Phil Smart Seattle Open, Seattle, USA
Draw and results from WISPA
Final:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt
[2] Carol Owens (NZL) 9-7, 9-7, 9-1
|
Fitz-Gerald's record quest
stays on track |
Fabulous Fitz-Gerald Reaches
Record In Seattle
Sarah Fitz-Gerald, the world No1 and four-times world
champion from Australia, beat New Zealand's world No2 Carol Owens in
an epic final at the Athletic Club Downtown in Seattle, USA, to equal
compatriot Michelle Martin's record of 57 WISPA World Tour titles.
Both players had reached the final without conceding a game - and both
were clearly determined to pull out all the stops in their 30th Tour
meeting since their first in Hong Kong in May 1993. Fitz-Gerald took a
strong lead in the opening game but Owens fought back, using the boast
and moving the ball around, before Sarah responded with beautiful
boasts herself to win 9-7.
"I was 8-3 up in the second game when we played this incredibly long
rally," recalled Fitz-Gerald afterwards. "Carol was all over the
place, then she hit this shot which I completely misread to win the
point - and suddenly she was back to within a point of me, before I
won the game on a tight drive."
Fitz-Gerald maintained the upper hand in the third game, only losing
service three times, and ultimately claimed her place in the record
books with a 9-7 9-7 9-1 victory. The win, in her 87th WISPA final,
stretched Fitz-Gerald's unbeaten run to 47 matches since September
last year.
"I feel the pressure's lifted a little now, and it gives me a great
chance to break Michelle's record back home at the end of the month
when I defend my Australian Open title in Adelaide," said the Seattle
champion after her fourth win in a row in the USA.
"What also pleases me about this win is that it rectifies my recent
performance in Qatar, where I didn't play at all well despite winning
the World Grand Prix Finals there," Sarah added.
Semi-finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [3] Cassie Campion (ENG)
9-3, 10-8, 9-1
[2] Carol Owens (NZL) bt [4] Linda Charman-Smith (ENG)
9-2, 9-0, 9-4
Quarter-Finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [Q] Natalie Grinham (AUS)
9-6, 9-3, 9-3
[3] Cassie Campion (ENG) bt Rebecca Macree (ENG) 9-1,
9-3, 9-1
[4] Linda Charman-Smith (ENG) bt [Q] Tania Bailey (ENG)
5-9, 9-5, 9-1, 9-1
[2] Carol Owens (NZL) bt Vanessa Atkinson (NED) 9-1,
9-5, 9-2
1st round:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt Suzanne Horner (ENG) 9-3, 9-0, 9-0
[Q] Natalie Grinham (AUS) bt [8] Natalie Pohrer (ENG) 10-8, 9-3,
3-9, 6-9, 9-5
[3] Cassie Campion (ENG) bt Shabana Khan (USA) 9-3, 9-0, 9-2
Rebecca Macree (ENG) bt [6] Fiona Geaves (ENG) 9-5, 9-0, 9-1
[Q] Tania Bailey (ENG) bt [7] Rachael Grinham (AUS) 9-3, 9-5, 1-9, 9-3
[4] Linda Charman-Smith (ENG) bt [Q] Nicol David (MAS) 9-6, 9-0, 9-0
Vanessa Atkinson (NED) bt [5] Stephanie Brind (ENG) 5-9, 9-6, 9-3,
7-9, 10-8
[2] Carol Owens (NZL) bt [Q] Pamela Nimmo (SCO) 9-2, 9-2,
9-3
Qualifying Finals:
Pamela Nimmo bt Engy Kheirallah 9/1 9/7 9/3
Tania Bailey bt Annelize Naude 9/1 9/4 9/2
Natalie Grinham bt Ellen Petersen 9/0 9/3 9/4
Nicol David bt Vicky Botwright 6/9 10/8 10/8 2/9 9/6
Qualification Round 1:
Natalie Grinham (Aus) bt Dana Betts (Usa) 9/0 9/2 9/1
Ellen Petersen (Den) bt Karen Morrissey (Aus) 9/1 9/4 10/8
Nicol David (Mas) bt Rebecca Chiu (Hkg) 2/9 9/6 9/10 9/5 9/4
Vicky Botwright (Eng) bt Latasha Khan (Usa) 9/3 5/9 9/3 9/0
Pamela Nimmo (Sco) bt Christina Mak (Hkg) 9/2 9/3 9/0
Engy Kheirallah (Egy) bt
Maha Zein (Egy) 5/9 9/7 3/9 9/6 10/9
Annelize Naude (Rsa) bt Madeline Perry (Irl) 9/5 9/6 9/5
Tania Bailey (Eng) bt Naluge Guy (Png) 9/1 9/0 9/0
Bright Lights Las Vegas Open, Las Vegas, USA
Final:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [3] Vanessa Atkinson (NED) 9-4,
9-2, 9-0
Fitz-Gerald
Hits Jackpot In Las Vegas
The indomitable Sarah Fitz-Gerald, the world No1 and
four-times world champion from Australia, claimed a hat-trick of US
titles in two weeks when she crushed Dutch No1 Vanessa Atkinson 9-4
9-2 9-0 in the final to extend her unbeaten run on the WISPA World
Tour to 43 matches since September last year.
