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World Games 2022
Men's Draw
13 - 17 Jul
Alabama, USA |
ROUND TWO
14 APR |
QUARTERS
15 APR |
SEMIS
16 APR |
FINAL
17 APR |
[1] Grégoire Marche (FRA)
11-7, 11-7 (23m)
Rhys Dowling (AUS) |
Grégoire Marche
11-7, 11-1 (17m)
David Baillargeon |
Grégoire Marche
11-8, 13-11, 11-4 (45m)
Dimitri Steinmann |
Grégoire Marche
9-11, 14-12, 10-12, 11-3, 11-2 (66m)
Victor Crouin |
[9/16] David Baillargeon (CAN)
9-11, 12-10, 11-5 (46m)
[5/8] Faraz Khan (USA) |
[5/8] Dimitri Steinmann (SUI)
11-9, 13-15, 11-9 (52m)
[9/16] Ronald Palomino (COL) |
Dimitri Steinmann
12-10, 11-2 (30m)
Raphael Kandra |
[3/4] Raphael Kandra (GER)
11-6, 11-2 (16m)
[9/16] Jakub Solnicky (CZE) |
[3/4] Victor Crouin (FRA)
11-3, 11-2 (18m)
[9/16] Yannick Wilhelmi (SUI) |
Victor Crouin
8-11, 13-11, 11-3 (44m)
Shahjahan Khan |
Victor Crouin
11-8, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9 (68m)
Miguel Rodriguez |
[5/8] Shahjahan Khan (USA)
11-9, 11-5 (24m)
Joseph White (AUS) |
[5/8] Baptiste Masotti (FRA)
11-9, 7-11, 11-7 (32m)
Simon Rösner (GER) |
Baptiste Masotti
11-3, 11-6 (21m)
Miguel Rodriguez |
Jeremías Azaña (ARG)
11-3, 11-4 (20m)
[2] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) |
[1] Grégoire Marche (FRA) bye
Rhys Dowling (AUS) bt [9/16] Christopher Gordon (USA) 11-5, 11-8
[9/16] David Baillargeon (CAN) bt Rafael Gálvez (PER) 11-6, 11-2
[5/8] Faraz Khan (USA) bt Sergio Garcia Pollan (ESP) 11-7, 11-6
[5/8] Dimitri Steinmann (SUI) bt Valeriy Fedoruk (UKR) 11-6, 11-9
[9/16] Ronald Palomino (COL) bt Sean Conroy (IRL) 11-1, 11-3
[9/16] Jakub Solnicky (CZE) bt Filip Jarota (POL) 11-6, 8-11, 11-4
[3/4] Raphael Kandra (GER) bye
[3/4] Victor Crouin (FRA) bye
[9/16] Yannick Wilhelmi (SUI) bt Harley Lam (HKG) 9-11, 12-10, 11-3
Joseph White (AUS) bt [9/16] Yannik Omlor (GER) 11-4, 8-11, 12-10
[5/8] Shahjahan Khan (USA) bt Vini Rodrigues (BRA) 14-12, 11-8
[5/8] Baptiste Masotti (FRA) bt Dima Scherbakov (UKR) 11-2, 11-2
Simon Rösner (GER) bt [9/16] Balázs Farkas (HUN) 6-11, 11-6, 11-9
Jeremías Azaña (ARG) bt [9/16] Martin Svec (CZE) 11-5, 10-12, 11-9
[2] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) bye |
World Games 2022
Women's Draw
13 - 17 Jul
Alabama, USA |
ROUND TWO
14 APR |
QUARTERS
15 APR |
SEMIS
16 APR |
FINAL
17 APR |
[1] Tinne Gilis (BEL)
11-7, 11-4 (12m)
[9/16] Nikki Todd (CAN) |
Tinne Gilis
11-5, 11-7 (17m)
Marina Stefanoni |
Tinne Gilis
11-7, 11-9, 11-6 (29m)
Coline Aumard |
Tinne Gilis
11-9, 11-7, 11-6 (30m)
Lucy Beecroft |
[9/16] Marina Stefanoni (USA)
14-12, 11-7 (27m)
[5/8] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) |
[9/16] Saskia Beinhard (GER)
12-10, 11-6 (21m)
[5/8] Emilia Soini (FIN) |
Saskia Beinhard
11-7, 11-5 (17m)
Coline Aumard |
[3/4] Coline Aumard (FRA)
11-7, 12-10 (25m)
[9/16] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) |
Katerina Tycova (GER)
11-6, 11-3 (15m)
[9/16] Alex Haydon (AUS) |
Katerina Tycova
11-4, 11-7 (14m)
Lucy Beecroft |
Lucy Beecroft
11-8, 11-3, 11-6 (24m)
Haley Mendez |
[5/8] Lucy Beecroft (ENG)
12-10, 11-7 (18m)
[9/16] Cheng Nga Ching (HKG) |
[5/8] Haley Mendez (USA)
7-11, 11-3, 11-7 (22m)
[9/16] Karina Tyma (POL) |
Haley Mendez
6-11, 11-4, 11-9 (26m)
Mélissa Alves |
[9/16] Nadia Pfister (SUI)
11-3, 11-4 (14m)
[2] Mélissa Alves (FRA) |
[1] Tinne Gilis (BEL) bye
[9/16] Nikki Todd (CAN) bt Maria Moya (ECU) 11-5, 5-11, 11-1
