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• TODAY • SEMIS • Day FOUR • QUARTERS • Day THREE • Day TWO • Day ONE • Willstrop •
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Day SIX, Fri 18th,
SEMI-FINALS: |
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[7] Gregory Gaultier (Fra) bt
[5] Peter Nicol (Eng)
11/5, 11/6, 11/8 (45m)
[2] Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt [8] Lee Beachill (Eng)
11/3, 7/2 rtd (20m)
[1] Lauren
Briggs (Eng) bt
[3/4] Lauren Siddall (Eng) 9/7, 9/2, 9/5
(46m)
[3/4] Laura Hill (Eng) bt [2] Becky Botwright (Eng)
9/7, 4/9, 2/9, 10/8, 9/6 (68m) |
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Malcolm
Willstrop on the semis
All-French Final
 It's
an all-French final and a guaranteed new champion after two
contrasting semi-finals that left the Crucible crowd slightly
deflated.
First up was defending champion Peter Nicol who was, in the
event, playing his last competitive match in the UK.
Gregory Gaultier continued his superlative form from
yesterday's quarter-finals and this time there was to be no
miracle comeback from Nicol, who moves on to Cairo for his
last-ever tournament, the World Open.
Gaultier's opponent will be compatriot Thierry Lincou.
The second seed faced England's Lee Beachill, the 2004
champion, and got off to an unaccustomed quickfire start, racing
to a 7/2 lead in just five minutes of play.
 At
that point Beachill lunged into the back corner, slipped and did
the splits. He got up, gingerly feeling his leg, and requested an
injury timeout.
After three minutes the Yorkshireman returned, but was clearly not
moving properly as Lincou quickly finished off the first game with
Beachill hitting the ball out of court in frustration.
It was much the same in the second, and when at 6/2 Beachill
reached into the back corner for a ball, he pulled up sharply and
quickly offered his hand to the Frenchman.
A disappointing end to the evening, but an intriguing final in
prospect, with two room-mates and team-mates going head-to-head
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Action Gallery
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Gaultier ends Nicol's
UK career
Peter Nicol had at most two matches left in the UK to end a
glittering career that spanned a dozen years. That it should
finish tonight at the hands of young Frenchman Grégory Gaultier,
one of the brightest stars of the new generation, will have given
the Boss some consolation as he lost his English Open title.
 Gaultier
was superb in his quarter-final against Stewart Boswell, and was
no less so tonight as he displayed a calm assurance that, allied
to his silky skills, were too much to allow the crowd to expect
another Nicol miracle.
It was two skilled tacticians at work in the Crucible tonight, but
the Frenchman always held the edge, making Nicol work just that
bit harder, and finding the tighter shots to finish the rallies.
Hopes were briefly raised when Nicol led 5/1 in the third, but
Gaultier remained unhurried, unflustered and confident as he
levelled, then eased away again.
A nonchalant volley boast at
7-all that left Nicol dead and the crowd gasping, and the end was
near.
Take away that 5/1 lead and Nicol didn't get many more points than
Stewart Boswell last night, a measure of just how good Gaultier
was ...
 "Today
Greg was too quick and too fast. He made me feel like I used
to feel a long time ago, when I started, it was that feeling
of frustration that tells you “I have to do something”, and of
course, that’s when you make the error.
"He lost a bit his way in the third, but he straightened it
up, and got in control again…
"He was very strong, both mentally and physically, his shots’
selection was dead right, and although I had a bit of
yesterday’s match in the legs, it’s the pace of his shots that
was preventing me to get to the ball…
"In preparation for the worlds, I’ve got a lot of work to do,
I’ve got about ten days of work. But most important, I enjoyed
my squash, I enjoyed the event. I will go to Cairo to win, but
whatever happens will be fine.
"And after that, I’m not going anywhere, squash has been my
life for 24 years, and will keep on being my life…"
Peter Nicol |
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GREG IMPERIAL
 It
was never going to be easy for Greg to play in front of an
English audience in Peter Nicol's last ever English event, but
the Kid was too calm, too clever, and too fast today for the
Boss. What impressed me the most I think, was the mental flegm
of the Frenchman. No nerves. Not a shake in the racquet. Cool
as a cucumber.
The Frenchman never made a mystery of his admiration for the
Magician Jonathan Power’s style, and it was never as apparent
as tonight. A simple straight game, a low percentage game, but
lethally precise that grinds you, and zoom, out of nowhere 2
or 3 stunning shots. If it works, you take the point. If not,
you come back to the same simple game, you let it dry, and
plafff, another set of attacks… And so on.
Against him, contrarily to his previous two matches, Peter was
perfectly in the match from the moment he stepped on court,
sharp, focused, and retrieving immediately Greg’s beautiful
drop shots in his customary fashion. But there was nothing
much he could do still against both the regularity and
suddenness of the Frenchman.
A crowd feeling that this was going to be the Day, tried to
support and encourage their hero and legend, but realised that
the inevitable was round the corner. And the atmosphere was
quite heavy, solemn even…
There was a glimpse of hope in the third, when the Frog got a
bit tired, and Peter seemed to be right in there, but Greg
readjusted quickly to take the third and the match, destroying
Peter’s hope of getting in the final of his last English Open.
