07/07/2008
ICL CHENNAI OPEN
Ghosal & Au Take Chennai Titles
Men's
Draw
Chennai
Open
2008
Chennai, India, 02-06 Jul, $10k |
Round One
03-Jul |
Quarters
04-Jul |
Semis
05-Jul |
Final
06-Jul |
[1] Saurav Ghosal
(Ind)
11/5, 11/7, 13/11 (45m)
Naresh Kumar (Ind) |
Saurav Ghosal
11/8, 15/13, 11/5 (48m) Rob Sutherland |
Saurav Ghosal
10-12, 5-11, 11-5,
11-9, 11-7 (84m)
Ryan Cuskelly |
Saurav Ghosal
7-11, 11-7, 11-7,
11-6 (49m)
Ritwik Bhattacharya |
[8] Rob Sutherland
(Wal)
11/4, 11/6, 11/4 (21m)
[Q] Graeme Wilson (Nzl) |
[3] Ryan Cuskelly
(Aus)
12/10, 11/4, 11/4 (34m)
Zac Alexander (Aus) |
Ryan Cuskelly
11/9, 6/11, 11/9, 11/3(56m)
Dick Lau |
[5] Dick Lau (Hkg)
11/7, 11/7, 11/7 (25m)
[Q] Parth Sharma (Ind) |
Gaurav Nandrajog (Ind)
12/14, 11/8, 11/1, 12/10 (45m)
[7] Max Lee (Hkg) |
Max Lee
11/4, 11/3, 11/7 (25m)
Ali Anwar Reda |
Ali Anwar Reda
10-12, 7-11, 12-10,
11-7, 11-8 (73m)
Ritwik Bhattacharya |
James Snell (Eng)
11/9, 11/7, 11/7 (34m)
[4] Ali Anwar Reda (Egy) |
[Q] Harinderpal Singh (Ind)
12/10, 9/11, 11/1, 13/11 (39m)
[6] Shamsul Islam Khan (Pak) |
Harinderpal Singh
11/8, 13/11, 11/8 (38m)
Ritwik Bhattacharya |
[Q]
Ravi Dixit (Ind)
12/10, 11/9, 11/1 (29m)
[2] Ritwik Bhattacharya (Ind) |
Qualifying, 02-Jul:
Finals:
Harinderpal Singh bt A. Parthiban
11/2, 11/6, 8/11, 11/8 (36m)
Parth Sharma bt B. Balamurugan
11/6, 9/11, 11/5, 11/5 (29m)
Ravi Dixit bt Kristian Frost Olesen (Den)
12/10, 5/11, 11/4, 13/11 (39m)
Graeme Wilson (Nzl) bt Aditya Jagtap
11/9, 11/6, 11/4 (37m)
Round One:
A. Parthiban bt Paramit Singh
12/14, 9/11, 11/7, 15/13, 11/5 63m)
B. Balamurugan bt Ramit Tandon
8/11, 11/8, 11/7, 11/9 (29m)
Ravi Dixit bt Karan Malik
11/4, 11/4, 7/11, 11/3 (32m)
Aditya Jagtap bt Abhishek Pradhan
11/4, 11/9, 11/6 (24m)
|
Women's
Draw
Chennai
Open 2008
Chennai, India, 01-06 Jul, $8k |
Round One
03 Jul |
Quarters
04 Jul |
Semis
05
Jul |
Final
06 Jul |
[1] Christina Mak
(Hkg)
9/2, 9/3, 9/2 (21m)
Shriya Khatri (Ind) |
Christina Mak
9/7, 9/5, 9/3 (34m)
Dipika Pallikal |
Dipika Pallikal
10-8, 7-9, 9-5, 9-1
(49m)
Orla Noom |
Dipika Pallikal
9-3, 10-8, 10-8
(44m)
Annie Au |
[5] Dipika Pallikal
(Ind)
9/0, 9/2, 9/0 (10m)
Swati Muchal (Ind) |
[3] Orla Noom (Ned)
9/1, 7/9, 9/3, 9/1 (24m)
Saumya Karki (Ind) |
Orla Noom
3/9, 8/10, 9/5, 9/1, 9/2(42m)
Anwesha Reddy |
[7] Anwesha Reddy
(Ind)
9/4, 9/4, 3/9, 9/1 (25m)
Irina Assal (Rus) |
Harita Omprakash
(Ind)
10/8, 9/5, 9/2 (25m)
[8] Surbhi Misra (Ind) |
Harita Omprakash
9/2, 9/0, 9/1 (24m)
Annie Au |
Annie Au
10-9, 9-1, 5-9,
10-9 (67m)
Joshna Chinappa |
Anaka Alankomony
9/4, 9/0, 9/2 (18m)
[4] Annie Au (Hkg) |
Sachika Balvani (Ind)
9/4, 9/4, 9/3 (20m)
[6] Birgit Coufal (Aut) |
Birgit Coufal
9/2, 9/6, 9/2 (22m)
Joshna Chinappa |
Arapajitha Balamurukan
(Ind)
9/2, 9/1, 9/0 (10m)
[2] Joshna Chinappa (Ind) |
Ghosal & Au Take Chennai Titles
