Top
seeds New Zealand retained their women’s and mixed titles at the WSF
World Doubles Championships in Manchester with Australia claiming
the men’s.
The women’s final saw top seeds and defending champions Joelle King
& Amanda Landers-Murphy from New Zealand take on England’s Jenny
Duncalf and Alison Waters, the fifth seeds.
The
Kiwis raced ahead taking a 9/5 lead in the first, but six points in
a row for the English duo gave Waters & Duncalf the lead 11/9. The
Kiwis then made an astonishing comeback in the second, taking
control to level, 11/1.
England were then presented with three match points at 10/8 in the
decider but the Kiwis regrouped to save all three. After a series of
tense rallies ending in lets, finally it was the English who hit the
tin enabling New Zealand to retain the gold - 9/11, 11/1, 11/10
(46m).
“That was so tough,” said a delighted and relieved Landers-Murphy.
“We were ahead in all the games, just glad that we could stay strong
and keep it together at the end.”
Duncalf, 34, said: “Losing 11/10 in the third is always quite tough.
We did well to win the first and then the second was a bit of a
disaster. The third was very up and down and they won it right at
the end. They are the defending champions and we knocked out the
Commonwealth gold medallists (Joshna Chinappa and Dipika Pallikal of
India) so we’re very pleased with that.”
Waters and King were then straight back on court for the mixed final
with partners Paul Coll and Daryl Selby. This also went to three
games as the Kiwis held sway in the first, taking the lead 11/8, but
the English pair pulled back a deficit in the second to level
affairs 11/9.
The match was fiercely contested, with spectacular dives from both
Coll and Selby entertaining the crowd, and momentum swinging between
the pairs as the match went on.
But New Zealand ultimately had too much for England in the final
period of the game, opening up an unassailable lead and closing out
the match 11/8, 9/11, 11/6.
“We felt good together again today,” said a delighted Coll. “We
dropped off a bit in the second, but managed to get early leads in
the first and third, which always takes the pressure off.
“We have a great team spirit in the Kiwi camp, it’s been a tough
week to start the season off, but a lot of fun, and we’re obviously
delighted to be going back with more gold medals!”
Selby, 34, said: “We were seeded five so to win a silver medal is a
fantastic achievement, to push the reigning world champions as hard
as we did is really pleasing. Al and Joelle both did really well to
play two matches in a row and we weren’t far away in the end.”
In the men’s final, Australia’s Ryan Cuskelly & Cameron Pilley put
on a clinical display against the defending champions Alan Clyne &
Greg Lobban of Scotland pulling away at the end of the first game to
lead 11/6, then dominating the second as they moved to 10/2.
The Scots saved one match ball, but in the next rally Pilley,
renowned as the hardest hitter in squash, was presented with three
opportunities in a row to slam a mid-court ball into the nick – and
on the third attempt, the ball rolled giving the Aussies the gold.
“We’ve had a lot of tough matches with them,” said Pilley. “They
beat us last year so it was good to turn the tables this time. There
were some brutal rallies in the first, but we stuck to our game plan
and it worked out, then in the second we continued to execute and
they made a few errors which helped our cause.”
Fifth
seeds England produced the biggest upset on semi-finals day of the
WSF World Doubles Championships when they beat second seeds India to
claim a place in the women’s final.
Duncalf & Waters trailed the 2014 Commonwealth gold medallists
Chinappa and Pallikal 1-0 after a slow start. The English pair were
stronger in the second, dominating the rallies with more winners,
and won the game 11/6.
A perfectly-weighted backhand drop shot from Duncalf brought up 10/6
match ball in the third. The Indians pulled two points back before
Duncalf and Waters won on a “No let” decision, 6/11, 11/6, 11/8.
“I was really under the cosh in the first,” admitted Duncalf.
“They’re obviously very experienced at this, and the pace and power
of their shots was catching us out. But we changed tactics in the
second and managed to work it out.
“Ali and I are best friends and we always thought we’d play well
together. She was injured for Glasgow so hopefully we can stay
together for one more shot at the Commonwealth’s next year. For now
though, we’re just really chuffed to be in the final.”
England will go on to meet top seeds and defending champions King &
Landers-Murphy of New Zealand who received a bye following Urquhart
of Australia’s retirement from the women’s semi-finals.
England will also go on to face New Zealand in the mixed doubles
following Selby & Waters nail-biting victory over Wales’ Creed &
Evans.