The victory takes the 33-year-old from Melbourne to her tenth
successive WISPA title - and just one win away from equalling the
57-title record of her great rival and compatriot Michelle Martin.
"Beating Vanessa 3-0 with such a comprehensive score line did not
depict the difficulty of the match," said the modest Aussie after her
win against the third seed. "I won today using my experience and
strength in difficult conditions, as the court was a tough court to
play. I rallied hard and forced the errors, using my fitness to
prolong the rallies and biding my time to attack.
"Vanessa is a great player and I hope to see a lot from her in the
future," added Fitz-Gerald, who now heads for Seattle for the fourth
and final leg of this US WISPA circuit.
"I am now one step closer to my goal of reaching 60 titles. I look
forward to the challenge that Seattle will bring as my draw is tough,
because on paper I will meet all the in form players," concluded
Fitz-Gerald.
Seattle Draw
Semi-finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [4] Rebecca Macree (ENG) 9-5,
9-3, 9-6
[3] Vanessa Atkinson (NED) bt [2] Fiona Geaves (ENG) 9-7, 9-6, 9-4
Quarter-finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [8] Senga Macfie (SCO) 9-0, 9-3,
9-2
[4] Rebecca Macree (ENG) bt [7] Rebecca Chiu (HKG) 9-7, 9-4, 3-9, 9-1
[3] Vanessa Atkinson (NED) bt [5] Nicol David (MAS) 10-9, 9-0, 9-6
[2] Fiona Geaves (ENG) bt [6] Maha Zein (EGY) 9-5, 9-2, 9-3
1st round:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [Q] Lara Petera (NZL) 9-2, 9-4,
9-5
[8] Senga Macfie (SCO) bt Eman El Amir (EGY) 9-4, 9-3, 9-2
[4] Rebecca Macree (ENG) bt [Q] Ivy Pochoda (USA) 9-3, 9-3, 9-1
[7] Rebecca Chiu (HKG) bt [Q] Christina Mak (HKG) 9-1, 9-3, 9-3
[5] Nicol David (MAS) bt [Q] Karen Morrissey (AUS) 9-6, 9-7, 9-3
[3] Vanessa Atkinson (NED) bt Cheryl Beaumont (ENG) 9-10, 9-0, 9-1,
9-2
[6] Maha Zein (EGY) bt Engy Kheirallah (EGY) 10-8, 9-7, 7-9, 10-8
[2] Fiona Geaves (ENG) bt Latasha Khan (USA) 9-0, 9-0, 9-1
SportKit International Challenge (09-12 May)
Final:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [3] Tania Bailey (ENG) 9-1, 7-9, 9-1,
9-2
Success For Fitz-Gerald In San Francisco
Australia's world No1 and four-times world champion Sarah
Fitz-Gerald secured her 55th WISPA World Tour title and successfully
defended her title when she beat England's Tania Bailey in the final
of the SportKit Women's International Squash Challenge in San
Francisco, USA.
The match was a repeat of last month's British Open final in England,
but this time Bailey, the third seed who beat No2 seed Stephanie Brind
to reach the final, provided much more significant opposition to the
in-form Australian.
Fitz-Gerald dominated in the first game, then Bailey rallied strongly
in the second and played a variety of excellent cross-court shots from
the front which frequently caught the favourite out of position.
Fitz-Gerald pulled back from 8-3 down, but an error gave the English
player the game to level the match. Fitz-Gerald returned to the court
to regain control and dominance and ultimately won convincingly 9-1
7-9 9-1 9-2 in 48 minutes.
"I am very pleased how I turned around the match and reapplied the
pressure after losing the second game to Tania," said the San
Francisco champion afterwards. "I am one step closer to my goal of
winning 60 titles."
