Qualifier
Malhotra Stuns Gaskin to Take Florida Open Title
Giant-killing Indian qualifier Vikram Malhotra secured his
maiden PSA World Tour title in stunning fashion after rising to
claim a shock victory against number three seed Arthur Gaskin in
the final of the Betty Griffin Memorial Florida Open, PSA M10
event.
Malhotra stunned top seed Farhan Zaman in the previous round to
book his place in the final while Gaskin eased by Cameron
Stafford in a straightforward semi-final triumph.
However, Malhotra showed no early signs of fatigue as he roared
into action, hitting a number of perfect winners to take a
one-game lead.
Gaskin posed more of a challenge in the second, pushing Malhotra
into all four corners of the court with regularity but he was
still powerless to stop a superb display from Malhotra allowing
the World No.277 to double his advantage.
Malhotra, appearing in only his third ever PSA World Tour main
draw, romped to victory in the third and final game to complete
an 11-6, 11-8, 11-7 win.
“I’ve had a great week and I want to thank everyone for
supporting me throughout the qualifying and main draw matches
which has kept me focused,” said Malhotra.
“I’m looking forward to coming back next year and defending my
title.”
Stafford Stuns Kumar In Florida
#PSAWorldTour
The first round of the Betty Griffin Memorial Florida Open, PSA
M10 event saw a few unexpected results take place with qualifier
Cameron Stafford taking out second seed Kush Kumar in the pick
of the bunch.
Games one and two saw a veritable feast of winners from Cayman
Islands-born Stafford and, despite dropping the third, he ground
out the victory in the latter stages to hold out for a superb
11-6, 13-11, 3-11, 14-12 triumph.
Stafford moves on to face Josue Enriquez in the last eight after
he dispatched Reuben Phillips in a five-game battle.
Also falling to a qualifier was fourth seed Shahjahan Khan, who
lost in straight games to Vikram Malhotra with the Indian
progressing to face wildcard Joe Green who stunned the
experienced Mike Lewis to advance.
There were also routine wins for top seed Farhan Zaman, over
Juan Gomez Dominguez, and Angus Gillams, who beat Mohamed Nabil,
and the pair will face off against each other in the next round.
Meanwhile, Arthur Gaskin and Christopher Binnie will meet in the
quarter-final after respective victories against Amaad Fareed
and and Mauricio Sedano.
Malhotra Moves Past Khan To Reach Florida Open
Main Draw
#PSAWorldTour
Indian number six seed Vikram Malhotra overcame home player
Faraz Khan in the final qualifying round of the Betty Griffin
Memorial Florida Open, PSA M10 tournament to reach only the
third PSA World Tour main draw of his career.
The 26-year-old dominated the early stages, rising into a
two-game lead before being pegged back in the third. Malhotra
redoubled his efforts though and surged to a commanding victory
in the fourth and final game to wrap up an 11-4, 11-6, 7-11,
11-4 triumph.
He will go up against Shahjahan Khan in the opening round of the
main draw with the hope of making it to a second PSA World Tour
quarter-final.
Mexico’s Juan Gomez Dominguez was also in action and he emerged
from a nail-biting encounter with Scotland’s Jon Geekie to seal
his main draw berth. After a back-and-forth match that saw both
players trade blows throughout, Dominguez eventually prevailed
in five and he will face number one seed Farhan Zaman up next.
Mohamed Nabil meanwhile swept past Italo Bonatti to set up a
first round fixture with England’s Angus Gillams while Mauricio
Sedano and Supreet Singh went head-to-head in the other fixture
of the day.
It was Sedano who emerged victorious to go through to the main
draw where he will face Christopher Binnie for a place in the
last eight.
Frenetic
Fixtures Coming Up In Florida
#PSAWorldTour
The main draw of the Betty Griffin Memorial Florida Open, PSA
M10 event begins on Thursday December 3 with ten nations
represented in a draw that showcases the global appeal of the
sport.
Pakistan’s Farhan Khan is the favourite to take the title and
picked up his last PSA World Tour crown two months ago at the
Any Presence Open.
The World No.64 followed that up with a runner-up finish at the
Life Time Fitness Chicago Open later on in the month but failed
to make it past round one at the Men’s PSA World Championship on
his last PSA World Tour appearance.
The number one seed kicks off his tournament against Juan Gomez
Dominguez in the opening round, a match that he is a heavy
favourite for given that Dominguez has made it beyond the first
round just once before.
Indian teenager Kush Kumar is also battling for the title and
appears at his last PSA World Tour event of 2015, a year that
has seen him claim his maiden PSA World Tour crown at the City
of Devonport Tasmanian Open in addition to breaking into the
world’s top 100 players.
Kumar will be looking to wrap up the year in style and gets his
event under way against Cameron Stafford.
Number three seed Arthur Gaskin is looking to put his
disappointment at last month’s Cleveland Skating Club Open
behind him where he narrowly missed out on capturing a third PSA
World Tour title to Andrew Wagih Shoukry.
The Irishman faces off with Amaad Fareed in round one as the
pair do battle for a place in the quarter-final stage.
Shahjahan Khan meanwhile is a dark horse for the title and is
looking to improve on his last eight finish here last year.
Khan, who won the Colony Ford Lincoln NSA Open against Gaskin in
August, will play Indian qualifier Vikram Malhotra when the main
draw gets under way.