The English duo saved game ball to take the lead 11/10, the Welsh
coming from 2/8 down in the second, saving two match balls to
equalise 11/10.
Selby & Waters moved ahead 10/5 in the decider, and although the
Welsh managed to save three match balls, the English took their
place in the final 11/8.
“It was a tough battle, we thought we’d won it in the second at 8/2
but they fought back so well,” said Selby. “They’re very gritty and
tough competitors with lots of skill and good movement, so we just
had to try to keep it steady.
“It was probably my least effective mixed match so far, but Ali did
really well, considering she’d just had an hour’s women’s match!”
“It feels great to be in two finals after two tough matches,” said
Waters. “I’ll be playing the Kiwis in both so it’s the same for
them, really looking forward to it.”
The last time England entered the competition in 1997, they won one
gold and two silver medals.
Meanwhile, Australia denied England a hat-trick of finalists after
Pilley and Cuskelly overpowered James and Willstrop 11/3, 11/7
(37m).
The Australians opened up a big lead in the first, taking it 11/3,
and although the English kept in touch until 7/7 in the second, the
Aussies finished it off 11/7.
“We got off to a good start and kept our concentration to finish it
off,” said Cuskelly. “We lost a bit of focus in the second, but from
7/7 we tightened up again and finished it off well.
“That’s our best performance in the tournament so far, it seems
we’re getting better round by round, just how we like it!”
In the final they’ll meet top seeds and defending champions Clyne &
Lobban, the Scottish pair who beat Kiwis Coll and Cambell Grayson
2-1 in the longest match of the tournament so far.
The Scots took the first 11/7 and led 7/1 in the second before a
Kiwi comeback levelled the match 11/8. The Scottish pair led 7/1 in
the third too but the Kiwis couldn’t quite close the gap, losing out
11/8 after 82 minutes.
“We always knew it would be a long tough match against them,” said
Lobban. “Keeping it tight and not making mistakes, that’s their
strength. But we knew that if we stuck to our game plan and played
well we could win.
“We maybe saw the finishing line a bit early in the second and
stopped attacking, which you just can’t do in doubles, but we
managed to get back on track in the third. Great to keep the title
defence going.”
Men’s
top seeds and defending champions Clyne & Lobban of Scotland
continued their stellar run on day three of the WSF World Doubles
Championships, dispatching Welsh duo [7] Creed & Makin in straight
games, 11/4, 11/7 (37m) to advance to tomorrow’s semi-finals.
"We played good doubles in the first game, moving them around and
controlling things," said Clyne. "The second was a bit messy, but we
worked well together to get through. It's good to get another
two-nil win under our belts."
Clyne & Lobban will meet Kiwi pair Coll & Grayson, the fourth seeds
who ended the run of England's [6] Selby & Richards in two tough
games, 11/7, 11/7 (47m).
Meanwhile, second seeds Pilley & Cuskelly of Australia made quick
work of unseeded Dutchmen Bennett & Schweertman - 11/7, 11/1 in just
20 minutes.
"It was a bit of an unknown quantity playing the Dutch dark horses,"
said Pilley. "We needed to stay sharp and try to control things and
that's what we did."
English duo [5] James & Willstrop got the better of Aussies [3]
Palmer & Alexander in an entertaining 77-minute thriller, the
longest of the tournament so far - 11/10, 6/11, 11/9 (77m).
“My partner played brilliantly tonight,” Willstrop, 33, said. “He
had to put up with a lot of striking down the backhand side and you
don’t get the rewards straight away in doubles and you have to have
the mental strength to keep going and know that the momentum can
swing in your favour in the match.
“I had complete confidence in Dec tonight, it was coming on to his
forehand a lot and he handled it.”
Meanwhile, in the women’s draw, defending champions and top seeds
King & Landers-Murphy of New Zealand despatched Welsh duo [7] Evans
& Saffery in straight games, 11/9, 11/8 (38m). They’ll meet familiar
foes in Australia’s [3] Grinham & Urquhart who got the better of
three close games against England’s Massaro & Perry, just falling
short of a comeback as they lost the first 10/11, then coming from
2-6 down to take the decider 11/9.
"It was all Rachael today," said Urquhart. "It was her type of
crosscourt game and she played really well to get us back into it in
the third."
