Home Win For
Massaro After Historic British Open Win
Laura
Massarohas
become the first Englishwoman to win theAllam
British Opentitle
in 22 years after a superb performance to defeat top seedNicol
David.
The
29-year-old from Preston saw the perfect start to British
Open campaign, beating unseededJoey
Chanin
the opening round, followed by a tricky four-game tie
againstDipika
Pallikalof
India. Massaro needed to another good performance to see
off the challenge of EgyptianOmneya
Abdel Kawyin
the quarter-finals, before recovering from a game down to
beat close rivalRaneem
El Weleilyin
yesterday’s semi.
All
the signs were pointing to another title win for Nicol
David, as the world champion from Malaysia looked strong in
her early round matches againstJoshana
ChinappaandSarah
Kippax. In the quarters she dismissedJoelle
Kingin
straight games, andAlison
Watersfaired
no better in the semi-final round as the seven-time world
champion moved into the final yet to drop a game.
Massaro, who
defeated the world No.1 on her home-turf in the KL Open in
March, got off to the best possible start in the final of
this$90,000
World Seriesevent.
She stormed to a five-point lead before David could
register a response, and had her opponent retrieving into
all four corners of the court.
Volleying well
and picking her moment to attack short, the Englishwoman
closed out the first game, but David game back in the second
with all guns blazing. Her length extended, she caused
problems for Massaro for the first time in the match, who
struggled to gain time on the tee, pinned to the back of the
court. A 7-1 lead was soon converted by the Malaysian to
draw level, which set up a nail-biting third game.
Both players
battled for the middle of court, hunting the volley to deny
the other time. The scores remained close throughout the
game until David snuck ahead in the last few points.
Massaro salvaged three game balls however, and served to
win the third game before winning the crucial point on a
video review stroke.
With
the home favourite back in front, David refocused but was
unable to launch a similar counter attack as she had in the
second game. Massaro, tactically astute all match, stayed
with the higher seed during the early points, before pulling
ahead to 7-3 with the crowd roaring their support. David’s
error count increased uncharacteristically as she searched
for the winning points, and wasted a vital point by serving
out to gift Massaro championship ball.
The four-time
British Open winner salvaged two points, but this was not to
be her year as the packed audience celebrated witnessing the
first home winner of the British Open since Lisa Opie in
1991. An excellent tactical effort from Massaro sees the
Englishwoman clinch the third World Series title and the
twelfth of her career.
Nicol Davidremains
on course to retain herAllam
British Opentitle, and her
first of 2013 after beating sixth seedJoelle
Kingin the quarter-finals.
The world No.1 from Malaysia was evenly matched in the opening game at theHull
and East Riding Squash Club, after adverse weather conditions called a
halt to play at the KC Stadium. Only a tiebreak separated the pair, but David
had the edge over her opponent and maintained her narrow advantage to take the
second game. King’s counter-attacking efforts began to take their toll however,
and she was unable to put up much of a fight in the third, with David closing
out the win.
The seven-time world champion will now face EnglishwomanAlison
Watersafter the fourth
seed’s impressive victory over Australia’sKasey
Brown. Brown was unable to match the efficiency displayed by the home
hopeful who dominated the match and allowed the twelfth seed no chance to get
into her stride.
Raneem El Weleilymaintained
her good form in the event by dispatching eighth seedJenny
Duncalf. The Englishwoman took a closely fought lead against the No.3
seed, but El Weleily recovered well and launched an aggressive attacking effort
to storm to victory and into the next round.
The Egyptian will face English rivalLaura
Massaro, following the local Yorkshire-woman’s four game defeat ofOmneya
Abdel Kawy. Having defeated fifth seed Nour El Sherbini in last
night’s second round, Kawy was in promising form but Massaro was clever in her
deconstruction of the Egyptian’s game. At 2-0 she looked good value for her
lead, but Kawy refused to give up and managed to end the third game on her
terms. The world No.2 bounced back immediately however and ended the contest in
four to reach her fourth successive World Series semi-final.
Britain
and Egypt Hold Strong In Second Round Two Day
Jenny Duncalf survived a worrying first game scare to confirm her place
in the quarter-finals of the Allam British Open 2013.
In the second day of a split round two draw, the world No.8 needed to be alert
against a quick and gutsy Nour El Tayeb, who seemed to be enjoying the
grand World Series stage.
El Tayeb, ranked No.23 in the WSA world rankings was able to match her opponent
in the early stages, and saved three game balls to force the first game to a
tiebreak. Duncalf tightened her attacking shots to the front to combat
the speed of the Egyptian, and gladly closed the game out 14-12.
