Nicol & Natalie To Contest Apawamis Final
The world's top two squash players will renew their rivalry for the first time in the New Year when Malaysian Nicol David and Australia's Natalie Grinham face up in the final of the Women's Marsh Apawamis Open, the first WISPA World Tour Gold event of the year at the Apawamis Club in Rye in the US state of New York.

David, the world number one from Penang who was runner-up in Rye two years ago, despatched US star Natalie Grainger, the No4 seed from Washington DC, 9-7, 9-4, 9-5 in 35 minutes.

In the other semi-final, defending champion Natalie Grinham - the world number two from Queensland looking for her third title since 2003 - avenged the earlier shock defeat of older sister Rachael Grinham by beating surprise Egyptian opponent Omneya Abdel Kawy 9-5, 9-4, 9-2 in just 26 minutes.

The final will be the illustrious pair's 17^th meeting since November 2003 - six of which were in 2007 - with the head-to-head count standing at 10-6 to the Malaysian.

Kawy Continues Giant-Killing Run In Rye
Egypt's unseeded Omneya Abdel Kawy continued her giant-killing run in the Women's Marsh Apawamis Open by upsetting Australia's world champion Rachael Grinham in the quarter-finals of the first WISPA World Tour Gold squash event of the year at the Apawamis Club in Rye in the US state of New York.

Just 24 hours after despatching seventh seed Jenny Duncalf in the first round, the 22-year-old from Cairo recovered from a game down to overcome fellow Cairo-based Grinham, the No3 seed, 4-9, 9-3, 10-8, 9-6 in 46 minutes.

Kawy now goes on to face her opponent's younger sister Natalie Grinham, the second seed who defeated England's fifth seed Tania Bailey 9-6, 9-5, 9-2.

England's unseeded Laura Lengthorn-Massaro, who also pulled off a first round upset to reach the quarter-finals, took the first game against event favourite Nicol David - but the world number one from Malaysia came back strongly to win 3-9, 9-7, 9-4, 9-5.

David will now face US champion Natalie Grainger for a place in the final. The fourth seed squandered two games against Dutch opponent Vanessa Atkinson before coming back to beat the former world champion 7-9, 2-9, 9-1, 9-6, 9-6.

Kawy & Lengthorn Cause Upsets At Apawamis
Prospects for success in this month's British National Championships took a dive for two of the leading contenders in the first round of the Women's Marsh Apawamis Open when Vicky Botwright and Jenny Duncalf - seeded six and seven, respectively - crashed out of the first WISPA World Tour Gold squash event of the year at the Apawamis Club in Rye in the US state of New York.

Botwright, the world No6 from Manchester, went down in four games to England and Lancashire compatriot Laura Lengthorn-Massaro - reversing the result of their meeting a year ago at the Apawamis Club.

Unseeded Lengthorn's 9-6, 4-9, 9-5, 9-6 win in 55 minutes takes the 24-year-old from Preston through to the quarter-finals, where she will face top seed Nicol David.

The world No1 from Malaysia made a confident beginning to her 2008 WISPA World Tour campaign with a 9-4, 9-3, 9-1 defeat of Egyptian qualifier Engy Kheirallah.

Reigning British Champion Jenny Duncalf's 9-5, 9-3, 9-7 loss to unseeded Omneya Abdel Kawy extends the Egyptian's head-to-head record between the pair to 4/1. Kawy will now face fellow Cairo-based Rachael Grinham, the third seed from Australia who beat New Zealander Shelley Kitchen 9-5, 10-8, 9-2.

Qualifiers Survive Marathons To Strike Gold In Rye
Efforts to qualify for the first WISPA World Tour Gold squash event of the year produced four marathon clashes in the qualifying finals of the Women's Marsh Apawamis Open at the Apawamis Club in Rye in the US state of New York.

Latasha Khan, the seven times US national champion from Seattle, battled back from two games down to beat New Zealander Jaclyn Hawkes 6-9, 8-10, 9-2, 9-3, 9-6 in 77 minutes. The reward for Khan's endeavours is a first round meeting with second seed Natalie Grinham, the world No2 from Australia.

It took 70 minutes for Samantha Teran to earn her right to face eighth seed Vanessa Atkinson in the main draw. The highest-ranked Mexican also had to recover from a two-game deficit before beating England's Dominique Lloyd-Walter 5-9, 6-9, 9-5, 9-2, 9-0.

An all-Egyptian battle resulted in Engy Kheirallah beating Raneem El Weleily 5-9, 9-3, 9-3, 10-9 in 53 minutes - the winner going on to face Nicol David, the world No1 from Malaysia who is beginning her 2008 campaign in Rye.

A 68-minute workout saw the demise of Dutch player Annelize Naude as Australian Kasey Brown prevailed in a 9-4, 8-10, 9-4, 9-2 scoreline to line-up against Tania Bailey, the fifth seed from England, in the first round.