RESULTS: Women's Boar's Head Sports Club Open,
Charlottesville, Virginia, USA
Whitlock Wins WSA Tour Title No10
England's 20-year-old Emily Whitlock became one of the
youngest players to notch up a 10th title on the WSA World Tour
when she beat local hope Sabrina Sobhy in the final of the
Women's Boar's Head Sports Club Open in the USA.
The world No28 from Colwyn Bay in Wales (pictured above, right,
with Sobhy) reached the final of the WSA Tour 10 squash
event at Boar's Head Sports Club in Charlottesville,
Virginia - the 15th of her career - after stopping Egypt's unseeded
Menna Nasser in the semi-finals.
It
was a breakthrough all-American clash in the other semi, between the
country's third-ranked Olivia Blatchford and fourth-ranked
Sobhy - in which 17-year-old Sobhy clinched her maiden Tour win over
her 21-year-old rival, upsetting the No2 seed in four games.
"Both payers started nervously going point for point through to
six-all, with the majority of the rallies finishing on errors," said
the club's Director of Squash Mark Allen of the final.
"Whitlock settled the better towards the end and closed the first
game out well.
"In the second and third Whitlock was dominant, playing a game of
good width and length that was containing Sobhy who was clearly
feeling the effects of a tougher path to the final. There were
flashes of the usual brilliance off the racket from Sobhy, but only
to snatch a point here and there as Whitlock was in firm control of
the centre of the court.
"In the end, a comfortable win for Whitlock, who always looked
likely to be the tournament winner from the very outset ," concluded
Allen.
The 11-7, 11-5, 11-3 victory is the latest success in double
European Junior Champion Whitlock's fledgling senior career - her
second successive Tour title in the USA and the tenth overall in
just 33 months!
"I'm happy to win here in Charlottesville, the facilities are
fantastic," said Whitlock afterwards. "I didn't actually feel like I
played well on Saturday but I'm pleased to have played well against
Sabrina.
"She's a tough opponent and although playing on glass court was
tricky, I'm happy to have made improvements during the weekend."
