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A busy first round...
Day one of the first round started 'up the hill', back at the BSRA
Club, with France's former champion Thierry Lincou easing
through against Julian Illingworth, one of four qualifiers to chance
their arm here.
Englishman Jonathan Kemp, cutting out his usual errors to
kick Malaysian Ong Beng Hee out of the tournament, was the only one
of the four qualifiers to survive, but Peter Barker was
seriously threatened by fellow-Englishman Bradley Ball, and Egypt's
Wael El Hindi had to save two match balls before finally seeing
off Eric Galvez in 99-minute epic encounter.
Then it was 'down the hill' to the stunning
Fairmount Southampton venue, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, where
double world champions Amr Shabana and David Palmer
started off their campaigns for a hat-trick with solid enough wins
over Renan Lavigne and Shawn Delierre.
Stewart Boswell despatched James Stout to end Bermudian
hopes, and in the last match of the day we had our second upset, as a 37-year-old stubborn Welshman
Alex Gough, saw, and seized, an opportunity against a not
quite 100% Englishman Lee Beachill.
Fairmont Southampton:
[1] Amr Shabana (Egy) bt Renan Lavigne (Fra)
11/9, 11/8, 7/11, 11/9 (54m)
[12] Stewart Boswell
(Aus) bt James Stout (Ber)
11/5, 11/3, 11/4 (25m)
[3] David Palmer (Aus) bt [Q] Shawn Delierre (Can)
11/4, 11/4, 11/5 (25m)
Alex Gough (Wal) bt [8] Lee Beachill
(Eng)
4/11, 11/8, 5/11, 11/4,
11/5 (74m)
BSRA courts:
[6] Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt [Q]
Julian Illingworth (Usa)
11/5, 11/3, 5/11, 11/0 (42m)
[Q] Jonathan Kemp (Eng) bt [15] Ong
Beng Hee (Mas)
11/8, 11/7, 5/11, 11/4 (48m)
[11] Peter Barker (Eng) bt [Q]
Bradley Ball (Eng)
8/11, 11/8, 13/11, 11/5 (76m)
[9] Wael El Hindi (Egy) bt [Q] Eric Galvez (Mex)
9/11, 11/6, 5/11, 12/10, 13/11 (99m)
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Today's Daily News
Focus Issue #2
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[1]
Amr Shabana (Egy) bt Renan Lavigne (Fra)
11/9, 11/8, 7/11, 11/9 (54m)
A tester for Shabana
He may well be the world number one, he may well have won three major
tournaments back-to-back, everyone starts the tournament level and
Renan Lavigne showed double world champion Amr Shabana scant little
respect in the opening match on the glass court.
Terrier-like as ever, Renan chased everything, harried Shabana into
a few errors and was well in contention for most of the match.
Shabana closed out the first two, but a god start from the Frenchman
in the third paid dividends as he pulled one back.
Shabana raced ahead at the start of the fourth, 5/1 and 6/2, but
Renan kept fighting, kept running, closed the gap, and even led 9/8
as the Egyptians many fans started to get nervous.
But the Frenchman had done a lot of running, sometimes being sent
back to the same corner four or five times in a rally, and the
workload took its toll.
From 9-all it was a pity it had to finish on two tins from Renan,
but it meant that the favourite was on his way...
"I was not too far from what
could have been an enormous upset, that's true. But I'm still
disappointed because at the end of the day, it's still a loss in the
first round, and I would have hoped that, had I played somebody
other than Amr or a top 5, I may had had a chance of doing something
good.
"I started the match in a positive frame of mind, with a very
precise tactical plan, I was comfortable since I arrived here, I was
well prepared, and having being able to train on the glass court for
the past five days helped a lot.
"Of course I can regret going for my shot at 10/9 in the first, or
at 9/9 in the fourth, but no, I actually do not regret it, as if I
don't go for my shots at that stage of the match against the world
number one, when on earth am I going to go for them?!
"I saw he was doubting a bit, and he confirmed after the match, that
at 9/8 for me in the fourth, he thought we were going for a
fifth...."