The loss seemed to dishearten the 20-year-old form Cairo, who gave away five
successive points in the second game to sure up Duncalf’s position. This
gave the Englishwoman the confidence to attack higher up the court and she
ended the contest with a further two quick games. "It doesn’t matter
if we play in the Sahara desert or in the middle of the snow," Duncalf
told SquashSite after the match, "it’s still the British Open, and
if you are a good squash player, you’ll play well on any court."
The 2008 British Open runner-up will face Raneem El Weleily, who looked
in good form as she dispatched the experienced Madeline Perry in
straight games. The Egyptian No.3 seed wasted no time in setting about
her usual attacking game, and Perry was happy to take her opportunities too as
they both racked up some quick points. El Weleily’s lower error rate gave
her a slight advantage to take the first game, but Perry made a real battle of
game two to force a tiebreak. In the end though there was nothing she
could to do as the world No.3 put the game to bed, followed by a dominant third
to end the contest.
"It’s the first time I played with sleeves on," said El Weleily on
the cold court temperature, "so definitely not my favourite conditions.
But it’s a good court, and I like it, but no, it’s not as easy as it looks,
plus it’s a very risky game so you need a plan B!
"Jenny and I
have had some pretty nice battles, and last year, I reached the semis after
beating her in the quarters, so I hope we’ll have another great battle
tomorrow."
Despite surprising last year’s British Open onlookers by reaching the final at
16-years of age, Nour El Sherbini failed to match per past form as she
succumbed to a straight games loss to compatriot Omneya Abdel Kawy.
Sherbini, seeded fifth for the event, lost out narrowly in the first game
as both players made their way through a far from flawless performance.
The cold court made attacking shots all the more dangerous, but the
Egyptians scored points and gave them away in equal measure as little else
separated them at the tiebreak. The more experienced Kawy was able to do
enough to claim the opening game however, and some more tactical play saw the
former world No.4 run out 3-0 winner against the higher seed.
"I think the difference today came from the pressure she felt, because she
is the highest ranked player, and that she got into the final last year,"
said Kawy. "But also, maybe the way I played surprised her, I thought she
was going to play a lot more shots at the front, but she didn't."
Kawy will face local Laura Massaro in tomorrow’s quarter-final round,
following the second seeds four-game win over Dipika Pallikal. It
was the Indian player who started in better form, attacking quickly in the cool
conditions, with Massaro struggling to retrieve.
The Englishwoman was able to move her opponent off the tee more in the second
game and claimed a narrow tiebreak game to draw level, before taking an equally
close third. The home hopeful had more breathing room in the fourth game
as Pallikal’s error count rose, and she sped to match point with a comfortable
cushion. Pallikal took a nasty slip in the final rally, colliding head-first
with the side-wall but the match was Massaro’s and the world No.2, along with
Duncalf and Alison Waters who progressed on Wednesday, remain on course for
British success.
"It's such tough conditions on there I just had to concentrate on each point,”
said the Englishwoman. “It might have seemed a bit excessive but I needed to
keep on geeing myself up and that was the only way to do it."
2nd Round
Top Half
Mixed Day For Home
Hopefuls In British Open Round Two
The home contingent saw mixed fortunes in
yesterday’s first of a split-second round draw of the Allam British Open
2013.
Sarah-Jane Perry came painfully close to scalping another seeded player
in the first match of round two, with the newly capped England international
unable to convert a two-game lead over Kasey Brown of Australia.
The 22-year-old, who defeated seventh seed Low Wee Wern in yesterday’s
opener, continued her strong form into round two. The Englishwoman played
well to the front of the court, allowing her opponent no opportunity to find a
consistent rhythm, and took an impressive two-game lead. Facing an impending
loss, Brown made an effort to push forward, depriving Perry time on the tee and
forcing errors from the younger player.
This seemed to have the desired effect, and with the attacking threat of Perry
somewhat neutralised compared to the opening games, the Australian world No.12
gained a foothold and drew level at 2-all.
The fifth game very close and the scores were tied at 6-all before Brown pulled
away with a succession of nicks to hold match ball at 7-10. Buoyed by the
home crowd, Perry rallied hard and fought her way back to force a tiebreak, but
unfortunate positioning in the final rally handed Brown the stroke and with it,
the match.
The Australian said after the match: “I went on there
thinking that Sarah-Jane hits amazing shots, so I'm going to get in before she
does. I made a few mistakes in the first two games, but after that I
concentrated on my basic game, and it slowly got better.
Once I got the third game, I guess I relaxed a bit and thought I'd just keep
the pressure on and see what would come out of it. Last year I was up 2-0
up, and lost 3-2. So it's a nice feeling this year to turn it round, and it
actually gives me confidence to know that I can!”
