Top seed Angus Gillams overturned a one-game deficit to defeat
number two seed Carlos Cornes Ribadas in the final of the PSA Angers
tournament and capture his third PSA World Tour title of the year.
Gillams and Cornes were both in fine fettle in the build up to the
PSA M5 event, with triumphs at the JBM Patrol Spring Classic and the
Seapiax Open Lorient, respectively, in recent months.
Neither player had an easy run to the final though, with Gillams
battling past the likes of Dani Pascual, Auguste Dussourd and
Vincent Droesbeke to reach the showpiece finale, while Cornes
followed up early wins over Roee Avraham and Yann Perrin with a
gladiatorial 3-2 victory over French qualifier Fabien Verseille in
the last four.
In the final, Gillams went a game down after a fast start from World
No.91 Cornes, who was aiming to win the second PSA World Tour title
of his career following his triumph in Lorient a month previously.
However, Gillams prevailed 12-10 in a crucial second-game tie-break,
and that victory proved to be the catalyst for his revival as the
World No.87 came storming back to record the win by three games to
one - claiming his fourth PSA World Tour crown in the process.
Top seed Angus Gillams remains on course to lift a fourth PSA World
Tour title following an impressive display against Frenchman Auguste Dussourd in the quarter-final of the PSA Angers tournament.
Gillams was in fine fettle and surged into a two-game lead, before
an improvement from Dussourd in the third saw the World No.159 halve
the deficit.
It didn’t take long for Gillams to get back on top though, and the
20-year-old wrapped up a victory in game four to advance to the
semi-final stage of the PSA M5 tournament.
Gillams will meet home qualifier Vincent Droesbeke for a place in
the final, with the Frenchman scalping compatriot Baptiste Masotti
to progress.
“It was a good match,” said Gillams.
“I didn’t start too well in the first, but I made it hard, and then
towards the end of the first game he got a bit worse and hit a few
tins so I won it. In the second, I made it hard from the start and
won it 11-4. I lost concentration and he went 6-0 up, but in the
fourth I managed to come through it, and I’m happy with the 3-1 win.
“My biggest strength is my physicality and my fitness, so I always
try to bring that in to every match. If I can control the rallies
and keep the balls tight, there’s not much that my opponents can do,
so they have to play long rallies. The longer the rally goes on, the
better it is for me, so that’s the way I like to play.
“I’ve never seen him [Droesbeke] play before this tournament, so
he’s a bit of an unknown quantity. It should be good and I’ll enjoy
it definitely.”
Spain’s Carlos Cornes Ribadas will clash with local player Fabien
Verseille in the next round, with Cornes dispatching Yann Perrin,
while Verseille received a walkover against Robert Downer after the
Englishman was forced to pull out.
World No.126 Baptiste Masotti is the highest-ranked Frenchman left
in the PSA Angers tournament after he sealed his place in the
quarter-final stage of the PSA M5 event courtesy of a superb
come-from-behind victory against England’s Robert Dadds.
Masotti looked like he was heading to an ignominious exit on home
soil after going two games behind against an opponent ranked 98
places below him in the World Rankings. However, Masotti showed his
class by narrowly edging a crucial third game, and that victory
proved to the catalyst for his win as he followed that up with two
more triumphs in games four and five to prevail 8-11, 2-11, 11-9,
11-4, 11-6.
He will face fellow Frenchman Vincent Droesbeke for a place in the
semi-final after his first round opponent, Christophe Andre, bowed
out in the fourth game of their clash due to injury.
Home qualifier Fabien Verseille also overturned a two-game deficit
to advance as he defeated compatriot Benjamin Aubert. Verseille was
due to play number three seed Robert Downer in the last eight after
the Englishman beat 16-year-old Victor Crouin, but Downer has had to
pull out of the tournament, meaning that Verseille receives a
walkover through to the semi-final.
Seventh seed Auguste Dussourd is another Frenchman to reach the
quarter-final after he came back from 2-1 down to eliminate
countryman Enzo Coriglio. Top seed Angus Gillams is likely to
represent a stern test for Dussourd in the next round after he axed
Dani Pascual in four.
“It was a good match, a tough 3-1 win,” said Gillams.
“The first two games, I thought I played really well, and then I
lost a bit of concentration in the third. In the fourth, I got it
back together to win 11-1. It was good overall.
“It’s a really good atmosphere at the club to be honest, the crowd
really get into it and let their feelings know. I love the pressure
[of being top seed], it’s what I thrive on. It’s a good pressure, it
makes me play my best squash, I think.”
Local player Yann Perrin will join his French compatriots in the
last eight after easing past Finland’s Jaakko Vähäma and he will
play Carlos Cornes Ribadas, whose last appearance in France saw him
lift a maiden PSA World Tour title at the Seapiax Open Lorient.
French number one qualifying seed Victor Crouin led three more of
his countrymen into the main draw of the PSA Angers tournament
courtesy of a 3-1 victory over England’s James Peach in the final
round of qualifying at the PSA M5 event.
Peach took an early lead after a confident start, but Crouin, backed
on by his home crowd, triumphed in a second-game tie-break to level
proceedings at the Squash du Lac de Maine.
With the bit between his teeth, Crouin powered to victory in the
third, before overcoming his opponent again on a tie-break in the
fourth to claim a 4-11, 16-14, 11-6, 14-12 win that sends the
16-year-old into the main draw, where he will face Peach’s
compatriot, Robert Downer.
Vincent Droesbeke, the World No.328, is another of the French
contingent to advance to the main draw after he slalomed past Joeri
Hapers in a surprise win. Droesbeke played some of his best squash
throughout the encounter and bridged an 82-place World Rankings gap
to claim the win in straight games. He will go up against fellow
Frenchman Christophe Andre in round one of the main draw, with Andre
likely to represent stern competition after winning four of his last
six PSA World Tour events.
Local players Fabien Verseille and Yann Perrin have also progressed
to the main draw after both receiving good fortune on home soil.
Verseille received a walkover against Aitor Zunzunegui, while
Perrin’s match with Englishman Sam Ellis was cut short after an
injury to the latter. They will do battle with Benjamin Aubert and
Jaakko Vähämaa, respectively.
