02/07/2012
KENT OPEN 2012
Straight Six For Simpson At Kent Open
SE Leisure Kent Open
2012
The Mote Squash Club,
Maidstone, Kent.
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Round
One
28/6 |
Quarters
29/6 |
Semis
30/6 |
Final
1/7 |
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(1)
Chris Simpson (Eng)
11-7, 11-8, 11-2 (34m)
Antoine-Camille Petrucci (Fra) |
Chris Simpson
11-13, 11-3,
11-5, 11-9 (50m)
Elvinn Keo |
Chris Simpson
12-10, 11-8, 11-7
(74m)
Kristian Frost |
Chris Simpson
11-8, 11-6, 11-6
(45m)
Karim Ali Fathi |
Elvinn Keo (Mas)
11-9, 9-11, 11-8, 13-11 (41m)
Alex Phillips (Eng) |
(4) Kristian Frost (Den)
11-7, 11-9, 11-4 (48m)
Robbie Downer (Eng) |
Kristian Frost
11-9, 11-4, 8-11,
11-9 (80m)
Lucas Serme |
Lucas Serme (Fra)
11-7, 13-11, 11-7 (38m)
Adil Maqbool (Pak) |
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(3)
Mark Krajcsak (Hun)
11-7, 6-11, 11-9, 10-12, 12-10 (76m)
Anthony Graham (Eng) |
Anthony Graham
12-10, 11-8, 11-9
(60m)
Karim Ali Fathi |
Karim Ali Fathi
11-2, 11-4, 11-2
(41m)
Henrik Mustonen |
Karim Ali Fathi (Egy)
11-6, 11-4, 11-5 (33m)
Jaymie Haycocks (Eng) |
(Q) Steven London (Eng)
14-12, 11-7, 11-7 (48m)
Julien Balbo (Fra) |
Julien Balbo
11-3, 12-10, 11-5
(30m)
Henrik Mustonen |
(Q) Declan James (Eng)
13-11, 11-3, 14-12 (44m)
(2) Henrik Mustonen (Fin) |
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Qualifying finals:
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PSA
Satellite 10 SE Leisure Kent Open,
The Mote Squash Club,
Maidstone, Kent.
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Final
Straight Six For Simpson At Kent Open
England's top seed Chris Simpson
produced a stylish and professional display to crush the
resistance of talented young Egyptian Karim Ali Fathi
to win the SE Leisure Kent Open final - and notch up
his sixth PSA World Tour title in his sixth final
appearance.
The world No43 from Harrogate enjoyed long
spells of dominance throughout the climax of the PSA
Challenger 10 event at The Mote Squash Club in
Maidstone, England.
His immaculate length and width denied Ali
Fathi the opportunity to attack with an accurate game-plan
that worked to perfection.
From 0-2 down in the first game Simpson
powered ahead to 8-3 and he weathered Ali Fathi's best spell
of the match to win 11-8.
The 19-year-old Egyptian had entertained the
packed gallery all week with some dazzling kill shots and
superb drop shots but he was unable to find the openings he
so desperately needed.
Simpson's intelligent tactics generated an
early 5-1 lead in the second and although Ali Fathi hit back
to reach 6-7, the Channel Islander took control again when
it mattered to win 11-6.
The third game mirrored the first. Ali Fathi
won the first two points but Simpson won six in a row to put
himself in the driving seat.
Ali Fathi had a glimmer of hope at 4-6 but
Simpson's next surge of points took him to match ball at
10-4. Ali Fathi refused to surrender but after two points
from the Egyptian Simpson closed out the match to claim his
first Kent Open title.
"I have seen Karim play all week," said
Guernsey-born Simpson. "He is obviously a very dangerous
player who can hit winners from a variety of positions. So
my tactics were to try to keep him quiet and not let him get
in front, where he is so dangerous.
"He was getting frustrated and when I saw him
slow-balling down the backhand wall it was clear that he was
being forced to do something he doesn't like doing.
"He likes a fast game and that's how he won
his matches to get to the final. But I sensed he was getting
tired and he wasn't getting forward well from the back
corners if I was able to play it short.
"I'm pleased with the way I've played all
week and would love to come back and defend the title next
year.
"It's nice to travel the world and play on
the glass court in some amazing locations, but it's great to
play in small clubs like this where the gallery is full of
knowledgeable squash fans every day. It creates a tremendous
atmosphere.
"We have been so well looked after and all
the players echo that sentiment. I had heard a lot of good
things about this tournament from other players and it's all
true."