England’s [5] Duncalf & Waters advanced to the last four of the
women’s draw after their Malaysian opponents, [6] Arnold & David,
withdrew with injury.
“It's never the way you want to win," said Duncalf, "but we're
delighted to be in the semis."
They’ll meet second seeds Pallikal & Chinappa of India who survived
a close three-game tussle with Canadians [8] Cornett & Todd winning
10/11, 11/6, 11/8 (44m).
"They played well and surprised us," admitted Pallikal. "We're just
glad to get through that one and be in the semis."
The semi-finalists in the mixed doubles will be decided tomorrow
morning from 11am.
Defending champions and top seeds Clyne & Lobban of Scotland wasted
no time in wrapping up Pool A in the men’s draw on day two of the
WSF World Doubles, dismissing unseeded Dutchmen Bennett &
Schweertman in just 16 minutes, 11/2, 11/5. With two wins under
their belts, both pairings advance through to tomorrow’s
quarter-finals.
Bennett commented, “They (Clyne & Lobban) play the angles very well
without giving you anything to work with. They’re the world
champions after all. We didn’t expect to be in this position but
we’re delighted to get through and we’ll give it our all in the
quarters.”
Meanwhile, Australian second seeds Pilley & Cuskelly wrapped up Pool
B with a third win dispatching unseeded South African’s Brits &
Potgieter 11/3, 11/10 (23m). Meanwhile, in Pool C, third seeds
Palmer & Alexander also made it three out of three beating
Malaysians Kamal & Ng 11/10,11/8 (32m).
The men’s quarters will be finalised after the final matches on
Thursday morning.
In the women’s draw, top seeds, New Zealand’s King & Landers-Murphy
of Pool A and India’s Chinappa & Pallikal of Pool B stormed their
way into the quarter-finals yesterday with two wins apiece, but all
the remaining places depended on deciding matches today.
Canadian pair [8] Cornett & Todd won their Pool A decider downing
[9] Grinham & vd Heijden (Ned) 11/8, 11/5 (19m). Meanwhile, Welsh
pairing [7] Evans & Saffery came from a game down to grab second
spot in Pool B dispatching Columbians [10] Pelaez & Tovar 7/11,
11/6, 11/2 (40m).
Pool C went to the wire, ending in a three-way tie as Aussies [11]
Cardwell & Nunn edged out Malaysia’s [6] Arnold & David in a third
game tiebreak 11/9, 6/11, 11/10 (40m), but missed out on a
quarter-final place on games countback. Third seeds Grinham &
Urquhart of Australia ended up pool winners with the Malaysians
Arnold & David in second.
There was double delight for England in Pool D as [5] Duncalf &
Waters and [4] Massaro & Perry topped the table respectively.
Duncalf & Walters convincingly dispatched Aitken & Hallam of
Scotland, 11/4, 11/1 (18m) in their final match and now face the
runners-up of Pool C on Thursday.
Waters, 34, said: “It was a solid win but it got a bit scrappy at
the end with quite a few lets but we didn’t let that affect us. It’s
good to win all three games and qualify comfortably.”
In the mixed draw, defending champions [1] Coll & King of New
Zealand found themselves in a real battle in Pool A as Scottish pair
[9] Kempsell & Aitken took the first game and held a slender
advantage throughout the decider. At 10-8 there were several lets as
the women concentrated on playing crosscourt to each other, but
immediately after saving the first match ball, King served out to
hand the match and a big upset to the Scots, 11/7, 5/11, 11/9 (48m).
Both pairs went on to record a second win later in the day, with the
Scots producing another upset as they beat England’s [8] Waller &
Lust in three 9/11, 11/6, 11/4 (64m), to book a quarter-final spot.
Lust, 28, was upbeat despite the defeat. She said: “I felt like we
played quite well today. They (Aitken and Kempsell) beat the No.1
seeds this morning so they’re obviously a good pair and they
practice a lot together. I don’t think we did a lot wrong so I’m
feeling pretty positive ahead of tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, England’s [5] Waters & Selby beat Grinham & Schweertman
of the Netherlands, 11/4, 11/9 (20m) before seeing off Canada’s
Nikole Todd & David Baillargeon 11/6, 11/3 (17m) to win Pool D. They
face the runner-up of Pool C in the quarter-final on Friday.
The fancied seeds advanced in the other groups, India’s Ghosal &
Pallikal and Malhotra & Chinappa, and Australians Palmer & Grinham
and Pilley & Urquhart all recording two wins to advance to the last
eight.