Hong Kong's Annie Au dashed hopes of a domestic double in the
finals of the ICL Chennai Open when she beat Indian teenager
Dipika Pallikal in the climax of the women's
WISPA World Tour
squash event at the
ICL Squash Academy
in Chennai.
In the final of the men's $10,000
PSA Tour
event, local hero Saurav Ghosal successfully defended his title
when he beat fellow Indian Ritwik Bhattacharya in four
games.
Pallikal, the 16-year-old fifth seed from Chennai who was celebrating her
maiden appearance in a
WISPA Tour final, struggled at the outset with her higher-seeded
opponent's drop and drive game. The brave youngster squandered an 8-0
lead in the second game before going down to Au, the 19-year-old fourth
seed, 10-8.
But Dipika reversed her fortunes in the third game, fighting back from 2-7
down to reach game ball at 8-7 in just one hand! But, in the final twist,
Au clinched the game to take the match - and her second Tour title - 9-3,
10-8, 10-8 after 44 minutes.
"It was a remarkable achievement, however, by Dipika to get to the final -
and overall a great event for Indian Squash," said event spokesman
Cyrus Poncha.
Top seed Saurav Ghosal claimed his third PSA title when he defeated
national rival Ritwik Bhattacharya, the second seed, 7-11, 11-7, 11-7,
11-6.
The match was an excellent display of rally finishing. Bhattacharya
played a tight first game and this showed in his finishing the game in
just ten minutes. The second game set the tone for the rest of the
match. Unforced errors by the second seed allowed Ghosal to draw level.
"The next couple of games saw Saurav gliding over the court and the 'human
rubber band' was able to run down practically every ball to take control
of the third game as well," explained Poncha.
Ghosal raced to a 5-1 lead in the fourth game, and the momentum carried
him through to victory after 49 minutes.
Dipika In Debut Tour Final In Chennai
The dream run of Indian teenager Dipika Pallikal continued at the
ICL Chennai Open when the 16-year-old scored her second successive
upset in the
WISPA World Tour
squash event at the
ICL Squash Academy
in
Chennai,
India,
to reach her maiden Tour final.
Playing with confidence, fifth seed Pallikal took on third
seed Orla Noom in the semi-final - and won crucial points to take
the advantage over her higher-ranked Dutch opponent. Although Noom
levelled the match at one-all, Pallikal played an 18-minute game to win
the crucial third - then clinched the fourth convincingly to earn her
breakthrough 10-8, 7-9, 9-5, 9-1 win in 49 minutes.
Hong Kong teenager Annie Au put paid to an all-Indian women's final
by battling to a 10-9, 9-1, 5-9, 10-9 upset over Joshna Chinappa,
the No2 seed from Chennai, in 67 minutes. The 19-year-old is celebrating
her third Tour final - but her first this year.
