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EN BREF ISSUE #4

A Fitting Start
Malcolm reports

The championship, the setting, the crowds and the live television demanded a suitable opening match and Amr Shabana and James Willstrop gave them one. Their matches rarely fail to live up to expectation and this one certainly didn't.

Willstrop had early control, Shabana came bck at him, but the control was regained and Willstrop took the first 11/9. He had a 7/3 lead in the second but the world number one recovered strongly to level the score.

The third continued in the same vein with nothing between them, the quality high and once again the younger man led, this time 2/1.

The weakest of the four games was the fourth where Willstrop didn't hold his game together, Shabana attacked decisively, and the Egyptian took it 11/5.

Neither player had achieved sufficient dominance for the outcome to be even guessed at and at nine-all that was still the case.

It was Shabana, though, who got to 10/9 with a dropshot that Willstrop just failed to reach, and although a tiebreak might have seemed fair - there was so little between them - Shabana clinched the match at the first attempt with Willstrop diving full length desperately trying to survive.

Neither player has had the best start to the season for a variety of reasons, so they will be happy with the high quality match they produced.

Willstrop was clearly disappointed, having led 1/0 and 2/1 to end up losing, but as a former rugby coach said to me recently, "it's the performance which counts", and on that score Willstrop should and will retrospectively feel happy.

"That's how it is with me and Amr, it's always a scrap, and he came out on top in the end this time. "I'm disappointed to lose, but very pleased with how I went about playing the match and proud of how I played. "All credit to him though, he put in a great performance in the fourth and fifth, and to be honest he probably had marginal control for most of the match and he deserved to win. "It's an absolute pleasure to play here, the Hong Kong Squash Association should be proud, the crowd, the support, the atmosphere are all really great."

Breathtaking Ramy
Malcolm reports

Early exchanges in this fascinating match, which saw the Senior World Champion take on the Junior World Champion, slightly favoured David Palmer, although Ramy Ashour played with a blend of softness and power and looked comfortable enough.

Palmer led 8/5 and 9/6, earned a first game ball at 10/6 and took the game at the second opportunity, 11/7.

The second was high quality, with neither player able to get clear. At eight-all though, Ashour hit a crisp drive just out of Palmer's reach, and as Palmer hit two tins the Egyptian drew level.

His self-belief, which hints at arrogance, was what meant that losing the first game had no effect on his attitude to the second.

At one-all his confidence, which is high enough, took another boost and he ran away to 5/1 and 7/2 with Plamer's earlier ascendency a distant memory.

However Palmer has been around, got back to 6/7, then tinned a forehand volley and Ashour moved ahead to 10/6. At 10/8 Ashour hit a crosscourt nick off Palmer's quite decent serve to go 2/1 up, looking all over a winner with Palmer uncertain and unsettled.

Ashour quickly raced to 6/1 and 8/2 in the fourth, and at 8/3 Palmer served out and then hit Ashour's serve out, both to his own disbelief, as Ashour reduced the world champion to a figure of despair.

Ashour's performance was breathtaking - his performances at the tournament have been beyond belief. The squash world would look to be at his feet.

I fear for Amr Shabana if Ashour repeats this performance ...
 

"He was just too good, half a step faster than me. "I had a good start, but after that he got to so many of my good shots and didn't just get them back, he hit an even better shot from it. "I did find the floor slippy at times, I had him on the end of some long rallies during which the floor gets slippier and you don't feel confident in finishing it off. "All credit to him, he played really well and deserved to win."

Nicol's Plan B prevails
Steve reports

Rachael Grinham's game plan was obvious from the start - take all the pace off the ball and go for all the drops, flicks and boasts you can.

Nicol has been dominant of late, and that dominance is based on forcing a relentless pace on the match, taking everything early and cracking the ball away for winner after winner.

Rachael was never going to join in that type of game, and her plan 'A' was definitely working at the start. She went to 3/1, had a little hiccup with six hand-outs, then raced away to take the first with Nicol tyring vainly to up the pace.

It worked for a while in the second too, a 3/1lead again, another four handouts before advancing to 4/1, but now the Malaysian started to get her way, and from 4-all she took a quick run of points before levelling the match.

But she couldn't impose her plan 'A' in the third, Rachael was mixing it up beautifully, and Nicol started to join in, flicking and floating the ball to all corners. It was chess on a squash court, none of your crash-bang-wallop style, and intruguing it was too.

Rachael pulled away from the middle of the third, Nicol did the same in the fourth and we were into a decider.

And that's where it all went wrong for Rachael. The shots that were going just up, causing Nicol all sorts of trouble, were going just down, and without Nicol appearing, or having, to do anything different she was in the final in no time.

"Even a 3/0 against Rachael will be a hard game, and that was really hard. She kept to her game, went for every single shot and they were all going in at the start. "I tried to find my game and my rhythm but she kept breaking it up. The court is quite dead and you have to work very hard. "She wasn't giving me anything to work with and I was getting impatient, but in the end I just had to guts it out, I got stuck in and made sure that she made the error first. "I never thought I'd won until the end, she was on her game and always dangerous."

Bailey wins all-English clash
Malcolm reports

The all-English semi-final began with Tania Bailey well in control and she took the first game readily 9/1, then led 4/1 in the second as Botwright strove to find the game that helped her to beat Natalie Grinham last night.

She recovered in some style, and led 6/4 and 7/5 before Bailey surged again to take the game 9/7 and go two up.

Botwright will have felt that she deserved to level, but, persisting, she went to 7/3 in the third. Bailey's soundness and controlled accuracy, however, saw her recover to 8/7 and on her second match ball she clinched the match,no doubt relieved to have got home three-nil.

Botwright will be disappointed that she threatened to win both the second and third and won neither. On balance she deserved to win a game in a match of very acceptable quality.

Having said all that, it is time for change on the women's scoring system

"I'd not even looked past the first or second round of this event, so to make the final is just fantastic. I'm absolutely amazed, a couple of years ago I'd have given anything just to be playing again, let alone being up there with trhe top girls and making major finals. "She started playing a lot better after the first, started attacking and moving better and I tensed up a bit. I knew she'd come back, but I was pleased with the way I got back into the games, I was starting to think about being in the final but I had to forget that and get my concentration back. "I'm better now, I don't get so uptight, I'm more relaxed. I can't remember the last time I played fivegames in a row, in fact I don't think I ever have, all the tournaments I've done well in have been 16 draws. "It's a really nice setting, I've not played before a crowd this big before, this is what it should be all about, performing in front of the public, and if some youngsters take up the game having seen us play here that will be great."

Hong Kong Open 2006  by SquashSite

 www.squashsite.org.uk/hk