21-Jun, Finals:

[2] Misaki Kobayashi (Jpn) 3-1 [4] Megan Craig (Nzl)
             6-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 (38m)

[2] Raphael Kandra (Ger) 3-2 [6] Tsz Fung Yip (Hkg)
            4-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-7 (52m)
  

Kandra and Kobayashi claim the titles ...
Karyn Flett reports

The 2015 ILT & CTOS NZ Southern Open PSA finals today were every bit as exciting and dramatic as was anticipated.

Megan Craig and Misaki Kobayashi were first up on court and Craig was the first to gain advantage, taking the very tightly contested first set.

Craig displayed great speed around the court, hunting for the volley and forcing errors from Kobayashi. The second set was another close battle, however Kobayashi became more settled into her game and was able to redirect the pressure onto Craig.

Kobayashi was very happy to take the second set and even the match up as she felt that Craig had absorbed the pressure well, and continued to fight back, looking for any opportunity to extend her advantage.

Kobayashi continued to look more comfortable and in control during the third set although it was not until the fourth that she truly began to dominate with well placed shots that stretched Craig’s ability to retrieve.

In the Men’s final, Raphael Kandra and Tzs Fung Yip were both going to have to work hard to score points against opponents who had proven themselves able to retrieve balls from seemingly winning shots.

The speed and agility of both had the crowd constantly amazed and impressed as they both scrambled from one corner of the court to another to keep themselves in the rally.

Yip was completely in control of the first two sets as Kandra made several errors and it seemed as though Yip had the match already with Kandra seeming to have no clear game plan to fight back with.

Kandra clearly regrouped well during the break and from early in the third set it became clear that the match had shifted momentum. Kandra took an early lead and kept extending it, taking the third set to keep his chances alive.

Following the match Kandra said he had realized that if he really wanted to win he needed to “come up with a better game plan and be patient, not play the silly shots.”

The fourth set saw a very focused Kandra attacking the ball with new found energy and aggression, hitting more balls deep to the back and playing shots with much more accuracy, that saw him take the set convincingly, forcing Yip into a fifth set.

Yip came back strong in the final set, forcing errors again, until Kandra started to come back and reclaimed a slim lead.

At 7-6 a turning point was reached with Kandra winning the longest rally of the match (2.07 minutes) and continuing his momentum to claim the match and 2015 title.
 

SquashCity

Watch Replays

8th WSA title for Misaki

"I'm really happy to end the season with a win - and happy with the coolest trophy I've ever got too!"





"This win means a lot to me as squash still has a huge chance to get into the Olympics and I hope my result will encourage the Olympic committee members to know that there is bright future for squash and a real chance for a Japanese athlete to win a medal if it gets into 2020!"

11-8, 11-4, 11-8 (33m)

Lance Beddoes

4-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-7 (52m)

[2] Raphael Kandra

11-1, 13-11, 11-9 (37m)

[5] Paul Coll

17-Jun, Qualifying Finals:

Chris Binnie (Jam) 3-1 Muhammad Hannan (Aus)    11-7, 13-11, 7-11, 11-6 (44m)
Chris van der Salm (Nzl) 3-1 Matias Tuomi (Fin)  14-12, 13-15, 11-3, 12-10 (46m)
Evan Williams (Nzl) 3-1 Mark Fuller (Eng)             11-8, 10-12, 12-10, 11-8 (54m)
Kashif Shuja (Nzl) 3-0 Addeen Idrakie (Mas)                     11-9, 11-9, 11-4 (39m)

16-Jun, Qualifying Round One:

Muhammad Hannan (Aus) 3-1 Sion Wiggin (Nzl)        11-9, 11-3, 9-11, 11-4 (27m)
Chris van der Salm (Nzl) 3-0 Courtney West (Aus)            11-4, 11-5, 11-7 (26m)
Mark Fuller (Eng) 3-0 Adrian Mennell (Nzl)                         11-9, 11-9, 11-0 (20m)
Evan Williams (Nzl) 3-0 Luke Jones (Nzl)                            11-7, 11-4, 11-7 (22m)
Kashif Shuja (Nzl) 3-2 Jason van der Walt (Nzl) 11-4, 8-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-1 (35m)

8-11, 11-9, 10-12, 11-2, 12-10 (52m)

[4] Megan Craig

6-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 (38m)

[2] Misaki Kobayashi

8th WSA title
for Misaki

11-9, 6-11, 11-6, 11-9 (42m)

[2] Misaki Kobayashi

17-Jun, Qualifying Finals:

Danielle Foure (Nzl) 3-0 Vanessa Larsen (Nzl)    11-3, 11-2, 11-2 (15m)
Hwayeong Eum (Kor) 3-0 Emily Flett (Nzl)         11-5, 11-7, 11-5 (20m)
Yura Choi (Kor) 3-0 Katie Fairweather (Nzl)      11- 5, 11-0, 11-4 (12m)

20-Jun, Semis
Craig uspets top seed - again - as
Beddoes and Coll runs come to an end ...
Karyn Flett reports

Just when it seemed the semi-finals of the ILT & CTOS NZ Southern Open PSA Women’s Event would see the two top seeds through to the final as expected, New Zealand’s Megan Craig put a different plan into action as she beat top seed Siyoli Waters after an intense five sets which seemed to be a replay of last week's final in Christchurch.

