World No.18 Emily Whitlock put in a hugely impressive performance in
the final of the Winnipeg Winter Club Women’s Open, PSA W15
tournament to defeat Nicolette Fernandes and capture her first PSA
World Tour title of 2016.
After receiving a bye in the opening round, Whitlock managed a
succession of mature displays to defeat both Nikki Todd and
compatriot Fiona Moverley for the loss of just a solitary game to
advance to the showpiece final. Fernandes, who was appearing in her
second consecutive PSA World Tour final after losing out to Victoria
Lust in the Slaight Music and Roundtable Capital Granite Open, went
one better and dispatched all three of her opponents en-route to the
final in straight games.
The opening rally of the match, a 50-shot epic, set the stall for
the rest of the encounter with both players engaging in some
high-quality, exciting squash throughout the fixture.
Whitlock rose to an early lead in game one and fended off a late
charge from Fernandes to go a game ahead before doubling her lead
after she came out on top of some gruelling second game rallies.
Whitlock’s consistency and lack of errors ultimately gave her the
edge in a frenetic, high-octane contest and she eventually took the
win by an 11-8, 11-7, 11-4 margin of victory to lift her first piece
of silverware so far this season.