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 "I
played well today, as well as I could expect to after those last
three tournaments. You think you can keep it going, but you have to
start from scratch each time.
"I just tried to play solid at the start, not go for too much, but I
guess I did a few times and paid for it.
He played well in the
third, got a good start and kept a few points ahead. I knew I had to
try to do the same to him in the fourth, but still it was very
close.
"After Hong Kong we had the Arab Championships, I won that, then
just stayed away from the court. I didn't get as much rest as I'd
have liked, but I feel strong, I'm injury-free and playing well.
"I'm past the disappointment of not winning in Cairo last year. I've
won it twice, which is incredible, if you'd told me in 2003 I would
do that I wouldn't have believed you, so there's no pressure on me
to win a third time.
"I know what I need to do now, the unnecessary rush has gone from my
game and I'm working to win now
"
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[12]
Stewart Boswell (Aus) bt James Stout (Ber)
11/5, 11/3, 11/4 (25m)
Boswell removes last Bermudian
 It's
never easy getting the wildcard entry in these high-profile events -
you pretty much know you're on to a hiding to nothing but the crowd
will expect miracles. Similarly if you find yourself playing against
the wildcard you've nothing to win except maybe an earlier shower
...
James Stout did play well, he kept with his illustrious opponent for
much of the first, but then the pace inevitably began to tell.
So, out of five Bermudians who started none are left, but my, they
all had a hell of a good time ...
 "I
haven't seen a crowd like this since I played in Egypt! But they did
clap my good shots as well, so they were very fair and gave us a
great atmosphere to play in.
"He played well I wasn't holding back at all in the first, you
can't do that in your first match in the world open, but he stuck
with it to 5-all 6-all. It must have been tough with all the
expectations of the crowd, he did a good job."
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 "It
was a great experience to play here in front of this fantastic
crowd. Stewart's a wonderful player and I wish him luck in the rest
of the tournament.
"Thanks to the sponsors, organisers, Ross and his crew for putting
on such a great event, and the supporters for making it special, I
know I'm never going to forget it
"
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[3] David Palmer
(Aus) bt [Q] Shawn Delierre (Can)
11/4, 11/4, 11/5 (25m)
Palmer starts his defence
The current World Champion - technically the fifth Bermudian in the
draw since he holds Bermudian residency - made a sounds enough start
to his defence.
David Palmer was always in control, always in front in a match of
generally short rallies, plenty of drop-shot exchanges and a few too
many errors from Shawn Delierre.
That was to be expected, as the Canadian had fought through two
five-setters to qualify while Palmer had been practicing on this
court for a few days, but it was decent entertainment for a
still-busy crowd, and a decent start fo the champion ...
 "We've
been here all week getting ready, it's not usual to have the glass
court ready five days before the tournament, so the extra practice
on it this week could make the difference.
"It's great to have my family here, my coach and physio just arrived
too, and with the local support it all helps, I'm feeling very
positive this week.
You always try not to be one the end of one of those inevitable
first round upsets, you can never take it easy these days, so I
tried to make sure I got a good start, kept the pressure on and
never slackened off.
"Still I'm pleased to have finally got going, and pleased to be
through
"
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 "It's
a little bit different out there, and the pace he plays is a lot
faster.
"I didn't feel tired, after two hard matches, but I had a bit of a
droop out there, didn't get onto the ball as fast as I could and
just felt a little flat.
"It's all about being able to stick with these guys and then take
the crucial points at the end of games. I didn't feel outmatched on
the shots, but he's a bit steadier on the glass court.
"I'll aim to take a game next time, then two
my time will come
"
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Alex Gough (Wal) bt [8] Lee Beachill
(Eng)
4/11, 11/8, 5/11, 11/4,
11/5 (74m)
Gough still going strong
"Another World Open," said the wily old Welshman after securing his
place in the second round. He's certainly seen a few, but this must
rank as one of his better wins.
 After
a poor start Alex worked his way back into the match, saw a
few untimely tins undermine his efforts in the fourth then went on
to dominate the final two games.
It wasn't easy though, it never is against Lee Beachill. But Alex
had a belief tonight, demonstrated by the way he started the fifth
as if determined to outlast his opponent.
