Big Guns
boom in New York
Alan Thatcher reports
Men's second round (day two):
[6] Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt Simon Parke (Eng)
15/11, 15/4, 15/10 (56m)
[4] John White (Sco) bt
[Q] Mohammad Abbas (Egy)
15/10, 17/15, 15/5 (48m)
[5] Stewart Boswell (Aus) bt Paul Price (Aus)
15/12, 11/15, 15/10, 17/15 (83m)
[2] Jonathon Power (Can) bt
[Q] Gregory Gaultier (Fra)
15/7, 15/11, 15/5 (51m)
Women's
quarter-finals:
[1] Carol Owens (Nzl) bt Jenny Tranfield (Eng)
9/3, 9/3, 9/0 (35m)
[6] Tania Bailey (Eng) bt [4] Rachael Grinham (Aus)
9/1, 9/5, 9/2 (37m)
[7] Cassie Jackman (Eng) bt
[3] Linda Charman (Eng)
9/7, 9/0, 6/9, 9/3 (60m)
[2] Natalie Pohrer (Usa) bt [8] Rebecca Macree (Eng)
9/0, 10/9, 9/5 (46m)
POWER ON COURSE, JACKMAN ON SONG
Beth Rasin reports from New York
Defending champion Jonathon Power says he's right where he wants to be in
the Harrisdirect Tournament of Champions- into the quarterfinals and feeling
fitter with each match. Power defeated qualifier Gregory Gaultier in three
games delighting the capacity crowd at Grand Central Terminal with his usual
creative shotmaking and nimble footwork. Gaultier, who stayed even with
Power until 10-all in the second game, showed a willingness to chase down
the Canadian's shots and even wrong-footed him a few times. But at 10 all,
Power hit a scissors kick overhead into the nick to take complete control of
the match. "It just feels good to be getting some match play", said Power,
who has been out of action on the men's tour since sustaining an eye injury
two and a half months ago.
Power's quarterfinal opponent will be #5 seed Stewart Boswell who outlasted
fellow Australian Paul Price in a marathon match that lasted 83 minutes.
Price had the opportunity to make the match last even longer- up 14-10 in
the fourth game, he let four game points slip through his fingers and
succumbed in the tiebreaker.
Sixth-seeded Thierry Lincou used measured shots to defeat Englishman Simon
Parke 15-11, 15-4, 15-10 to advance to the quarterfinals. The Frenchman
wielded his racquet with such precision that Parke never had the opportunity
to really get into the match. The pace of Scotsman John White was too much
for qualifier Mohammed Abbas, who was defeated in 35 minutes by the power
hitter of the men's tour.
In the Arader & O'Rourke Women's Open Cassie Jackman scored a rare "bagel",
winning the second game of her match without giving up the serve, as she
defeated fellow Englishwoman Linda Charman, 9-7, 9-0, 6-9, 9-3 to advance to
the semifinals. Jackman, who just retuned to the women's tour at the end of
last month after undergoing back surgery in September, displayed the fluid
form and athletic quickness that earned her a world championship and #1world
ranking before she was hampered by injuries. "I am just so happy to be out
here playing," said Jackman, " because four months ago I couldn't even
walk."
Jackman's semifinal opponent will be Natalie Pohrer, the #2 seed who
defeated England's Rebecca Macree in three games.
Top-seeded Carol Owens confessed to feeling a bit tentative despite looked
focused in her three game defeat of England's Jenny Tranfield. Owens, who
may be feeling a bit of the pressure of being heiress apparent to the top
spot in the women's game since world #1 Sarah Fitz-Gerald announced her
retirement from the women's tour last week, will meet England's Tania
Bailey, the #6 seed. Bailey advanced to the semifinals with a 9-1,9-5,9-2
defeat of fourth seeded Rachael Grinham. Bailey, who lost to Grinham when
they last met in the Singapore Open this fall, used a new strategy to defeat
the Aussie who has made a dramatic move up in the women's rankings in the
last year. "If you hit the ball hard, Rachael feeds off that. So I slowed it
down and hit it straight," said Bailey.
Grinham was philosophical after the match: "I'm not upset with losing to Tania but I am disappointed about the way I played. I knew that if I was to beat Tania it would be a really good result for me at this stage since I'm not in the shape that I was when I was having good results in the last half of last year." Full report from Rach
The Glass court in Grand Central
Photos by Rachael Grinham
more on GrinhamSisters.com
Cassie first into semis
White takes it easy
BIG GUNS BOOM IN NEW YORK
Alan Thatcher reportsThe big guns will be booming on Tuesday night as we reach the quarter-final stage in New York. World No.1 Peter Nicol faces the raw energy machine that is Anthony Ricketts, Lee Beachill tackles world champion David Palmer and John White will be out to bring down France's Thierry Lincou.
Jonathon Power, bidding for a fifth TOC title, faces a less than certain Stewart Boswell, who hacked his way to an incredible comeback win from 14-10 down in the fourth game against fellow Aussie Paul Price.
Power was kept on court for more than 50 minutes by young Frenchman Gregory Gaultier. It was interesting to see Gaultier and James Willstrop drawn against the top two seeds. Gaultier, like Willstrop, lost in straight games but displayed enough courage and stroke making ability to suggest that he has the potential to climb high in this game.
Well done to Tania Bailey for an excellent win over Rachael Grinham, while Cassie Jackman looked in excellent form against Linda Charman. Carol Owens ended Jenny Tranfield's run, while Natalie Pohrer produced a polished display to remove Rebecca Macree.
On the TV front, we continued the interviewing sessions for the Tennis Channel with on-location chats with Australian trio Stewart Boswell, David Palmer and Anthony Ricketts. Satinder Bajwa enlightened us on the phenomenal Americsan college scene, while Lee Beachill and I enjoyed a scenic ride round Manhattan as we filmed our interview in a yellow NY cab.
Three nights now with no sleep thanks to the jet-lag and a snoring room-mate, but the biggest shock to the system was being charged 12 dollars for a glass of New York beer!
I am looking forward to my rematch at the Heights Casino with fellow journalist David Geracioti, a New York team member in last year's World Squash Day Challenge.
Today we visit the New York Athletic Club with Peter Nicol, the WSD president, who will be handing over the Derek Sword Trophy at their magnificent headquarters opposite Central Park.