Brown will progress to Friday’s quarter-final to face another home hopeful, Alison
Waters. Waters quickly ran to a 2-game lead against her opponent,
four-time British Open winner Rachael Grinham, with the Australian
looking out of sorts. But the former world No.1 cut out the unforced
errors that had plagued her earlier points, and she began to mount a
respectable comeback against the No.4 seed. Grinham continued to hit her
targets at the front and back of the court and Waters, perhaps with one eye
already on Friday’s quarter-final, struggled to raise her game, giving away
cheap points.
The third and fourth games showed Grinham’s quality as she slowly gained
momentum, but her hour-long first round match yesterday was beginning to show.
Waters was able to capitalise on her opponents’ flagging legs and close
out the tie, in 42-minutes.
"It's a tough court to play on, and Rachael really didn't get into it at
the start," said Waters afterwards, "but I knew she'd find her range
sooner or later."
“Rachael's won this four times so I knew she wouldn't be easy to beat, even
when I was 2-0 up. She found her range in the third and fourth and I
wasn't mixing it enough, I was playing too much down the backhand and she took
advantage.
"In the fifth I just told myself to stick to basics and keep my length,
and I managed to stay in front.”
Joelle King continued the strong form from her opening round into round
two at Hull City’s KC Stadium, and demonstrated her title ambitionsby
dispatching Annie Au in straight games. The No.6 seed proved to be too
good on the day, with her powerful well-angled crosscourt drive regularly
causing Au problems and the 24-year-old could scape just a handful of points
before King ended the contest in straight games.
The New Zealander spoke to SquashSite after her match, saying: “Today I
came prepared, and I thought it was going to be colder than it actually was!
Annie is lethal with her short game, so I kept her out of her attacking
position, and made my lead early.
“Both Sarah and Nicol are tough competitors. I’m looking forward to the
quarters, especially in this lovely setting. Hopefully they’ll have a
long 5 setter, and will kill each other off!”
King will play top seed and four-time British Open champion Nicol David
in Friday’s quarter-final round. The Malaysian faced home interest Sarah
Kippax, who did well to defeat Natalie Grinham in a 68-minute tie on
Tuesday. The world champion David started the match strongly, retrieving
to a good length and quickly punishing loose shots. The second was a
different contest entirely. The Chester-born Englishwoman returned to
court with a strategy and caused problems from the first point with some
sensible, tight play. She took her opportunities well at the front of the
court and stayed with the Malaysian throughout the game to force a tiebreak.
The world No.21 held game ball at 11-10 but was unable to find the
crucial point, before David came back to win 14-12.
Disheartened, Kippax was sucked back into a similar pattern as the first game.
Her opponent moved up a gear, winning a succession of points without
reply and ran out a relatively untroubled third game to book her quarter-final
place.
Speaking to SquashSite after the match, David said: “It’s so good to be
back on the glass court, it’s the first time for us here in this setting and we
are all pretty excited to be here.
“In the second, Sarah was feeding off the crowd, and was carried by the
momentum. I made sure that I took that game and come back stronger in the 3rd.”
1st Round Perry,
Tayeb & Kippax Spring Surprises At British Open Round OneThe first
day of the Allam British Open main draw held a number of surprise
results as the world’s elite battle for supremacy in squash’s oldest event. Unseeded
English duo Sarah-Jane Perry and Sarah Kippax caused big
upsets in front of a home crowd at the Pontefract Club in West Yorkshire,
England, whilst Egyptian Nour El Tayeb also claimed an unfancied
win. Having risen
42 places in the WSA World Tour rankings since this event last year,
Sarah-Jane Perry has taken giant leaps in improving her game. This has been
reflected in three WSA titles claimed so far in 2013, and the 23-year-old
put in a performance of the highest quality to defeat No.7 seed Low Wee
Wern. The powerful
Englishwoman took a strong lead early on, whilst her Malaysian opponent was
slow in rising to the occasion. A tiebreak second game showed signs of a
struggle from Wee Wern and despite narrowly losing out 13-11, she returned
to court to take the third game. Still acclimatising to the Tour as a Top20
player, the world No18 adjusted her game to combat the Malaysian’s
fight-back, and held firm to deny Wee Wern a fourth game victory and record
the best result of her career to date. Her first
World Series second round appearance will be against No.12 seed Kasey
Brown, following the Australian’s straight games dismissal of qualifier Lauren
Briggs. Following
Nour El Tayeb’s four-game defeat of No.9 seed Camille Serme, the
Egyptian will have her eye on another scalp in round two as she faces eighth
seed Jenny Duncalf. Duncalf will have other ideas however, after
