Grinham Back
On Winner's Podium In Montreal
Less than a
year after the birth of her first child, Dutch squash star Natalie Grinham
gave the clearest signal that she is back to her best when she won the
Women's Atwater Cup in Canada, upsetting third seed Joelle King
in the final of the WISPA World Tour Silver 20 event in its third
year at Club Atwater in Montreal.
Unseeded, the
former world No2 ousted the fourth seed, then the No2 seed, before coming up
against New Zealander King in the climax of only her seventh Tour event since
the birth of her son Kieran last May.
Grinham,
currently ranked 32 in the world, played flawless squash to overcome world No14
King 11-6, 11-7, 14-12 to claim the 15th Tour title of her career - but her
first since winning the New Zealand Open in August 2009.
"I'm playing
really well and looking forward to Caymans," said the new Atwater Club champion,
who next competes in this week's Cedrus Investments Cayman Islands
Open. "I'm glad Joelle's out of the qualifying as we could have played each
other again tomorrow.
"I'm just
looking to keep improving this year building up for the World Open in
September."
King, a double
medallist in last year's Commonwealth Games in Delhi, added: "I came up
against a better player today but I'm happy with my game and looking forward to
the next three weeks.
"I feel I am
heading in the right direction and I'm excited about the next two events."
Top Seeds
Downed As King & Grinham Make Montreal Final
New Zealander
Joelle King and Dutch champion Natalie Grinham will contest a
surprise Women's Atwater Cup final in Canada after the two top seeds
failed to survive the semi-finals of the WISPA World Tour Silver 20
squash event in its third year at Club Atwater in Montreal.
Buoyed by
local support at the club which she uses as her overseas training base, third
seed King battled for 40 minutes to beat favourite Vanessa Atkinson, a
former world number one and world champion from the Netherlands, 11-7, 11-6,
8-11, 11-3.
It was sweet
revenge for the 22-year-old from Cambridge who lost her previous clash with
Atkinson at the Atwater Club three years ago. It was also a confidence-boosting
win for the Kiwi on the day that the new world No14 became the country's
top-ranked player after overtaking compatriot Jaclyn Hawkes.
Looking
forward to the final, King said: "I know it's going to be tough, as Natalie's an
amazing player but I can't wait to get out there."
King will face
Grinham in her second WISPA Tour final of the year, and the ninth of her career.
The unseeded
world No32 from the Netherlands was in sparkling form as she despatched second
seed Jaclyn Hawkes 11-9, 11-9, 11-9 in 42 minutes.
Grinham, the
former world No2 is celebrating her first Tour final since giving birth to her
first child last year - and also the first WISPA final since reaching the
World Open climax in her home country in 2009.
"I'm playing
well and happy about making the final," said a thrilled Grinham, now in her 37th
Tour final. "I haven't played Joelle before so I'm looking forward to a tough
match."
Grinham
Marches On In Montreal
Unseeded
Natalie Grinham secured the shortest quarter-final win of the day in the
Women's Atwater Cup to earn a place in the last four of the WISPA World
Tour Silver 20 squash event in its third year at Club Atwater
in the Canadian city of Montreal.
The
experienced world No34 from the Netherlands stopped US teenager Olivia
Blatchford, an 18-year-old qualifier from New York, 11-8, 11-2, 11-4 in 26
minutes.
"These young
players have no fear, they're really hard to play because they are
unpredictable," said Grinham, the former world No2 on a Tour comeback trail
after the birth of her first child last year. "I'm happy to get through - and my
game's going well."
The
Australian-born 33-year-old will now face second seed Jaclyn Hawkes, one
of two New Zealanders to reach the semi-finals.
Hawkes, the
UK-based world No14 also ousted a US teenager - but needed four games to get the
better of 17-year-old sixth seed Amanda Sobhy, the reigning world junior
champion, 11-3, 12-10, 9-11, 11-6.
"That was a
tough match," said the 28-year-old from Auckland. "I felt like I did a lot of
running. She's such a good player. It was a tricky draw and I`m happy to be in
the semi finals."
Kiwi interest
in the other semi will be led by Joelle King after the third seed
overcame Mexico's No5 seed Samantha Teran 11-7, 12-10, 6-11, 12-10 in a
62-minute battle.
"It was a
tight game. I had to stay patient had wait for my opportunities as Samantha
doesn't give you much to hit," said King, the New Zealand Commonwealth Games
star from Cambridge.
King faces
favourite Vanessa Atkinson following the top seed's 11-7, 11-9, 9-11,
11-9 victory over France's seventh seed Isabelle Stoehr.
"I was happy
to win the fourth as Stoehr had the momentum and she was coming back strong,"
explained the 12 times Dutch champion.
Blatchford
Blasts Blake In Montreal
Teenagers
Olivia Blatchford and Amanda Sobhy powerfully demonstrated the
promise of US women's squash by confidently securing places in the
quarter-finals of the Women's Atwater Cup, the WISPA World Tour
Silver 20 event in its third year at Club Atwater in the Canadian
city of Montreal.
But whilst
17-year-old sixth seed Sobhy romped to an anticipated 11-4, 11-1, 11-5 win over
Canada's unseeded Alexandra Norman in 19 minutes, qualifier Blatchford
scored a significant upset by ousting Ireland's No8 seed Aisling Blake
11-6, 11-5, 12-10.
The
18-year-old from New York will now face another surprise quarter-finalist
Natalie Grinham. The unseeded world No34 from the Netherlands scored the
biggest first round scalp by defeating Australia's fourth seed Donna Urquhart
11-5, 11-3, 11-8 - but the former world No2 is on a comeback trail after the
birth of her first child last year.
The event's
top two seeds progressed through to the last eight without dropping games.
Favourite Vanessa Atkinson, the world No10 from the Netherlands, beat
Guyana qualifier Nicolette Fernandes 11-4, 11-7, 11-8, while
second-seeded New Zealander Jaclyn Hawkes defeated former US champion
Latasha Khan 11-6, 12-10, 11-7.
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