Ali Fathi, who was celebrating his fourth
final appearance this year, said: "After the first game my
coach Phil Whitlock told me to stop hitting cross courts
because Chris was picking them off. I couldn't get in front
of him.
"He was too good today. After a hard week I
was a bit tired today and was not moving as well as
yesterday or the day before.
"Overall it was good experience for me.
Before today I had won seven PSA matches in a row. That
earned some ranking points. I went up to 87 this morning and
I hope to go up higher next month.
"My plan now is to do six weeks of summer
training to get fitter to beat players like him."
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Semi
Finals
Ali Fathi & Simpson To Contest Kent Open
Climax
Unseeded Egyptian Karim Ali Fathi will
face England's top seed Chris Simpson in the final of
the SE Leisure Kent Open, the PSA World Tour
Challenger 10 event at The Mote Squash Club in
Maidstone, England.
Simpson powered past Kristian Frost Olesen,
the No4 seed from Denmark. The 25-year-old Channel Islander,
based in Harrogate, had too many answers at the front of the
court after the ball spent most the time at the back.
Both players favoured drove solidly but
Simpson's drop shots were more effective when openings arose
at the front.
The first game was massive physical battle.
Simpson led 5-1 before Frost enjoyed a solid spell of
dominance that took him to 8-6. Frost was first to game ball
at 10-9 but Simpson won the next three points to close out
the game 12-10.
Frost again held the upper hand in the second
game, leading 7-5, and then 8-6, but once again Simpson
finished strongly with five points in a row to win 11-8.
In the third game Simpson advanced from 3-3
to 7-3 as Frost began to look tired. The tall Dane was
forced to undergo massive court coverage as Simpson worked
him long and short. Ultimately, Simpson's straight drops
proved the decisive factor. He closed out the game in a
professional manner to win 11-7 and book his place in the
final after a fiercely-contested 74-minute encounter.
Simpson said: "I was happy with how I played
today. It was a very tough match as Kristian is such a
strong athlete. The ball wasn't dying at all at the front,
so I tried to get control of him and work him harder than he
worked me.
"By the third game I could see that this
tactic had worked and he was starting to tire. Very happy to
win."
Simpson faces in-form Ali Fathi, who
overpowered No2 seed Henrik Mustonen in sensational
fashion. Fathi has followed his triumph in Wales last week
by producing three outstanding performances this week in
Maidstone.
The teenager chopped Mustonen 11-2, 11-4,
11-2 in a brutal demolition job that exposed the Finn's lack
of tournament practice.
Fathi said: "The only time I have played Chris was in the
final of the Andy Gill Memorial Trophy in Rochdale in
September. He won 11-9, 11-9, 11-9 and I was 9-7 up in all
three games.
"That was before I met Phil Whitlock and I
would like to think I can do better against Chris in the
final. This is a good tournament for me. I was surprised
that Henrik wasn't pushing up the court more because
normally he is so dangerous in the front left corner. But
that area was working well for me today. My game seems to
suit this court."
It was a tribute to Mustonen's determination
that the match lasted 41 minutes but he was clearly
struggling with his movement throughout the match.
He said: "I was feeling a bit tired today and
my movement was obviously affected. It was very hot on court
and it was difficult to put the ball away. I haven't been
playing much since March and I guess that showed today. I
was defending most of the time and wasn't able to get
forward to play it short. I needed to attack more but was
too far off the pace."
Kristian Frost said: "I thought I played the
right game to win but somehow I managed to lose. I didn't do
well on the big points in the first and second games, when I
was leading 8-6 and 7-5. I didn't feel confident going short
because the ball is very bouncy.
"He got me moving more and that made me a big
difference. Chris played his style of squash, had a good
tactical plan and he stuck to it for the whole match, moving
me all over the court in the process."
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Quarter Finals
Fathi Foils
Graham To Make Kent Open Semis
Young Egyptian
Karim Ali Fathi is determined to upset the seedings after reaching the
semi-finals of the SE Leisure Kent Open.
The
19-year-old from Cairo, who won the isquash Grand Prix title in Wales
last week, outplayed English giant-killer Anthony Graham to become the
only unseeded player to reach the last four of the PSA World Tour Challenger
10 event at The Mote Squash Club in Maidstone, England.
Graham, the
22-year-old from Gloucestershire who knocked out No3 seed Mark Krajcsak
the previous day, was beaten by the accuracy of by Ali Fathi's winners at the
front of the court.
In addition to
some outstanding drop shots, the Egyptian teenager also unleashed some powerful
straight kills that found the nick. His 12-10, 11-8, 11-9 victory came after 60
minutes of high-quality, inventive squash.