With Waters having narrowly claimed the first set, Craig took an early lead in the second and successfully fended off a comeback from Waters to tie the score at one all.

Deep into the third set and Craig held game-ball when a forced error saw Waters awarded a stroke to even the scores again. An irretrievable crosscourt drop gave Waters game-ball and she sealed the set with another winning crosscourt drop. Each set was open for either player to take, with the exception of the fourth in which Craig gained a large lead that Waters was unable to claw back.

The fifth saw Waters gain the early lead, with Craig chasing her down every step of the way. Just as it seemed Waters would claim victory with match-ball, Craig again turned the tables and took the next five points to secure her a spot in tomorrows final.

In the first women's semi Misaki Kobayashi began very strongly, although a determined Amanda Landers-Murphy ensured that it wasn’t all one-sided.

The first set saw Kobayashi with a comfortable lead until Landers-Murphy made a strong come back, with Kobayashi just taking the set 11-9. The second set had Landers-Murphy much more in control of play, closing out the set 11-6.

The third set was yet another shift around as Kobayashi seized control and reversed the scores from set two, followed by a tightly contested fourth set that saw both players hitting the ball deep, looking to put the other out of position and set up opportunity to play a winning shot.

Landers-Murphy was absorbing the pressure applied by Kobayashi well until late in the set when a run of errors gave Kobayashi a two point buffer that she was then able to hammer home her advantage and take the match.

The men's semi-finals saw the end of the dream run being enjoyed by young New Zealand players Lance Beddoes and Paul Coll.

After causing upsets in the first two rounds, Beddoes’ charge was brought to an abrupt end by Hong Kong’s Tsz Fung Yip in the first semi-final. Yip was very dominant throughout the match, pushing the pace and forcing errors from Beddoes who looked as though his previous two five set marathons had taken a greater toll than Yip had been taxed in his three set

Likewise, Coll was outplayed by a very assertive Raphael Kandra, who seemed to defy the impossible in returning balls from everywhere on the court.

A combination of errors with some superb shot play by Kandra saw Coll outclassed in the first set. However he regrouped well to pose a serious threat in the second, equalizing to create a tie-break and holding game-ball before Kandra again applied pressure, forcing the errors and securing the set.

The third set saw Kandra stake a huge lead before Coll again regrouped and played with the speed, agility and accuracy seen in his previous two matches. Despite holding off two match-balls by forcing errors from Kandra, Coll was unable to take the set and Kandra moves through to tomorrow’s final.
 

SquashCity

19-Jun:
Beddoes & Coll in all-Kiwi Invercargill upsets
Karyn Flett reports

The ILT & CTOS NZ Southern Open quarter-finals played out tonight at Squashcity Invercargill with a crowd of spectators eager to view some intense squash, and some huge upsets by the younger New Zealand contingent.

The much anticipated match between two local crowd favourites Lance Beddoes and Martin Knight (both NZ) was every bit as exciting as expected, with both players giving their all as they sought the semi-final spot. Knight managed to just sneak the first set 12-10, with the set full of his trademark long rallies.



The second set was all Beddoes with him coming back from
losing the first playing harder and smarter, taking the set 11-0. following the match, when asked about this set, Beddoes was unsure of what exactly had happened but felt he got a good roll on and everything just worked. Knight again came back in the third and edged his lead out to 2-1, before Beddoes again had a dominant set, leveling the match at 2 all.

The final set shaped up to be a seesaw of points before Beddoes again took control with a small run of points to give him match-ball, however a tight shot by Knight to the front corner saw Beddoes miss hit and send the ball back into himself, opening the door for Knight to come back.

Beddoes was determined to win, and with the taste of success hovering he was able to drive the match home with a shot placed deep into the back corner that forced an error from Knight.

The second upset of the evening was caused by another up and coming Kiwi, with Paul Coll grabbing victory from within top seed Campbell Grayson’s grasp, and nothing but sweat left on the court.



Grayson took the early lead in the first set after initially trading point for point, although Coll showed glimpses of what was to come, and further capitalized on this in the second and third sets – taking them both 12-10. These sets were very intense, with both players pushing to get the advantage and secure a valuable set. Going point for point all the way through the second, Coll gained set-ball in the tie-break and Grayson’s unforced error off the serve gave him the set.

