In front of a
packed Ipswich Sports Club crowd, local hero Jonathan Kemp lived
up to his billing as number one seed in the ISC Seven Telematics Open by
beating second-seeded English compatriot Ben Coleman to win the inaugural
PSA World Tour Challenger 5 squash event in Ipswich, England.
Experienced
world No45 Kemp, the 32-year-old head pro at the club, reached the final without
dropping a game - seeing off fourth seed Declan James in the semi-finals
to reach the 17th Tour final of his career.
Rising English
star Coleman, the 22-year-old world No94 from Chelmsford, survived a tough
77-minute quarter-final against fellow countryman Joel Hinds before
brushing aside third-seeded Frenchman Yann Perrin in straight games to
make his fourth Tour final.
"Coleman
forced Kemp to play his best squash of the tournament, keeping the ball tight
and accurate and countering well when Kemp attacked too early," explained
tournament spokesman Jaclyn Kemp.
"The rallies
were all long and hard-fought, but with Coleman doing the majority of the work
he noticeably tired at the end of each game - allowing Kemp to pull away.
"In the end it
was Kemp's disguise and variety of shot that put paid to the challenge of the
young Englishman."
The 11-5,
11-7, 11-7 title triumph in 34 minutes gives Kemp the 13th PSA Tour title of his
career - but his first for more than two years.