[9/16] Marina Stefanoni (USA) bt Laura Tovar (COL) 11-9, 11-3
[5/8] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) bt Nadiia Usenko (UKR) 11-3, 11-3
[5/8] Emilia Soini (FIN) bt Ching Hei Fung (HKG) 11-4, 11-5
[9/16] Saskia Beinhard (GER) bt Kincső Szász (HUN) 11-1, 11-1
[9/16] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) bt Jia Liu (CHN) 11-1, 11-1
[3/4] Coline Aumard (FRA) bt Celine Walser (SUI) 11-4, 11-2
Katerina Tycova (GER) bt [3/4] Anna Serme (CZE) 8-11, 14-12, 11-3
[9/16] Alex Haydon (AUS) bt Riina Koskinen (FIN) 11-5, 11-5
[9/16] Cheng Nga Ching (HKG) bt Anastasiia Kostiukova (UKR) 11-4, 11-4
[5/8] Lucy Beecroft (ENG) bt Hannah Chukwu (HUN) 11-4, 11-5
[5/8] Haley Mendez (USA) bt Erisa Sano Herring (JPN) 11-2, 11-13, 11-6
[9/16] Karina Tyma (POL) bt Lucia Bautista (COL) 11-7, 11-6
[9/16] Nadia Pfister (SUI) bt Hannah Blatt (CAN) 9-11, 11-6, 12-10
[2] Mélissa Alves (FRA) bye |
FINALS
Golds for Crouin and Gilis
Gregoire Marche, Lucy Beecroft, Victor Crouin, Tinne
Gilis, Miguel Rodriguez, Coline Aumard
France’s Victor Crouin and Belgium’s Tinne Gilis are the new The World
Games champions after they beat France’s Grégoire Marche and Great
Britain’s Lucy Beecroft, respectively, while Colombia’s Miguel Rodriguez
and France’s Coline Aumard won bronze.
3/4 seed Crouin came into the final having impressed in victories over
Yannick Wilhelmi, 5/8 seed Shahjahan Khan and 3/4 seed Miguel Rodriguez.
Today, just as in his quarter-final win over the USA’s Khan, Crouin was
forced to call on his reserves of willpower and fight back from losing
the first game.
After top seed Marche took an even first game 11-9, World No.18 Crouin
was in a challenging situation when Marche had two game balls at 10-8 in
the second.
The 23-year-old, though, was able to stay calm and saved both game balls
before eventually levelling the tie with a 14-12 victory.
This time, it was Marche’s turn to respond and the 32-year-old regained
the lead with a razor-tight 12-10 win.
From this point on, though, the World No.13 struggled, and Crouin was
able to secure a first men’s squash gold at The World Games since
Gregory Gaultier in 2013 with comfortable 11-3 and 11-2 wins.
Afterwards, Crouin said: “I’m so happy! My goal was to win a medal at
this event and I return home with the gold! To beat Miguel and Greg back
to back is huge for me. I did my best to recover from yesterday’s brutal
semi-final but still had a rough night due to soreness. So, to win today
means a lot to me!
“Winning the gold is a huge achievement for my country and myself and I
am proud to have fought all the way until the end. So happy!”
Result: The World Games 2022, Men’s Final
[3/4] Victor Crouin (FRA) bt [1] Grégoire Marche (FRA) 3-2: 9-11, 14-12,
10-12, 11-3, 11-2 (66m)
Gilis celebrates her win
In the women’s final, top seed Gilis put in a mature performance to beat
5/8 seed Lucy Beecroft in straight games. The World No.13 was made to
work hard for her wins in all three games by Beecroft who, like Gilis,
had reached the final without dropping a game.
After going 7-5 down in the first game, Gilis found her accuracy to put
together a scoring run of five unanswered points to earn three game
balls. Although Beecroft managed to save two of these, Gilis was able to
convert the third as she took the first game 11-9.