He played it long, played it safe, waited for the errors, errors
which duly came as Lee hit tin after tin, especially on his backhand
volley.
Alex ran like a lunatic to stay in the rally at 5/2 up. He lost it,
and that might have been a turning point - "If he'd applied more
pressure then I might have gone," he admitted afterwards. But Lee
didn't, he followed up with two quick errors and Alex was back in
control, and soon enough he was back in the last 16 of the World
Open ...
"I'm still struggling
with my injury, I cant train and if you're not fit enough then you
just can't get away with it at this level. But basically he played
well and I didn't
"
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 "He
took me by surprise in the first, he doesn't normally attack that
much at the start, and it panicked me a bit.
"I knew he was still carrying an injury and I was thinking about
that too much in the first three games, but a bit of advice from
Peter Genever and I started hitting better length, keeping him out
of the middle.
"It's pretty unlike him to make so many errors at the end of a
match, and even though I felt bad after one rally in the fifth it
always gives you something extra when your opponent is making
mistakes. But then I'm 37, so I'll take them.
"I've had a couple of weeks rest, missed out Qatar and Hong Kong and
I feel really fit at the moment, I'm looking forward to Tuesday
already
"
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[6]
Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt [Q]
Julian Illingworth (Usa)
11/5, 11/3, 5/11, 11/0 (42m)
Safe start for Thierry
Champion in 2004, Thierry Lincou got this year's campaign off to a
solid enough start. The Frenchman was always in control in the first
two games, then lapsed slightly as the American qualifier caught up
with the pace in the third, winning it deservedly.
It was total control in the fourth for Lincou though, keeping the
ball tight and working his opponent from corner to corner time and
again before despatching winners, with Illingworth stranded.
A safe start, a good start ...
 "I
was feeling pretty good out there, played some good rallies and I
was pleased with my performance even if I dropped a game. I lost a
bit of intensity in the third and he played very well, he deserved
it, but then I went back and put him under more pressure again in
the fourth.
"You have to be able to cope with the conditions, the humidity, you
have to pace yourself, know when to hit the ball hard and when to
make the effort, which is why I came here early to get used to it. I
always struggle for a week when I go home to Reunion, I know what
it's like playing on an island
"
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"He's pretty good! He's very strong
too, and very physical on the T.
"I got into it more in the third, got a bit more comfortable at 5/2
up. He pulled it back, but after a few shorter rallies I was able to
play some shots to win that game, but it was as much to do with him
as it was to me.
"You can always learn from playing these guys, it's only the second
player in the top ten I've played . The balls come back just that
bit tighter and harder than I'm used to, I was just mistiming things
I'd normally get to.
"But I was pleased to qualify anything above would have been gravy
- and it's been great fun."
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[Q]
Jonathan Kemp (Eng) bt [15] Ong Beng
Hee (Mas)
11/8, 11/7, 5/11, 11/4 (48m)
Kemp Impresses
With four qualifiers playing in the afternoon session here, if one
was going to get through the odds were that this would be the time.
But this wasn't down to the odds, or the roll of the dice, this was
a very impressive performance from Jonathan Kemp. His usual array of
winners were on display, but the key factor is that - apart from a
spell in the beginning of the third - the errors that often blight
his game were missing.
He made a good stab at winning the third too, from 7/0 down, but
regrouped after losing it 11/8 to dominate the fourth and move into
round two ...
 "We're
good friends and we play a lot, so that helped me relax, it felt
almost like another practice match, and having had a game on here
yesterday helped too.
"I tried to keep the pace up from the start, and he wasn't expecting
that. You have to believe your shots are going to go in, that's what
it's all about, which is why I was getting annoyed at making
mistakes in the third. You suddenly see the winning post and start
to get nervous.
"But some advice from DP in the interval really did me good and I
came out and stepped it up again, and worked my openings from the
back before going for it.
"I feel like I've been playing well enough to beat guys like Bengy
for a while now, I just haven't managed to get that win, so it's
great to stop the rot and beat a top 16 player at last, especially
here.
