12-May-04:

Fleet Group:
Amr Shabana bt Thierry Lincou
    11/9, 9/11, 11/10 (4-2), 11/5  (45m)
Joe Kneipp bt Lee Beachill
    11/2, 11/7, 11/8  (36m)

Harrow Group:
Peter Nicol bt Jonathon Power
    11/8, 7/11, 11/5 rtd (24m)
John White bt Nick Matthew
     9/11, 11/3, 11/5, 11/5 (35m)

Kneipp goes through as
White stops Matthew's run

Tom Maidment reports from Broadgate

England's world No.4 Lee Beachill crashed out of the Brit Insurance Super Series Finals at London's Broadgate Arena tonight after suffering a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Australian no.6 Seed, Joe Kneipp.

In a must-win game for both players, Kneipp proved too strong for the 28-year-old Yorkshireman, booking himself a place in the last four with a hard-fought 11-2, 11-7, 11-8 victory in 36 minutes.

The Amsterdam-based world no.8 qualifies as the Fleet Group runner-up and will face Harrow Group winner John White in the first of tomorrow evening's semi-finals.

White, the No.2 Seed, again looked in irresistible form as he put an end to Nick Matthew's remarkable winning run.

After losing the first game 9-11 to the young Englishman White fought back brilliantly to take the next three, and the match, for a 9-11, 11-3, 11-5, 11-5 victory.

Matthew, in his first Super Series Finals appearance, will face Fleet Group winner Thierry Lincou in tomorrow night's second semi-final.

Lincou finished top of the Fleet Group despite losing 3-1 to Amr Shabana, the Egyptian world champion, in the opening match of the evening.

Jonathon Power's title defence ended in disappointment after he was carried off court in his match against Peter Nicol nursing ligament damage to his left ankle.

The incident occurred during the final point of the third game with the match just 24-minutes old. Power was taken off to hospital for precautionary x-rays, unable to take any further part in the tournament.

Nicol won the match 2-1 - his only victory of this year's finals - to take third place in the Harrow group.

The semi-finals start at 6pm on Thursday.

 


Brit Insurance Challenge
 
Ellery Hanley v Alec Stewart

Kingfisher
Player of the Day:
Joe Kneipp


White's win number three


 


Shabana bows out with a win


 

Kneipp goes through




No final this time ...
 

   
11-May-04:

Harrow Group

John White (Sco) bt Peter Nicol (Eng)
    11-9, 11-7, 11-7 (36 mins)
Nick Matthew (Eng) bt Jonathon Power (Can)
    11-6, 11-9, 2-11, 11-5 (39 mins)

Fleet Group
Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt Lee Beachill (Eng)
    5-11, 4-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-8 (72 mins)
Joe Kneipp (Aus) bt Amr Shabana (Egy)
    9-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-3 (42 mins)

 
NICOL AND POWER CRASH OUT
AS MATTHEW IMPRESSES AGAIN
Tom Maidment reports from Broadgate

World No.1 Peter Nicol and defending champion Jonathon Power both crashed out of the Brit Insurance Super Series Finals at London's Broadgate Arena tonight.

Nicol suffered his second straight Harrow Group defeat, this time at the hands of Scotland's world No.2 John White. The 31-year-old Englishman struggled to cope with the pace and power of White's attacking game, losing 3-0 in just 36-minutes to end his hopes of equalling Jansher Khan's record of four Super Series Finals crowns. White, meanwhile, looked in imperious form as he recorded his second 3-0 victory of the tournament.

Another stunning performance by England's bright new hope, Nick Matthew, ended Power's hopes of retaining the title he won here last year. The Sheffield-based 23-year-old, one of three debutants at the Finals this week, was in magnificent form once again, racing to a superb 11-6, 11-9, 2-11, 11-5 win in just 39 minutes.

A delighted Matthew said: "Peter Nicol yesterday, Power today and John White tomorrow. It doesn't get any tougher than that but I'm so pleased to get those results under my belt. It would be nice to think it was just because of the way I was playing but I could see that Jonathon and Peter were both tired. Obviously at this time of the year some players are carrying injuries after a long season but fortunately I'm still feeling reasonably fresh."