There's still plenty to play for in the mixed, with matches in all
pools tomorrow morning.
Day 2 Results
Men A [1] Clyne / Lobban (Sco) 2-0 Bennett / Schweertman (Ned) 11/2,
11/5 (16m)
Men A [8] Adnan / Yuen (Mas) 2-1 [9] Malhotra / Mangaonkar (Ind)
11/8, 10/11, 11/8 (69m)
Men B [2] Cuskelly / Pilley (Aus) 2-0 Brits / Potgieter (Rsa) 11/3,
11/0 (23m)
Men B [7] Creed / Makin (Wal) 2-0 [10] Beddoes / Williams (Nzl)
11/7, 11/8 (34m)
Men C [3] Alexander / Palmer (Aus) 2-0 Kamal / Ng (Mas) 11/10, 11/8
(32m)
Men D [12] Kempsell / Moran (Sco) 2-1 Baillargeon / Delierre (Can)
11/6, 6/11, 11/7 (65m)
Men D [4] Coll / Grayson (Nzl) 2-0 [5] Willstrop / James (Eng) 11/9,
11/6 (44m)
Women A [8] Cornett / Todd (Can) 2-0 [9] Grinham / vd Heijden (Ned)
11/8, 11/5 (19m)
Women B [7] Evans / Saffery (Wal) 2-1 [10] Pelaez / Tovar (Col)
7/11, 11/6, 11/2 (40m)
Women C [11] Cardwell / Nunn (Aus) 2-1 [6] Arnold / David (Mas)
11/9, 6/11, 11/10 (40m)
Women D [4] Massaro / Perry (Eng) 2-0 Fuller / Tucker (Rsa)
11/5,11/4 (17m)
Women D [5] Duncalf / Waters (Eng) 2-0 [12] Aitken / Hallam (Sco)
11/4, 11/1 (18m)
Mixed A [8] Waller /Lust (Eng) 2-1 Makin / Saffery (Wal) 11/8, 9/11,
11/9 (44m)
Mixed A [9] Kempsell / Aitken (Sco) 2-1 [1] Coll / King (Nzl) 11/7,
5/11, 11/9 (48m)
Mixed A [9] Kempsell / Aitken (Sco) 2-1 [8] Adrian Waller / Lust
(Eng) 9/11, 11/6, 11/4 (64m)
Mixed A [1] Coll / King (Nzl) 2-0 Potgieter / Louw (Rsa) 11/6, 11/7
(19m)
Mixed B [7] Creed / Evans (Wal) 2-0 [10] Delierre / Cornett (Can)
11/9, 11/4 (26m)
Mixed B [2] Ghosal / Pallikal (Ind) 2-0 Kamal / Arnold (Mas) 11/7,
11/4 (20m)
Mixed B [7] Creed / Evans (Wal) 2-0 Kamal / Arnold (Mas) 11/8, 11/4
(30m)
Mixed B [2] Ghosal / Pallikal (Ind) 2-0 Bennett / vd Heijden (Ned)
11/4, 11/4 (16m)
Malaysia’s Rachel Arnold and Nicol David defeated third seeds
Rachael Grinham and Donna Urquhart 2-1 in the biggest upset on the
opening day of the 2017 WSF World Doubles Squash Championships in
Manchester.
Eight-time world champion David and Arnold ran out eventual winners
with an 11/10, 9/11, 11/8 scoreline against Urquhart and Grinham –
winner of two gold medals in doubles competition at the 2014
Commonwealth Games.
Sixth seeds Jenny Duncalf and Alison Waters came from 1-0 down to
beat Laura Massaro and Sarah-Jane Perry [5] in an intriguing English
battle. Having trailed 9/7 in the second, the lower seeds fought
back to claim the victory 7/11, 11/10, 11/6.
Top seeded Alan Clyne and Greg Lobban (Scotland) won their first two
matches to take them through to the quarter-final stage in the men’s
draw, while Joelle King and Amanda Landers-Murphy [1] (New Zealand)
also won their opener against Natalie Grinham and Milou van der
Heijden (Netherlands).
Men’s top seeds Alan Clyne and Greg Lobban opened up with two solid
wins, as did Dutchmen Dylan Bennett and Piedro Schweertman with two
seeding upsets that put them in with a great chance of making the
quarters.