"A bye in qualifying, now a day off too, that's ideal for me!"
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[11]
Peter Barker (Eng) bt [Q] Bradley
Ball (Eng)
8/11, 11/8, 13/11, 11/5 (76m)
Barker wins a crowd pleaser
A really entertaining match between two great friends, which drew
prolonged applause from an appreciative crowd at the BSRA.
 Bradley
Ball carried on in he same vein as his last two matches at the start
- attack, attack, attack - and it gave him the first game and an
early lead in the second.
Peter Barker began to weather the storm though, levelled, and won a
contentious third game which required 20 decisions of the referee,
many of which left one or both players exasperated, occasionally
incredulous.
Nothing nasty, entertaining for the crowd, and inevitable given the way
the game was played.
A brief flurry from Bradley to start the fourth to lead 3/1, but
Peter quickly gained the ascendancy as he moved into the last
sixteen ...
 "I
really played well, but I needed the third as much as he did. There
was nothing between us for three games, one or two decisions went
against me at the end of the third and that was crucial.
"I'm happy with how I played, but still disappointed with the loss,
I wanted to progress.
"This is how I've been for the last few weeks and if I can carry on
like this I'll be happy
"
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 "I
wanted to try to make it as hard as possible in the first, keeping
the ball deep, but I was a bit too negative and put it to the back
on some shots I would normally have attacked, whereas every time he
had an opportunity he hit the nick!
"I just tried to be a bit more positive from then on, a combination
of that and a hard first game and I think Bradley tired a little.
"The whole match revolved around the third, we both had leads but
fortunately I came through and it was a massive confidence boost to
go 2/1 up.
"It was a very physical game and there were a lot of decisions
Brad's so good in the middle of the court and that's my strength
too, so when you get two like-minded players trying to do the same
thing that's always likely to happen.
"We're great friends off court, which always makes it tough, but his
professionalism makes my job easier, youngsters can learn a lot from
him, as I have.
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[9] Wael El Hindi (Egy) bt [Q] Eric Galvez (Mex)
9/11, 11/6, 5/11, 12/10, 13/11 (99m)
Eric so close ...
What a match - so tense, so much drama. A typical Wael El Hindi
match really ...
To be honest, I didn't start watching until towards the end of the
fourth, but that game and a half was drama enough.
Eric led 2/1, the fourth was close all the way - 6-6, 7-7, 8-8. "Allez
Wael," was the cry from the French corner. But it was the Mexican
who got to 10/9 game ball - match ball - first.
"Can I have 3 minutes injury break?" asked Wael, citing a dive in
the previous point. The request was denied, but as one spectator
commentated about the prolonged discussion, "that's two out the the
three already!"
 Eric
proceeded to hit the tin three times in quick succession and it was
two-all.
There was nothing in it in the fifth. The ball burst at 8-all and
this time it was Wael who edged ahead, 10/8, but Eric saved both
match balls. On the second of those there was a collision that sent
both players sprawling and this time Wael did get an injury timeout.
Wael hit the tin to give Eric a second match ball, and while the
Mexican played it safe this time it was Wael who won the point with
a short kill. A stroke and a drive into the corner gave Wael the
match after 99 minutes ... typical!
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 "It's
always tough to play Wael, he never gives up and fights for
everything. I played well but he just didn't want to lose.
"When I got to match ball in the fourth I didnt really think about
it, but I couldn't believe it when I hit three tins from there. And
then I got another in the fifth
"I'm happy to have got this far, but not really happy to lose the
match
"
"That was really tough. I pulled something in the first game and I
was operating on one leg for most of the match. Tough."
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Round One Complete ...
The last matches at the BSRA courts saw two upsets as Egypt's
Omar Mosaad powered past Olli Tuominen and Hisham Ashour
prevailed in a tense five-setter against Adrian Grant.
Azlan Iskandar needed five games to progress against Shahier
Razik, while Mohammed Abbas was impressive in three against
Cameron Pilley.
In the evening session at the Fairmont Southampton there was
almost an even greater surprise as fourth seed James Willstrop
came back from 2/0 and 6/1 down to deny LJ Anjema.