defeating Latasha Khan of the USA, and looking for her second career
appearance in the British Open final, having finished runner-up in 2008.Qualifier
Sarah Kippax also impressed home audiences with a marathon win against No.10
seed Natalie Grinham. Kippax lost out in a narrow opening game to
the experienced Dutch international, but scrapped to an even closer 13-11
tiebreak win in the second. Back level, she set about taking the lead from
the former world No.3 but after claiming a quicker third game, was pegged
back in the fourth. Another determined effort from the 30-year-old
Englishwoman however, saw the unseeded player progressing in 68-minutes to
face world champion Nicol David in round two. David’s
British Open title defence got off to the best of starts as the Malaysian
beat Indian qualifier Joshana Chinappa in straight games. Her main
threats to the title, second and third seeds Laura Massaro and Raneem
El Weleily were also showing promising early form, with local
Yorkshire-born Massaro defeating Joey Chan in straight games, whilst
El Weleily of Egypt overcame qualifier Delia Arnold 3-1. Massaro will
face Dipika Pallikal in round two, following the Indian
international’s 75-minute marathon win over Line Hansen of Denmark,
and El Weleily will play in-form Irishwoman Madeline Perry, who
dispatched Emma Beddoes in straight games. Fourth and
fifth seeds Alison Waters and Nour El Sherbini saw successes
against their respective opponents in round one. Waters of England came
from a game down to defeat promising teenager and compatriot Emily
Whitlock, while 17-year-old Sherbini took two tiebreak games to defeat
Harvard student Amanda Sobhy 3-1. Waters will
now face four-time British Open champion Rachael Grinham in round
two, though the Australian won’t have too long to recover from her five-game
battle with Nicolette Fernandes. Sherbini will face Egyptian
compatriot Omneya Abdel Kawy following the No14 seed’s three-game win
over Donna Urquhart. Sixth seed Joelle King was also
comfortable on route through to the next round after beating qualifier Samantha
Cornett of Canada. The Kiwi will play Annie Au of Hong Kong,
following the No.13 seed’s 3-1 win over Aisling Blake. Winners of
today’s round one matches will move to the KC Stadium in Hull for a
televised schedule on SquashTV for
the rest of the week. The $90,000 World Series event will hold round
two split over Wednesday and Thursday with the quarter-finals on Friday, and
the semis and final taking place on Saturday and Sunday.
Two
highly competitive rounds of qualifying at the Pontefract Squash Club
in Yorkshire, England has confirmed first round draw of the WSA World
Series Allam British Open.
The most memorable match of the qualifiers was certainly Latasha Khan’s
marathon match against young Misaki Kobayashi of Japan, lasting a
brutal 73-minutes. The experienced American led by two games, one of
which a 15-13 tiebreak, when the 23-year-old launched her comeback,
stealing a narrow third game 11-9, before gaining momentum to draw level
after the fourth. The pair, still deadlocked at 10-all, commenced the
second tiebreak of the contest and the veteran Khan had to draw on all
her experience to put down the world No.42 and claim the final game
17-15.
The 40-year-old American will now face home hopeful Jenny Duncalf
in the first round of the British Open following her wins over Kobayashi
and earlier, Maud Duplomb of France.
Joshana Chinappa faces arguably the most difficult prospect of
all of the successful qualifiers, having been drawn to face top seed and
three-time British Open champion Nicol David in tomorrow’s
opening round.
The Indian had to stem the two-game comeback of Gaby Huber of
Switzerland in the first qualifying round, before coming from a game
down to defeat Welsh hopeful Deon Saffrey in four games to reach
the World Series main draw.
Not fatigued after a gruelling year of studying at Harvard College,
American Amanda Sobhy qualified for round one after dispatching
local Claire Walker, followed by Scottish national Lisa Aitken.
Sobhy will face prodigal teenager and last year’s finalist Nour El
Sherbini of Egypt in her opening round clash.
English pair Emma Beddoes and Lauren Briggs confirmed
their main round appearance on home soil following straight games wins
over Nada El Kalaawy and Melody Francis respectively.
Beddoes, who dropped a game in her first qualifying match against
Amina Helal, will face in-form Irishwoman Madeline Perry who
won the Texas Open earlier this month. Briggs will face Australian
twelfth seed Kasey Brown.
Samantha Cornett of Canada will face Kiwi Joelle King in
tomorrow’s opening round following strong 3-0 wins against Sarah
Cardwell and Olga Ertlova.
Last month’s Irish Open runner-up Nicolette Fernandes will face
former British Open champion Rachael Grinham after beating
Victoria Temple-Murray and Lucie Fialova in straight games,
whilst Malaysian Delia Arnold’s victories over Laura Pomportes
and Birgit Coufal see her drawn to face No.3 seed Raneem El
Weleily of Egypt.
The WSA Allam British Open first round will be played at the
Pontefract Squash Club
Women's
Draw
David
And Top Seeds Reach British Open Semi