New Zealand’s Joelle King and Paul Coll, top seeds in the mixed
draw, begin their tournaments tomorrow against Scotland’s Douglass
Kempsell and Lisa Aitken.
Reigning champions New Zealand and Scotland are expected to retain
their gold medals in next month's WSF World Doubles Squash
Championships, according to the seedings announced today by the
World Squash Federation. The 2017 championships, hosted by England
Squash in conjunction with Scottish Squash, will take place at the
National Squash Centre in Manchester, England, between 1-5 August.
The 5th World Doubles Championships, featuring Men's, Women's and
Mixed events, will be contested by a record 50 pairings from
Australia, Canada, Colombia, England, India, Malaysia, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Norway, Scotland, South Africa and Wales.
Scots Alan Clyne and Greg Lobban, winners of the Men's gold medal in
the 2016 championship (pictured, centre, on podium) in Darwin,
Australia, are top seeds in Manchester - where they are expected to
face second-seeded Australians Ryan Cuskelly and Cameron Pilley in
the final.
Kiwi Joelle King is bidding to become a double gold medallist for
the second year in a row after guiding New Zealand to title success
in both the Women's and Mixed events in Darwin.
Paired with Amanda Landers-Murphy again in the 2017 women's
championship, King is predicted to line up against Joshna Chinappa
and Dipika Pallikal, the No.2 seeds from India, in a repeat of the
2016 final.
King and Paul Coll are the Mixed favourites, while the second seeds
are also the same Indian pairing of Dipika Pallikal and Saurav
Ghosal whom they beat in the 2016 climax.
The full Pool line-ups (including seedings) are as follows:
MEN, Pool A:
[1] Alan Clyne & Greg Lobban (SCO), [8] Nafiizwan Adnan & Ivan Yuen
(MAS), [9] Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu & Mahesh Mangaonkar (IND);
[13/16] Dylan Bennett & Piedro Schweertman (NED)
Pool B:
[2] Ryan Cuskelly & Cameron Pilley (AUS); [7] Peter Creed & Joel
Makin (WAL), [10] Evan Williams & Lance Beddoes (NZL); [13/16]
Christo Potgieter & Jean-Pierre Brits (RSA)
Pool C:
[3] Zac Alexander & David Palmer (AUS); [6] Tom Richards & Daryl
Selby (ENG); [11] Andrés Herrera & Juan Camilo Vargas (COL); [13/16]
Mohd Syafiq Kamal & Eain Yow Ng (MAS) Pool D:
[4] Paul Coll & Campbell Grayson (NZL); [5] Declan James & James
Willstrop (ENG); [12] Douglas Kempsell & Kevin Moran (SCO); [13/16]
David Baillargeon & Shawn Delierre (CAN); [17] Richard Larsson &
Martin Andresen (NOR)
WOMEN, Pool A:
[1] Joelle King & Amanda Landers-Murphy (NZL); [8] Samantha Cornett
& Nikki Todd (CAN); [9] Natalie Grinham & Milou van der Heijden
(NED)
Pool B: [2] Joshna Chinappa & Dipika Pallikal (IND); [7] Tesni Evans &
Deon Saffery (WAL); [10] Catalina Pelaez & Laura Tovar (COL)
Pool C: [3] Rachael Grinham & Donna Urquhart (AUS); [6] Rachel Arnold &
Nicol David (MAS); [11] Sarah Cardwell & Tamika Saxby (AUS)
Pool D: [4] Laura Massaro & Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG); [5] Jenny Duncalf &
Alison Waters (ENG); [12] Lisa Aitken & Carrie Hallam (SCO); [13]
Cheyna Tucker & Alexandra Fuller (RSA)
MIXED, Pool A: [1] Joelle King & Paul Coll (NZL); [8] Victoria Lust & Adrian
Waller (ENG); [9] Deon Saffery & Joel Makin (WAL); [13/16] Lisa
Aitken & Harry Leitch (SCO); [17/20] Milnay Louw & Christo Potgieter
(RSA)
Pool B: [2] Dipika Pallikal & Saurav Ghosal (IND); [7] Tesni Evans &
Peter Creed (WAL); [10] Samantha Cornett & Shawn Delierre (CAN);
[13/16] Rachel Arnold & Mohd Syafiq Kamal (MAS); [17/20] Milou van
der Heijden & Dylan Bennett (NED)