Semi-Finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [4] Jenny Tranfield (ENG)
9-0, 9-5, 9-0
[3] Tania Bailey (ENG) bt [2] Stephanie Brind (ENG)
9-1, 9-4, 6-9, 9-3
Quarter-finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [6] Maha Zein (EGY) 9-2, 9-4, 9-1
[4] Jenny Tranfield (ENG) bt Melanie Jans (CAN) 10-8, 9-3, 9-10, 9-1
[3] Tania Bailey (ENG) bt [7] Senga Macfie (SCO) 9-4, 10-9, 9-2
[2] Stephanie Brind (ENG) bt [5] Annelize Naude (RSA) 9-2, 9-2, 9-6
First Round:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (Aus) bt [Q] Jenny Duncalf (Eng) 9/1,
9/0, 9/3
[6] Maha Zein (Egy) bt Shabana Khan (Usa) 9/3, 9/2, 9/2
[4] Jenny Tranfield (Eng) by [Q] Vicky Lankester (Eng) 9/4, 9/1,
9/2
Melanie Jane (Can) bt [8] Latasha Khan (Usa) 9/7, 9/2, 9/2
[7] Senga Macfie (Sco) bt [Q] Kate Allison (Eng) 9/2, 9/5, 9/3
[3] Tania Bailey (Eng) bt [Q] Carla Khan (Pak) 9/1, 9/1, 9/0
[5] Annelize Naude (Rsa) bt Wendy Maitland (Sco) 9/5, 9/0, 9/4
[2] Stephanie Brind (Eng) bt Eman el Amir (Egy) 9/4, 10/9, 9/4
Qualifying Finals:
Vicky Lankester (Eng) bt Katie Patrick (Can) 9/3, 9/2, 10/8
Carla Khan (Pak) bt Lara Petara (Nzl) 9/3, 9/6, 10/8
Kate Allison (Eng) bt Dominique Lloyd-Walter (Eng) 9/6, 8/10,
9/3, 9/4
Jenny Duncalf (Eng) bt Karen Morrissey (Aus) 9/1, 4/9, 9/4, 10/8
Squashworks Open (02-05 May)
Final:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [2] Natalie Pohrer (ENG) 9-3, 9-7, 9-6
Sweet Win For Fitz-Gerald In Salt Lake City
Australia's world No1 Sarah Fitz-Gerald defeated England's
world No5 Natalie
Pohrer 9-3 9-7 9-6 in the final to claim her eighth successive title
on the WISPA World Tour. This was the pair's first
meeting since the Tournament of Champions semi-final in January.
The US success by the four-times world champion from Melbourne, unbeaten
since August last year, takes her WISPA career title tally to 54.
Fitz-Gerald now heads for San Francisco where she is top seed in the
Sportkit
International Challenge which begins on Thursday and in which she is
expected
to meet England's Stephanie Brind in the final.
Semi-finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [4] Jenny Tranfield (ENG) 9-5, 9-1,
9-6
[2] Natalie Pohrer (ENG) bt [3] Tania Bailey (ENG) 9-3, 9-2, 9-0
Quarter-finals:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [Q] Carla Khan (PAK) 9-2, 9-1, 9-0
[4] Jenny Tranfield (ENG) bt [5] Annelize Naude (RSA) 9-4, 9-1, 9-0
[3] Tania Bailey (ENG) bt Cheryl Beaumont (ENG) 9-5, 9-4, 9-1
[2] Natalie Pohrer (ENG) bt [6] Maha Zein (EGY) 9-0, 9-0, 9-0
First Round:
[1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (Aus) bt Lara Petara (Nzl) 9/0, 9/3, 9/1
[Q] Carla Khan (Pak) bt [7] Latasha Khan (Usa) 3/9, 9/4, 4/9, 9/2,
9/5
[4] Jenny Tranfield (Eng) bt Vicky Lankester (Eng) 9/3, 9/2, 9/6
[5] Annelize Naude (Rsa) bt [Q] Louise Crome (Nzl) 9/3, 9/6, 10/8
Cheryl Beaumont bt [8] Eman el Amir (Eng) 9/7, 7/9, 9/4, 10/8
[3] Tania Bailey (Eng) bt Shabana Khan (Usa) 9/0, 9/2, 9/3
[6] Maha Zein (Egy) bt [Q] Karen Morrissey (Aus) 8/10, 9/4, 9/2,
7/9, 9/5
[2] Natalie Pohrer (Eng) bt [Q] Kate Allison (Eng) 9/0, 9/1, 9/1