No such troubles for second and seventh seeds Gregory Gaultier
and Nick Matthew, and a stunning return to action for
John White, who was simply unplayable ...
Fairmont Southampton
[7] Nick Matthew Eng) bt Joey Barrington (Eng)
11/1, 8/11, 11/6, 11/2 (70m)
[4] James Willstrop (Eng) bt Laurens Jan Anjema (Ned)
10/12, 8/11, 11/8, 11/9,
11/3 (93m)
[6] John White (Sco)
bt [Q] Alister Walker (Eng)
11/8, 11/4, 11/5
(32m)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (Fra) bt [Q] Daryl Selby (Eng)
11/4, 11/7, 11/0
(42m)
BSRA
[Q] Omar Mosaad (Egy) bt [14] Olli
Tuominen (Fin)
1/11, 11/4, 11/9, 11/4
(38m)
[12] Mohammed Abbas (Egy) bt
Cameron Pilley (Aus)
11/8, 11/6, 11/8 (45m)
[13] Azlan Iskandar (Mas) bt
Shahier Razik (Can)
11/13, 11/6, 9/11,
11/3, 11/6 (75m)
Hisham Ashour (Egy) bt [16] Adrian
Grant (Eng)
11/7, 11/7, 4/11,
11/8 (45m) |
GALLERY
round one action
Bermuda Blog:
Sue Matthew
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[4] James Willstrop (Eng) bt Laurens Jan Anjema (Ned)
10/12, 8/11, 11/8, 11/9, 11/3
(93m)
James back from the dead ...
What a match, what a comeback.
Two players giving their all, and something has to give. For a long
time it looked as though it was James Willstrop who would give way.
The Englishman was on the back foot, defending for two and a half
games as Laurens Jan Anjema dominated play, attacking with
aggressive intent at every opportunity.
James looked flat, LJ looked dynamic, and at 6/1 to the Dutchman in
the third the fat lady was on her way to the stage ...
But James started on an almost miraculous comeback. He clawed his
way back to 7-all, kept his calm even when he thought some key
decisions went against him, and pulled a game back.
That wasn't enough though. He had to dig just as deep in the fourth,
held a slender lead through most of it, and with LJ perhaps
distracted by his constant slipping and the frequent intervention of
the "court rats", he squeezed that one out too.
That finally took the steam out of LJ. 4/0 to James in the decider.
LJ wins a tough rally with a drop to make it 2/5, issues a loud
"C'MON,", but James is in control now and it's over fairly quickly.
The match of the tournament so far ... plenty more to come, that's
for sure, but they'll have to go some to beat this one ...
 "I
was in a real mess, he had me all over the place, totally in
control, especially in the second. It was a complete dig, I just
dug, and dug, and dug, physically it was hard and mentally it was
absolutely brutal.
"There's a crop of guys knocking on the door and LJ's one of them,
so when I saw the draw it didn't exactly fill me with delight, but I
was under no illusions as to how tough it was going to be.
"I'm just proud to be able to dig in and win a match like that from
2/0 6/1 down. I just told myself to stick to what I know and have
faith in myself - there was a lot of scrappy squash but I just happy
to come through it, and especially happy to have a day off tomorrow.
"Malc couldn't come out until tomorrow so I was just thinking about
the flight home and Malc coming out, to be honest. This was the only
time he could come so if I'd lost it would have been an expensive
waste, so maybe that was an inspiration in a way.
"Mentally that was one of my hardest matches, I just need to chill
out, the brain's hurting more than anything
"
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[7] Nick Matthew Eng) bt Joey Barrington (Eng)
11/1, 8/11, 11/6, 11/2 (70m)
Matthew wins English clash
Two Englishman started the evening session, one established, with
several major titles under his belt, the other playing in his first
world open main draw.
 According
to the scoreline that difference showed in the first, as Nick
Matthew eased to an 11/1 win. Except it wasn't quite like that, Joey
Barrington competed in all the rallies, but he didn't win many in
the 15-minute game.
He came back well though, and the next two and a half games were
equally well-contested with plenty of long, patient rallies, but now
Joey was winning his fair share.