The second and third games followed a similar script to the first, with
Beecroft more than holding her own before succumbing to a late scoring
charge from the Belgian. In the second game, the 24-year-old accelerated
away from 5-5 to 11-7, before a brilliant spell took her from 6-5 down
in the third to an 11-6 winner.
“I’m really, really happy with my gold medal today,” Gilis said
afterwards. “I hope I made my country proud, my family proud and
everyone proud! I’m so, so happy, for sure!”
Result: The World Games 2022, Women’s Final
[1] Tinne Gilis (BEL) bt [5/8] Lucy Beecroft (GBR) 3-0: 11-9, 11-7, 11-6
(30m)
Rodriguez (right) serves against Steinmann.
Elsewhere, there were bronze medals for Colombia’s Rodriguez and
France’s Aumard after they beat Dimitri Steinmann of Switzerland and
Haley Mendez of the USA.
3/4 seed Rodriguez, who also won the bronze medal in 2013, began his
hunt for a second World Games medal with a fairly comfortable 11-5 win
in the first game before being pegged back 11-4 by 5/8 seed Steinmann in
the second.
The fiercely tight games then followed, with Rodriguez saving two game
balls to take the third game 12-10 and then edging the crucial fourth
13-11.
Reacting after his win, Rodriguez said: “It is always really special to
represent my country. For us, getting a medal at The World Games is as
important as an Olympic medal or World Championship event.
“After nine years, I am getting my second bronze at The World Games and
I feel proud of the way I fought mentally to stay at the podium.
Besides, we will keep our funding for our sport in Colombia and
personally adding a bronze to the Colombian delegation total is
enormous.”
3/4 seed Aumard, meanwhile, played a back-and-forth encounter with 5/8
seed Haley Mendez. Aumard took the first game 11-6 before Mendez
responded with an 11-5 in game two. Aumard replied with an 11-9 in the
third game to reclaim the lead, only for Mendez to once again level with
an 11-6 win in the fourth.
In the decisive fifth game, Aumard was able to keep ahead of Mendez,
finally edging the encounter with an 11-8 win to earn France’s first of
three medals that day. |
DAY FOUR
Belgium, France And Great Britain Through To Finals
In the women’s draw, top seed Tinne Gilis will face England’s Lucy
Beecroft after she beat close friend and 3/4 seed Coline Aumard in
straight games, maintaining a superb run of form that has seen her win
every game played at The World Games so far.
The Belgian made a strong start to her first game and quickly opened up
a 4-0 lead. From here on, she was dominant and lead for the entirety of
the match as she closed out an 11-7, 11-9, 11-6 win in 29 minutes.
Afterwards, Gilis said: “I had a little deja vu feeling after my match
against Coline today. A month ago, I was her last official match on
tour, yet I played her again today.
“I’ve got so much respect for her, she’s such a fighter. She just loves
playing for France and would do anything to make her country proud even
after her retirement!
“I’m of course very happy to be playing the final in my first World
Games experience. I’m playing against my roomie Lucy Beecroft, which
will be a good match for sure. It’s the first time for both of us so I’m
sure it’s going to be a good battle on court!”
Beecroft, meanwhile, ended the USA’s hopes for a home champion after
downing fellow 5/8 seed Haley Mendez in straight games. The World No.54
will go into the final feeling confident having won every match at The
World Games without dropping a game.
The men’s final will be an all-French affair after top seed Grégoire
Marche downed 5/8 seed Dimitri Steinmann of Switzerland in straight
games and 3/4 seed Victor Crouin beat Colombian No.2 seed Miguel
Rodriguez 3-1.
Marche, who like Gilis and Beecroft has a perfect record at The World
Games this year, looked to be going through comfortably after taking the
first game 11-8.
Steinmann, however, came back hard in game two. The World No.45 saved
two game balls before Marche eventually converted, with the Frenchman
taking the second game 13-11 and the third 11-4.
Crouin, meanwhile, was also made to work hard by former World No.4
Rodriguez. The World No.18 took a 2-0 lead before Rodriguez battled back
to take the third 11-8.
Crouin was able to find his composure in the fourth game, though, and
after seeing one match ball saved, took the win with an 11-9 victory.
Elsewhere, in the plate finals, Colombia’s Laura Tovar beat the Czech
Republic’s Anna Serme 3-0, while Hungary’s Balazs Farkas beat the USA’s
Christopher Gordon by the same scoreline.
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Day Three
Mendez downs No.2 seed Alves
The USA’s 5/8 seed Haley Mendez kept the home hopes alive as she came
from behind for the second match in succession to beat French No.2 seed
Mélissa Alves 2-1 and reach The World Games 2022 semi-finals in
Birmingham, USA.
