Selby Seals
Vancouver Win In Comfort
England's
Daryl Selby brought Hisham Mohd Ashour's impressive run in the
Comfort Inn Open to an end in the final - but the unseeded Egyptian took
second seed Selby the full distance in the climax of the PSA World Tour
International 35 event in its seventh year at the Evergreen Squash Club
in Vancouver.
Ashour claimed
his place in the final after upsetting top seed David Palmer, the former
world number one from Australia who was the event's top seed.
The
higher-ranked Englishman took the opening game - but Ashour, the world No18 from
Cairo, pulled back to move 2/1 ahead.
After
surviving a close fourth, world No10 Selby came storming back to clinch a
magnificent 11-6, 10-12, 9-11, 12-10, 11-5 victory after 59 minutes - and his
second Comfort Inn title in three years.
"It was a
thrilling match to watch and it was played with a sense that both players
enjoyed the experience and respected each other while playing their hearts out,"
said tournament organiser Paul Marley.
"As well, it
must be said again that Selby showed incredible sportsmanship as at least five
times in the past two matches he has made a call on himself or overturned a
referee's decision. One of these times was late in third game today when the
score was 8-7 in his favour and he called a "double bounce" on himself.
"He eventually
lost the game 9-11. It's wonderful to see world class sportsmanship by a world
class athlete as it is great modelling for our squash community," concluded
Marley.
The win marks
up Selby's tenth career Tour title.
Hisham Passes
Palmer On Way To Vancouver Final
Unseeded
Egyptian Hisham Mohd Ashour continued his impressive form in the
Comfort Inn Open in Vancouver when he upset top-seeded Australian
David Palmer to reach the final of the PSA World Tour International 35
event in its seventh year at the Evergreen Squash Club.
Ashour, now
ranked 18 in the world, only had to reach two positions higher as he survived
two tie-break games against the indefatigable 34-year-old who boasts 26 World
Tour titles. Palmer has now slipped to 16 in the rankings, his lowest position
for over a decade.
The
28-year-old from Cairo went on to win 15-13, 15-13, 11-2 in 49 minutes to reach
the eighth Tour final of his career - but his first since the Rocky Mountain
Open last March in Calgary.
His opponent
will be second seed Daryl Selby, the Englishman who beat him in the
Alberta capital final.
Selby was in
control for the first two games against third seed Olli Tuominen - but
then lost concentration for the next two as the 'Flying Finn' drew level.
Selby
reasserted himself in the decider as he stormed through to an 11-5, 11-6, 9-11,
7-11, 11-6 win after 75 minutes - and his 15th appearance in PSA Tour
final since April 2005.
Hisham Ashour
Advances In Vancouver
Unseeded
Egyptian Hisham Mohd Ashour extinguished Canadian interest in the
Comfort Inn Open in Vancouver when he ousted fourth seed Shahier
Razik in the quarter-finals of the PSA World Tour International 35
event in its seventh year at the Evergreen Squash Club.
But the
28-year-old from Cairo was simply demonstrating that his new January ranking -
placing him six places higher than the Canadian - was correct as he battled to
his 11-3, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6 win in 46 minutes over Razik.
Ashour, the
world No18, will now face favourite David Palmer, the world No16 from
Australia who ended qualifier Jorge Isaac Baltazar Ferreira's run,
beating the 28-year-old Mexican 11-3, 11-6, 11-4.
Second seed
Daryl Selby, the 2009 champion from England, also got the better of a
Mexican, defeating qualifier Cesar Salazar 11-8, 11-4, 11-8 to set up a
last four clash with third seed Olli Tuominen.
The Finn also
produced a straight games win when he beat Colombian Miguel Angel Rodriguez
11-3, 11-3, 11-3.
Palmer
Progresses In Vancouver
Australian
squash star David Palmer was in impressive form in the opening round of
the Comfort Inn Open in Vancouver, Canada, where he is seeded to
win his 27th Tour title in the PSA World Tour International event in its
seventh year at the Evergreen Squash Club.
The US-based
34-year-old dominated his match against Chris Simpson, defeating the
23-year-old Englishman 11-6, 11-3, 11-7 in 35 minutes.
"The big man
moves like a cat and seems to know where the ball is going before it's even
struck," said event spokesman Paul Marley. "It was a treat to watch."
Two of the
seeds, Canadian Shahier Razik and Finland's Olli Tuominen, were
forced to stay on court for 60 and 90 minutes, respectively, as their opponents
provided stiff competition.
Martin
Knight,
the 2010 champion from New Zealand, took the opening game against Razik - but
the Toronto-based fourth seed struck back to win 7-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-7.
Julian
Illingworth
took the Finn the full distance in his bid to provide US interest in the next
round - but third seed Tuominen triumphed 11-7, 14-12, 9-11, 11-13, 11-6.
But the
longest match of the evening saw Miguel Angel Rodriguez prevail over
Canadian hope Shawn Delierre in 101 minutes. Delierre overcame a 2/1
deficit to force a fifth game, but the hard work of two days of qualifying may
have taken its toll as Colombian Rodriguez took the match 5-11, 11-7, 11-7,
6-11, 11-5.
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