From around 5/2 in the fourth though, Joey started to look tired,
and the final few points rolled in relatively quickly for Nick.
 "It
was almost a bad thing for me that I won the first so easily. You go
on expecting a really hard battle, and it was, but the scoreline
made it look easy.
"All credit to him though, he could have lost confidence after hat,
but he came back strongly, and even the last game, although it was
11/2 I couldn't afford to switch off at all, he was still in there.
"I've got one of the young up and coming kids now [Omar Mosaad],
he'll have nothing to lose so it's going to be another tough one
"
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 "I
was a little nervous to start with, I'm not used to this and Nick's
a big-match player, very experienced. The rallies in the first were
all contested, but he just seemed to have the edge at the end of
them.
"I'm not the sort of player that lets that get to me, you always
start from zero again, and I played really well in the second. The
whole match was well contested all the way really, I don't think the
scorelines in some of the games did me justice.
"It's my first world open main draw, I don't play that much on the
glass court so I'm just looking for more of these types of matches.
"It's a different game on the glass, every shot has to be
purposeful, you can't get away with putting the ball into no man's
land like you can on a plaster court so your mentality has to be
different.
"Nick's used to all this, I want to have more of it, but I'm pretty
disappointed not to have done better to be honest
"
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[6] John White (Sco)
bt [Q] Alister Walker (Eng)
11/8, 11/4, 11/5
(32m)
Unplayable
 "There
was just nothing I could do," said a bemused Alister Walker after
being on the receiving end of a John White special.
When the big Aussie/Scot/Yank plays like this there probably isn't
anything anyone can do. White was firing in winners from everywhere,
and while Alister contributed with a few errors in the first two
games the third was a pure demonstration of hitting.
Eight of White's eleven point in that game came from crisp winners,
dead rollers, and pretty much every one from a different shot. You
could see Ali shaking his head, wondering what on earth he could do.
The answer to what he could do was simple, as he himself said at the
end ... nothing. |
 "I
had a big break over the last few weeks, but my fitness is ok even
if I'm not too sure of my match fitness. I'm moving well and the
shots seem to be working. If there were angles I was going to go for
them and they were coming off.
"Retirement? I'm hanging around for another day at least
"
 "I
just couldn't stop him, he went for everything and they all came
off. I tried to nullify him but there was nothing I could do.
"I couldn't have felt any better coming into the match, but just too
good
"
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[2] Gregory Gaultier (Fra)
bt [Q] Daryl Selby (Eng)
11/4, 11/7, 11/0
(42m)
 "I
didn't expect to wait so long to go on, but you have to deal with
these things, I just kept relaxed, didn't waste energy as I waited.
"Daryl's a good player, very tricky and he has a good wrist and
holds the ball well. It's never easy to play a first round, but I
was feeling ok and was able to raise my game in the third.
"The court is brilliant, we've been here a few days and I've played
on it a lot, it's my favourite.
"I play Hisham next, I played him once and won but I'm not thinking
about that, it's a new opponent and a new game, I just hope I do a
great performance here this week
"
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 "I've
played Greg a few times in PSA, and even though I maybe got fewer
points this time I think this is my best performance against him.
With it being the world open I think he was playing 100% all the way
through, the pace was high and I played well, in the second
especially.
"I was in the rallies in the first two games, but he was very good
in the third, he sped up and was very focused.
"I worked hard to get through the qualifiers and it makes a
difference whether you get the number two or the number sixteen
seed, but I'm sure my time will come, I'll get a win against a top
sixteen player sooner or later
"
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[Q]
Omar Mosaad (Egy) bt [14] Olli
Tuominen (Fin)
7/11, 11/4, 11/9, 11/4
(38m)
Omar ousts Olli
We finished yesterday with an upset, and started today with another.
To bill Omar Mosaad as the 'second-best junior in the world' doesn't
do him justice these days, he's improved month by month since
finishing world junior runner-up to Ramy and taking the British
Junior Open title early this year.
 He
didn't start that well, but once he found his range Olli Tuominen
had great trouble coping with the young Egyptian's reach and power.