In the semi-finals of the men's
$10,000
PSA Tour
event, Australian Ryan Cuskelly had Indian favourite Saurav
Ghosal worried in the first two games as he kept pace and answered
everything the defending champion from India threw at him.
But top seed Ghosal fought back from two games down to level the match at
two-all. It was a gutsy effort from both players - but Ghosal ultimately
prevailed in the marathon 84-minute duel to record a 10-12, 5-11, 11-5,
11-9, 11-7 win, and his fifth appearance in a Tour final.
In the other semi-final, second-seeded Indian Ritwik Bhattacharya
also had to come back from two games down to beat Egypt's fourth seed
Mohd Ali Anwar Reda 10-12, 7-11, 12-10, 11-7, 11-8 in 73 minutes.
Bhattacharya, the 2005 and 2006 Chennai Open champion, is celebrating his
11th PSA Tour final - but, like Ghosal, his first this year.
Dipika Ditches Favourite In Chennai
Indian squash prospect Dipika Pallikal claimed the biggest scalp of
her career when she upset top seed Christina Mak in the women's
quarter-finals in the
ICL Chennai Open
to reach her first semi-final of a
WISPA World Tour
event at the
ICL Squash Academy
in
Chennai,
India.
The 16-year-old from Chennai played a flawless match to
beat world No33 Christina Mak, from
Hong Kong,
9-7, 9-5, 9-3 in 34 minutes.
After a close first game, Dipika looked superior and took full control of
the match with her aggression. Runner-up in last week's Asian Junior
U19 Championships, Dipika goes on to meet Orla Noom, the third
seed from Netherlands who had a narrow escape against Anwesha Reddy,
the seventh seed from India, coming back from two games down to win 3-9,
8-10, 9-5, 9-1, 9-2 in 42 minutes.
There will be domestic interest in the other women's semi-final where
second seed Joshna Chinappa faces Annie Au, the fourth seed
from
Hong Kong.
The quarter-finals of the
$10,000
PSA Tour
event went according to the seedings with the top two seeds Saurav
Ghosal and Ritwik Bhattacharya keeping alive hopes of an
all-Indian men's final.
Favourite Ghosal beat eighth seed Rob Sutherland 11-8, 15-13, 11-5
and will now face
Australia's third seed Ryan Cuskelly for a place in
the final.
Second seed Bhattacharya defeated fellow countryman
Harinder Pal Sandhu, a qualifier, 11-8, 13-11, 11-8 to earn a
semi-final clash with Egyptian Mohd Ali Anwar Reda, the fourth
seed.
Harinder & Harita On A Charge In Chennai
Local players Harinder Pal Sandhu and Harita Omprakash
pulled off notable upsets over seeded opponents in the first round of the
ICL Chennai Open Squash Championship at the
ICL Squash Academy
in
Chennai,
India.
In the men's $10,000 PSA Tour event, qualifier
Harinder Pal Sandhu defeated sixth seed Shamsul Islam Khan, from
Pakistan, in an enthralling four games. Harinder, an ICL
Academy trainee ranked 143 in the world, battled for 39 minutes to
overcome the Pakistani 12-10, 9-11, 11-1, 13-11.
The 19-year-old's reward is a quarter-final clash with
compatriot Ritwik Bhattacharya, the second seed who defeated fellow
countryman Ravi Dixit, also a qualifier, 12-10, 11-9, 11-1.
In the inaugural women's
WISPA World
Tour
event, unseeded Harita Omprakash stunned eighth-seeded compatriot
Surbhi Misra 10-8, 9-5, 9-2 in just 25 minutes.
The 16-year-old, the only non-WISPA
member to reach the last eight, will now face Hong Kong's Annie Au,
the fourth seed who beat India's recently-crowned Asian Junior U15
champion Anaka Alankamony 9-4, 9-0, 9-2.
Local girl Anwesha Reddy reached the quarter-finals after defeating
Russian Irina Assal 9-4, 9-4, 3-9, 9-1. The 16-year-old eighth
seed from Chennai will now meet third seed Orla Noom for a place in
the semi-finals.
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