the Wake
Up Squash Angers International earlier this month, where she defeated
compatriot Caroline Lyng in the final, and Moller says that a lack of
expectation probably helped her in Angers.
“I feel like I’m playing quite well at the moment. I’ve had a few tough
months with squash being my second priority because of university, but
now I’m finally getting into a better rhythm and I can start focusing a
lot more on squash and training again,” the Dane admitted.
“It obviously felt so great winning my first title. Although I was the
top seed for the tournament, I really didn’t expect to come out on top.
Before going to France, I wasn’t enjoying my squash and I had a lot on
my mind. I guess my low expectations made me relax a bit more on and off
court. Not having any expectations made the win feel even better.
“It was very tough playing a fellow Dane [Caroline Lyng] and travel
buddy in the final. It was a first final for both of us and we probably
didn’t play our best squash. It was a bit of a scrappy and nervy match,
so I was very relieved to win in three!”
At just 21-year-old, Moller is still relatively new to the Tour, but she
has already gained plenty of experience, including being in front of the
SQUASHTV cameras at the Odense Open earlier this year.
She is continuing to try to put those experiences into practice with her
game, and with that, she believes that the top 100 in the World Rankings
is certainly within reach for her in the near future.
“One thing I’ve learned is that you get punished right away when playing
a loose shot. I think my game is quite physical but sometimes I just
need to cut it in short instead of playing it to the back again. Why not
spend as little time on court as possible? Another thing is the mindset
– you really need to get that killer instinct going!
“There’s still a long way to go! We are so many girls aiming for top 100
and I personally need to get a few more good results and learn to be
more consistent. I believe I have what it takes and the win in Angers
definitely boosted my confidence!”
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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