Olli is always a willing worker, and he was made to work very hard
as Omar used that reach to cut off everything he could, powering
away low drive winners when the loose ball was presented.
Trailing 4/2 in the third, Omar powered to a 9/4 lead and just held
off Olli's attempted comeback. That seemed to dispirit the Finn,
Omar swept to a 7/1 lead in the fourth and there was no coming back
from there ... |
 "I
didn't play well in the first, I hit four tins and he played well.
So in the second I kept it to the back while I got my head together
it was a tough game but I managed to win that one and that gave me
more confidence.
"The third was so quick, we were both volleying everything, and I
won the fourth quite easily, I'm not sure what happened to Olli.
Once I got to the front, my low crosscourt shot was my winner today.
"It was a big help to play two qualifying matches here, but I was
quite stiff after a hard 3-2 yesterday.
"I hope to make another good win the next round if I play Nick
Matthew he neat me 3/0 last time, but Joey Barrington is a good
player too, so whoever it is it will be a hard match
"
 |
|
[12]
Mohammed Abbas (Egy) bt Cameron
Pilley (Aus)
11/8, 11/6, 11/8 (45m)
Abbas leads from the front
 "He
was certainly up for it," commented Cameron Pilley after his match
with Mohammed Abbas.
And he was too.
The Egyptian looked determined from the start, and was only behind
briefly once, at 6/7 in the third.
"He played very well and I just couldn't get properly into it,"
added Cameron.
True enough.
 "That
was much harder than the scoreline says, I had to concentrate on
every rally and push hard to the end. I had to keep on hitting it
hard and to the back, he's an attacking player and I knew if I gave
him anything he'd go for it.
"I've been sick for the last three or four days so I didn't know if
I'd be able to last a long match, so I tried as hard as I could to
finish it in three. I'll get some new medicines now, maybe a bit of
beach, and hopefully I'll be fully fit for Wednesday
"
 |
 |
|
[13]
Azlan Iskandar (Mas) bt Shahier Razik (Can)
11/13, 11/6, 9/11,
11/3, 11/6 (75m)
Azlan edges home
You know it's never going to be easy against Shahier Razik on a
traditional court in hot conditions, especially if you squander good
leads.
That's what Azlan Iskandar did in the first (6/1) and the second
(7/2) and he paid the price. He took the second and fourth games
comfortably enough, winning a mainly attritional battle, then eased
ahead from the middle of the decider with a series of crisp winners,
particularly on his forehand volley.
So one Malaysian lives to fight another day, and another upset
avoided ...
 "It
could have been so much easier than that I was well up in the
first and third and lost them both. Just needed to make sure I had
one shot in my head rather than three or four, I was onto the ball
early and I thought too much about what shot to play rather than
just doing it.
"It's never going to be easy in the first round of the World Open -
I'm a bit annoyed with myself but at least I'm through. I've got a
day off now and I think I'll enjoy it on the glass court.
"My leg wasn't very good in Qatar but I'm fine now. Physically I was
fine, these conditions suit me, it's like home, so I'm glad to be
back and feeling fit, I'm quite hungry
"
 |
 |
|
Hisham Ashour (Egy) bt [16] Adrian
Grant (Eng)
11/7, 11/7, 4/11,
11/8 (45m)
One Ashour remains
Another Egyptian through, another upset. It promised to be a clash
of styles, and so it proved. Bermuda was looking forward to seeing
Ramy perform, but big brother Hisham has, if anything, more shots in
his locker than Ramy and he put them all to good use today.
Adrian couldn't stem the tide in the first two games, settled into
an early lead in the third to reduce the deficit but lost out in the
fourth in an acrimonious ending which left both players fuming ...
at each other and at the referee in equal measure.
|
 |
|
 "I've
been looking for a good win for the last year - I lost to Shabana in
five, to Ramy in five, to Beng Hee in five and to Wael El Hindi. I
also lost to Adrian in five in Detroit. He's a really good player
and he can run you all around the court.
"Today I was confident; playing well and retrieving well, I need to
bring my game out now ...
 |
|
|