Matthew and White now top the Harrow Group and are both guaranteed a place in Thursday's semi-finals. Their final group match tomorrow night will decide the Harrow Group winner whilst Power and Nicol will contest 3rd and 4th place.

In the Fleet Group, France's No.1 seed Thierry Lincou fought back magnificently to defeat England's world No.4 Lee Beachill by 3-2. Trailing 2-0 and by 7 points to 2 in the third, Lincou looked all but out of the match before rallying to turn the game on its head and power to a 5-11, 4-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-8 win in 72-minutes. Lincou's victory sees him progress to the last four for the third successive year.

In the final match of the evening Australia's Amsterdam-based Joe Kneipp kept his title hopes alive with a 42-minute, 3-1 victory over world champion Amr Shabana of Egypt.

The winner of Kneipp's match against Beachill tomorrow evening will decide who, from the Fleet Group, progresses to the last four with Lincou.

Kneipp said: "It will be tough against Lee. We have played each other several times recently and he has come out on top, but I was moving much better tonight and
am looking forward to playing well again tomorrow."

 




White puts Nicol out


Matthew into the semis


Lincou comes back
to beat Beachill


Kneipp downs Shabana
 

   
10-May-04:
NICOL SLUMPS TO
SHOCK DEFEAT ...
Tom Maidment reports from Broadgate


England's world no.9 Nick Matthew caused a major upset at day one of the Brit Insurance Super Series Finals in London tonight, thrashing compatriot and world no.1 Peter Nicol by 3-0.

Matthew, England's fastest rising squash star, produced a stunning performance at The Broadgate Arena to confirm his growing stature in the game. The 23-year-old, making his debut appearance at the Finals, demolished Nicol in just over half an hour as he raced to a 11-5, 11-7, 11-4 win.

"I'm amazed, almost speechless. I knew Peter was looking a bit tired but I never expected that," said Matthew.

"I was joking before the match that I would do well to take a game off Peter so to win like that was unbelievable. I rate Peter as one of the top five players of all time and it was my ambition to beat him before he retired."

Tomorrow Matthew will face defending champion Jonathon Power of Canada who crashed to a 3-0 defeat against Scotland's world no.2, John White in the opening Harrow group match of the evening.

Power, a late call-up for the injured Anthony Ricketts, was brushed aside in just 27-minutes as White, the Nottingham-based no.2 Seed, opened his title bid with an impressive 11-4, 11-6, 11-4 victory.

Earlier in the evening England's Lee Beachill defeated Egyptian world champion Amr Shabana 3-1 to get off to a winning start in the Fleet Group. Beachill, the world no.4 from Yorkshire, looked in superb form as he withstood a ferocious onslaught of attacking shots from the left-handed Shabana who was making his first appearance at the Finals.

The match was the first in history to be played under the PSA's new scoring system of point a rally to 11 instead of 15.

"The scoring system is interesting and players will take a while to adjust to it," said Beachill. "The good thing is that the finishing line comes in sight a bit earlier so you are encouraged to attack."

Top Seed Thierry Lincou, the French world no.3, defeated Australia's Super Series Finals debutant Joe Kneipp by 3-1 in the evening's other Fleet Group match. Lincou, who finished third in the event last year and runner-up in 2002, played some stunning squash in a high quality match to claim victory in 70 minutes by 11-9, 11-8, 10-11, 11-4.

Results:

Harrow Group
John White (Sco) bt Jonathon Power (Can)
  11-4, 11-6, 11-4
Nick Matthew (Eng) be Peter Nicol (Eng)
  11-5, 11-7, 11-4

Fleet Group
Lee Beachill (Eng) bt Amr Shabana (Egy)
  11-9, 4-11, 11-10 (3-1), 11-8
Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt Joe Kneipp (Aus)
  11-9, 11-8, 10-11 (0-2), 11-4

Broadgate TODAY



Matthew's major upset



White gets past Power


Beachill grounds Shabana



Lincou outlasts Kneipp