World No.25 Alves made a strong start to the match, comfortably taking
the first game 11-6. However, just as she did in her quarter-final match
with Poland’s Karina Tyma, Mendez found the perfect response.
The World No.56 came out of the blocks quickly as she levelled the
scores with an 11-4 win and was able to maintain her momentum into the
decisive third, which she took 11-9 after seeing three of her match
balls saved.
The 28-year-old will play England’s Lucy Beecroft in the semi-final,
following the 5/8 seed’s 14-minute 2-0 win over tournament surprise
package Katerina Tycova of Germany.
The second women’s semi-final will be contested by Belgian top seed
Tinne Gilis and French 3/4 seed Coline Aumard after victories over the
USA’s Marina Stefanoni and Germany’s Saskia Beinhard, respectively.
In the men’s draw, 5/8 seed Dimitri Steinmann ended a run of four
successive defeats to Germany’s Raphael Kandra to knock the 3/4 seed out
in straight games.
The 25-year-old won the first game 12-10 after saving two game balls,
before a run of seven unanswered points guided him through to the
semi-finals as he took the second game 11-2.
Steinmann’s opponent in the semi-finals will be top seed Grégoire Marche
after the Frenchman beat Canada’s David Baillargeon 11-7, 11-1 in 17
minutes.
Afterwards, Marche paid tribute to the hosts for what had been a
fantastic competition.
“I’m happy to be in the semis here in Birmingham,” he said. “It’s a nice
atmosphere here with the French crew. We have all the French athletes
from the other sports coming to watch us as well. It’s just a completely
different feeling to a tournament on the PSA World Tour. I feel really
proud to try to put the French flag on top and get the medals. I’m
really happy and lucky to be here.
“I played ok today and tomorrow is another day. Dimitri [Steinmann] is a
good friend and I know it’s not going to be easy. I’ll have a different
approach to the match because it’s best of five. I just feel really
happy and grateful to be in this kind of atmosphere!”
The second men’s semi-final will see No.2 seed Miguel Rodriguez of
Colombia face French 3/4 Victor Crouin after Rodriguez recorded a
comfortable 2-0 victory over France’s Baptiste Masotti and Crouin came
from one game down to beat the USA’s Shahjahan Khan.
Elsewhere, in the plate matches, Céline Walser of Switzerland came from
behind to beat Ching Hei Fung of Hong Kong.
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DAY TWO
Masotti Downs Defending Champ Rösner And Tycova Run
Continues
Germany’s reigning World Games champion Simon Rösner’s title defence
came to an end last night as the 34-year-old went down to French World
No.20 Baptiste Masotti in an entertaining encounter.
In a tight first game, it was Masotti who struck first, with the
27-year-old able to keep his nose ahead of Rösner the entire time on his
way to an 11-9 win.
Rösner, though, soon hit back. The winner of The World Games 2017, who
has returned after retiring from the PSA World Tour in December 2020,
put in a vintage game two performance and levelled the match with an
11-7 win.
When the German took the first three points of the decisive third game –
with The World Games using best-of-three scoring until the semi-finals –
it appeared that a repeat of his first round comeback against Hungary’s
Balazs Farkas was on the cards.
Masotti, however, was able to hold his nerve. The Frenchman, playing in
his first World Games, calmly chipped away at Rösner’s lead before
putting on a run of five straight points on his way to a second 11-7
win.
Masotti’s opponent in the quarter-finals will be Colombian No.2 seed
Miguel Rodriguez, after the former World No.4 recorded a comfortable 2-0
win over Argentina’s Jeremías Azaña.
Rosner (right) serves against Masotti.
Elsewhere, Canada’s World No.62 David Baillargeon will play
French top seed Grégoire Marche after an impressive victory in which he
came from behind to beat the USA’s World No.51 Faraz Khan, while
Switzerland’s Dimitri Steinmann celebrated his 25th birthday with a
narrow 2-1 win over Colombia’s Ronald Palomino.
Completing the men’s quarter-final draw will be Germany’s Raphael Kandra,
France’s Victor Crouin and the USA’s Shahjahan Khan.
Tycova (left) and Haydon (right).
In the women’s draw, Germany’s World No.130 Katerina Tycova
continued her strong showing with a 2-0 win over Australia’s World No.85
Alex Haydon to become the only unseeded player through to the
quarter-finals.
Tycova had already raised eyebrows in Birmingham with her shock first
round win over 3/4 seed Anna Serme, and continued that fine form
yesterday.
While the 23-year-old’s victory over Serme required a heroic fightback
from 1-0 down, last night was a simpler affair for Tycova, with the
German recording a relatively straightforward 2-0 win in 15 minutes.