As professional as ever, the Boss didn’t let his feeling
overwhelm him. He first answered Malcolm Willstrop, compere of
the evening, and then the Press questions, smiling, patient,
as ever.
Thank God there is still the World in Cairo to come to admire
him one last time…. |
 "It’s
always hard to play Peter, especially on this occasion when
it’s maybe the last time I play him, so, I’ll miss you man.
"I felt that Peter was not as fast as he was yesterday against
David, so he couldn’t volley as much, and that turned out to
my advantage. But he’s got so much experience, you’ve got to
keep the pressure at all times, to keep the control, and you
may get lucky…
"I always have the feeling that I could read Peter’s game
better than I would have imagined. The problem from then on
was to control each rally, as it’s so much harder to win a
point against Peter than against anybody else, as he keeps
returning everything.
"Today, I tried to play a percentage squash, not to take too
many risks, to keep always a bit of security. Because if you
start giving away unforced errors, that’s when he takes
confidence again, digs in, gets right back into it, and make
you doubt.
"The first game was very tiring indeed, and I got a bit
worried I wouldn’t be able to hold the pace the whole match.
So it was a bit up and down as far as the energy level was
concerned after that. I was lucky at the end, as Peter made a
few errors.
"I’m almost at the top of my game, maybe I’ve reached it, I’m
not sure. But I’m not too unhappy about my match today.
"Hopefully I will play against Thierry tomorrow, and it will
be our first all French final…."
Gregory Gaultier |
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"It's the first time I've
ever been to England, and to Sheffield, obviously.
"It’s also my first tournament of this calibre. It’s just
breathtaking and extraordinary.
"What an honour it was for me to talk to a player with such
talent during the games. Greg is purely and simply an artist."
Laurent Combaluzier
From Perpignan Le Mas Squash Club, France |
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[1] Lauren
Briggs (Eng) bt
[3/4] Lauren Siddall(Eng)
9/7, 9/2, 9/5 |
Briggs into women's final
Top seed Lauren Briggs reached the final of the Mamut English
Women's Open with a tough straight games win over Lauren Siddall.
Briggs, the world number 24 from Essex, quickly established a 4-0
lead in the first, but Siddall, from Pontefract, found her way
back into the match, edging ahead at 5-4, but it was Briggs who
found the extra from 7-all to take the lead.
Briggs led throughout the next two games, but was never fully in
control as Siddall kept plugging away, the length and quality of
the rallies doing scant justice to the scoreline.
 "Playing
on that court is entirely different from a normal court… I
felt more confident than yesterday, but it still unusual! The
ball feels quite dead on the floor and you feel that you are
running much more than normally…
"I thought that Lauren played very well, and it was definitely
the best match we’ve ever played.
"To get to the next level, I’ve got to get earlier on the
ball, even if I’m moving well. I also need to pace it better.
But everybody is of a similar standard around my ranking at
the moment, so it won’t be easy for anybody to step up to the
top 20…"
Lauren Briggs |
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 "I
felt comfortable out there, but still under constant pressure.
Lauren was slightly tighter but the difference came from the
fact I made too made errors.
"I like this court, it’s different, but it allows you good
shots.
"Malcolm told me to “cut down the errors”, that “the glass
court rewards the length” and to “keep it simple, when she is
in the back, play in the front, and when she is in the front,
play in the back”…
Lauren Siddall |
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[3/4]
Laura Hill (Eng) bt [2] Becky Botwright (Eng)
9/7, 4/9, 2/9, 10/8, 9/6 (68m) |
Hill leaves it late
Part-time player Laura Hill came from 2/1 down against second
seeded Becky Botwright to claim a place in the Mamut Women's
English Open final.
It was a game of runs - both players running all over the court,
as most rallies were well contested with few easy points, and runs
of points enjoyed by both.
Laura came from 4-7 down to take the first, Becky ran away with
second from 2-all and the third from 1-4.
A fifth looked likely as Laura led 6-2, but Becky levelled to
6-all before Laura took over again.
And so it continued into the fifth with Laura running out the
winner in 68 minutes, the longest match of the day.
 "I
had an operation on my foot nine weeks ago, so this was the
first real test to see how it stood.
"I felt it a couple of times, it was fine, but I'm just
lacking a bit of match fitness.
"No complaints, she played really well, and I wish her all the
best in the final - it would be good to lose to the eventual
winner!
Becky Botwright |
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 "I'd
love to have played full-time, but there's not that much money
in squash and I do tend to get injured.
"In the fire service I've got a job, can play squash, and at
the end of the day there's a pension!
"We have to keep fit at work, although it's sometimes hard if
I play after we've had a few call-outs the day before.
"We both played well in patches, then dropped off a bit.
"I'll be tired tomorrow, but that's my fist really competitive
match since April, so it wasn't too bad.
"Now I just have to get off work for the final ...
Laura Hill |
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