Fathi's
semi-final opponent, No2 seed Henrik Mustonen, spent exactly half that
time on court as he overwhelmed his French adversary Julien Balbo.
The world No52
from Finland is a smooth mover around the court and had all the answers when it
came to retrieving Balbo's best shots and placing winners beyond his opponent's
reach.
Top seed
Chris Simpson beat Malaysian Elvinn Keo in four games and is looking
forward to a tough battle with Denmark's Kristian Frost Olesen, who
battled past another Frenchman, Lucas Serme, in a brutal 80-minute
encounter.
Englishman
Simpson let the first game slip after leading 10-6, but tightened up to win the
next three.
"It was a
tough match," said the Harrogate-based Channel Islander. "He was game ball down
in the first and from then on he played some really good winners. After that I
decided I had to make him work hard and put some work into his legs. And this
worked for the next few games.
"I think there
will be some long, hard matches this week as it's very hot and I'm looking
forward to tomorrow's match," added world No43 Simpson.
Frost enjoyed
a stroke of good fortune as he served for the match against Serme. Having
reached match ball with a spectacular volley kill off the serve at 9-9, Frost
served behind his opponent's back and the ball struck Serme's racket and spun to
the floor.
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 1st Round Report From Alan Thatcher |
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Graham Grinds Down No: 3 Seed In Kent
England’s Anthony Graham overcame No.3 seed Mark
Krajcsak to reach the quarter-finals of the SE Leisure Kent Open after a
pulsating battle at The Mote Squash Club in Maidstone.
Graham wasted a match ball at 10-9 in the fourth
and survived one himself in the fifth before triumphing 7-11, 11-6, 11-9,
10-12, 12-10 after 76 minutes of brutal squash.
The 22-year-old Graham, ranked 103 in the world,
matched the Hungarian number one throughout the match for inventiveness and
power, gaining great dividends from some deft drop shots on both sides of the
court.
Krajcsak, the world No.54, led throughout the
fifth game and finally reached match ball at 10-8, but Graham refused to give in
and reeled off the final four points to book a quarter-final clash against
talented Egyptian Karim Ali Fathi, who beat Birmingham-based Jaymie Haycocks in
straight games.
Top seed Chris Simpson meets Malaysian Elvinn Keo
in the quarter-finals.
Simpson, the 25-year-old world No.43 based in
Harrogate, Yorkshire, finished strongly to beat a tiring Antoine-Camille
Petrucci of France. Simpson completed his victory with an 11-2 scoreline in the
third game as his opponent’s energy levels dropped in the heat.
The first two games were close but Petrucci hit
the tin too many times when set up for a drop shot.
Simpson looked comfortable throughout and his
colourful shorts added a Beach Boys feeling to the opening match.
Keo overcame Alex Phillips in a very entertaining
match, with the Malaysian squeezing home 13-11 on a tiebreak after four close
games.
Lucas Serme (France) overcame Adil Magbool in
straight games to clinch a quarter-final place against Danish No.1 Kristian
Frost. The Dubai-based Pakistani was left reflecting on a moment of
sportsmanship that backfired when he refused to take a penalty point at game
ball in the second game after striking his opponent.
Maqbool had fought back from 5-2 down to lead
11-10 but a relieved and grateful Serme edged home 13-11.
Magbool led 4-1 in the third game but Serme
stepped up the pressure and played tighter squash as Maqbool’s challenge faded
in the heat of a balmy Kentish evening.
There was plenty of barmy squash next on Court
One as Kristian Frost overcame wild card Robbie Downer in a hard-hitting contest
that posed plenty of challenging questions for referee Ian McKenzie.
From 3-3 in the first, Frost moved ahead to 7-4
and maintained his advantage to close out the game.
Downer hit back in the second but squandered an
8-4 lead as Frost fought back in determined fashion after both players disputed
the legality of a boast from the Dane.
Frost won six points in a row and although Downer
grabbed another point he had lost the decisive momentum. Frost clinched the game
11-9 and from 3-2 down in the third he regained the same control to win the
third 11-4.
Declan James, the English and European Under-19
champion, battled bravely against No.2 seed Henrik Mustonen. James, from
Nottingham, lost two close tiebreaks in the first and third games as the Finnish
world No.52 triumped 12-10, 11-4, 14-12 in 44 minutes.
Mustonen meets Julien Balbo, the third French
player in the main draw, who beat Kent’s Steven London 14-12, 11-7, 11-7 in 48
minutes.
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