Tycova’s opponent in today’s quarter-final will be English World No.54
Lucy Beecroft following the 25-year-old’s 2-0 win over Hong Kong’s Cheng
Nga Ching.
Also safely through to the quarter-finals is top seed Tinne Gilis of
Belgium, who will play the USA’s Marina Stefanoni after recording the
quickest win of the day by dispatching Canada’s Nikki Todd in 12 minutes
in a good-natured match.
Afterwards, Gilis said: “I’m obviously very happy to win today. I find
the first match is always the hardest, especially when it’s best of
three, as there’s more pressure and you have to make sure you start
well. I knew this was going to be an enjoyable match with Nikki, it
always is. I wish I could be so happy on court all the time! But I’m
definitely happy about today’s performance and looking forward to the
next one!”
Elsewhere, Tycova’s Germany teammate and World No.73 Saskia Beinhard
recorded an impressive victory over Finland’s World No.48 Emilia Soini
to set up a quarter-final clash with 3/4 seed Coline Aumard, who beat
Australia’s Jessica Turnbull 2-0.
Also through to the quarter-finals are France’s Mélissa Alves and the
USA’s Haley Mendez, who beat Switzerland’s Nadia Pfister and Poland’s
Karina Tyma, respectively.
Anastasiia Kostiukova celebrates a historic win.
Yesterday also saw the first round of the plate matches –
which will help decide the final standings for players beaten on day one
– get underway, with the result of the day coming for Ukraine’s
Anastasiia Kostiukova, who recorded her country’s first ever squash win
at The World Games by beating Hungary’s Hannah Chinyere Chukwu 2-0.
“It is a great honour for me to represent my country at The World
Games,” Kostiukova said afterwards. Birmingham welcomed us very
hospitably; there are wonderful people and a wonderful atmosphere. My
thanks to our Federation, the World Federation and our Ministry of
Sports for making this possible.
“I adapted to the second match and was able to show a decent game. It
was my revenge, because eight months ago I played with Hannah and lost
3-1 to her. I am proud to be Ukrainian and it is an honour for me to
represent my country and I am glad that, in this difficult time, I was
able to bring the first victory in squash to Ukraine at the World
Games!” |
DAY ONE
It’s the first day of action at The World Games 2022 in Birmingham, USA,
with a whopping 26 matches kicking things off!
With the four top seeded men and the top two seeded women watching on
from the stands after receiving byes, attention is on the likes of
Germany’s Simon Rosner, a champion in 2017 and back on the world circuit
after his retirement from the PSA World Tour in 2020, and France’s
Coline Aumard, who called time on her World Tour career at the end of
the 2021/2022 season.
For the home fans, there are five US representatives in action today,
with Marina Stefanoni and Haley Mendez up against Colombia’s Laura Tovar
and Japan’s Erisa Sano Herring, respectively, in the women’s draw and
Christopher Gordon, Faraz Khan and Shahjahan Khan all featuring in the
men’s draw.
Play in Birmingham, Alabama, gets underway at 09:00 (GMT-5), with the
competition using best-of-three scoring until the semi-finals. You can
keep up to date with the live results as they happen right here. The
Olympic Channel will provide live streaming of The World Games squash
finals on July 17.
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HISTORY OF SQUASH
Squash is a racquet sport played with a hollow rubber ball. There are
many lines on a squash court.
The first line is an out line that runs across the top of the back wall
and down the side wall. Any ball hitting outside this area is deemed out
and a point is awarded to the opponent. A board running along the bottom
of the back wall serves as the “net”. If the ball hits into the board,
it is deemed a foul.
Three feet above the board is the service line. All serves must hit
above this line to be considered a legitimate serve.
The back of the court is split into two rectangular sections where a
player must start before each point. A service box is in each section
and a player is required to have at least one foot inside while they
serve or are waiting to receive the serve.
The serving player starts the first rally by electing to serve from
either the left or right service box. The ball must strike the front
wall above the service line and below the out line, and land in the
opposite back quarter court.
After the serve, the players take turns hitting the ball against the
front wall. The ball may strike the side or back walls at any time, as
long as it hits below the out line. It must not hit the floor after
making contact with the racket.
A ball landing on either the out line or the line along the top of the
board is considered out. After the ball hits the front wall, it is
allowed to bounce once on the floor (and any number of times against the
side or back walls) before a player must return it.
Players may move anywhere around the court. If the server wins the
point, the two players switch sides for the following point. A match is
the best of five games.
For more information on the event, visit the tournament
website or follow PSA Events on Twitter or Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok
and
SQUASHTV. |
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