[1] Vanessa Atkinson(Ned) bt [3/4]
Laura Hill (Eng)
11/4, 11/9, 11/4 (23m)
Vanessa's experience tells
Considering she only got a last-minute "can you play?" call yesterday
morning, Laura Hill was as surprised as anyone to find herself in the
semi-final against the former world number one without having played a
game!
Laura doesn't play on the glass court much, whereas it's Vanessa's
second home. Nevertheless Laura acquitted herself well, and held a
lead as she threatened to take the second, but the experienced
Atkinson was having none of that as she advanced to her first BSPA
final.
"It's the first time I'd
played Laura, or even seen her play. She's not so used to the glass
court, but she's the type of player who'd be a really tough opponent
on a faster court.
"I'm very pro the 11 scoring, I played it at the ToC last year and I
think it works well. I'm used to the 17" tin as well, I practice
on it at Pontefract so it makes it a bit easier when I play with a
19" tin ..."
[1] James Willstrop (Eng) bt [4] Peter
Barker (Eng)
12/10, 11/5, 4/11, 11/1 (49m)
Willstrop wins team game
A week ago they were team-mates in India, but tonight James Willstrop
and Peter Barker were playing for themselves. The match was eagerly
anticipated - Barker is a player on the up - world top ten standard -
and will be much encouraged by his performance in Chennai.
Willstrop led early, had two game balls at 10/8 before clinching a
quality game 12/10. The British Champion continued took dominate
despite Barker's best efforts and took a 2/0 lead.
Barker surprisingly got away to a flyer in the third, extended that
lead and Willstrop decided enough was enough and more or less let it
go.
Refocused, he quickly asserted in the fourth and romped away to 10/0,
then 11/1 to reach his first Mamut English Open final.
James talks to Rikki Swannell
Peter Barker with Rikki
[2] Nick Matthew (Eng) bt [3] John White (Sco)
11/7, 11/6, 11/4 (38m)
Matthew sets up
all-Yorkshire final
The question was whether John White's problem in the quarter-final
would recur against the severe opposition Nick Matthew would provide.
In the event White was not fully mobile, but did his level best to
make a game of it, which he certainly did, even though Matthew won
3/0.
Nick talks to Rikki Swannell
So a Willstrop v Matthew final,
indicated by world rankings, seedings and their current excellent
form. They fought out the final of the US Open in New York recently
and their matches are invariably of high quality. After all their
recent exertions they are, I am sure, capable of one more big push.
Neither has won the event and both have excellent reasons for wanting
to be the Mamut English Open Champion ...