Coll was able to keep the momentum going into the third, taking an early lead, with Grayson then catching up before Coll stretched the lead out again, and was able to equalise and secure the set on another tie-break. Grayson came out firing in the fourth, taking an early lead and continually increasing the gap until he had played his way to a fifth set.

Grayson again took an early lead in the deciding set, with Coll scrambling to catch up throughout the set. With Grayson on matchball, Coll threw everything he had into staying in the game and came up with a drop in the front that was just to good for Grayson to pick up.

An error by Grayson created another tie-break where Coll was able to continue applying pressure and take the win.

Coll is “extremely happy with tonight’s result. A huge battle against a good team mate Cambo, looking forward to my match tomorrow against Rapha.”

Earlier in the evening, “Lucky Loser” Matias Tuomi was first up on the Men’s court, facing a very focused and on-task Tsz Fung Yip.



Yip dominated the centre of the court and made great use of attacking boasts to catch Tuomi off-guard. Tuomi retrieved well, chasing balls all around the court as Yip continued to apply pressure.

The second set saw Tuomi pushing hard, using tight length and wide cross-court shots to move Yip around the court more, forcing errors and hunting for the lead. Despite Tuomi’s best efforts, Yip maintained his focus and was able to come back from game-ball down to take the set 12-10.

The third set saw a much more aggressive approach by Yip, placing the ball to move Tuomi from one corner to another, hunting the loose ball for opportunity to play winning shots.

Second seed Raphael Kandra was relatively untroubled in his match with James Huang, taking the match in three sets.



Kandra’s presence on the court seemed immense as he covered all areas with apparent ease, returning balls that should have been winning shots.

Huang wasn’t allowing Kandra to have it all his way though and fought hard to keep himself in each set, forcing a tie-break in the third but unable to capitalize.
 

SquashCity

Women's seeds safely through

The quarter-final round of the ILT & CTOS NZ Southern Open PSA Women’s Event saw all seeds safely through to the semi-finals.



Germany’s Sina Wall was much more focused tonight, up against top seed Siyoli Waters. Waters displayed great court movement throughout the match and used the high lob when under pressure to keep herself in the rally’s. While Wall made several unforced errors in the first set she was also able to pull off some risky shots when under pressure.

The second set saw wall come out playing much deeper and better placed length, playing with much more dominance and forcing errors from Waters. This, coupled with her willingness to go for winning shots saw her claim the second set from a frustrated Waters.

Waters came back hard in the third, much more focused and looking to play winning shots herself. She attacked the ball much more aggressively and took this set comfortably.

The fourth was full of action, with both players looking for opportunities to attack the ball and secure points. The lead seesawed back and forth throughout the set with Waters just managing to secure the win and move through to the next round.

New Zealander Megan Craig played a very focused game against Australian Jessica Turnbull. Great use of length and wide crosscourt angles gave Craig the position she was looking for to use her skills at the front of the court and maintain a healthy advantage over Turnbull. The first two sets were a fairly one-sided affair, however Turnbull at times applied the pressure needed to force errors and secure points.



The third set saw Craig’s use of deep length lessen and Turnbull took the opportunity to dominate the centre of the court and play some impressive winning shots to take an early lead and put Craig under pressure. Craig soon refocused herself and quickly turned the game around again, improving her length and attacking the ball with much more determination to push back past Turnbull and close out the match.

Amanda Landers-Murphy had a much tougher time in her match, needing to really step her game up to combat a very determined Christine Nunn. The first set saw lots of errors from both players as they each tried to apply pressure to the other. Down game-ball in the first, Landers-Murphy managed to get back on top of Nunn and took the set 12-10.



The second set was much more hers, with a comfortable 11-4. Nunn again pushed hard in the third, and it was a tightly fought battle for the lead with Landers-Murphy just able to close the match out 11-9.

The final match for the Women’s quarter-finals saw Misaki Kobayashi of Japan battle with Australian Sarah Cardwell to see who would book the last semi-final berth. Kobayashi looked to have complete control during the first two sets, before Cardwell was able to increase the pressure in the third, getting a strong run of points to secure this set.



Kobayashi came out refocused in again in the fourth, taking a very strong lead before Cardwell started to look like coming back, but the comeback was not enough and Kobayashi will face Landers-Murphy tomorrow, looking to secure a place in the final.

18-Jun:
Round One in Invercargill
Karyn Flett reports

The ILT & CTOS NZ Southern Open began tonight with an exciting line-up of matches scheduled and plenty of edge of the seat matches to keep spectators enthralled.

Qualifier Chris Binnie took the court first up against Tsz Fung Yip to try and make his way through to the second round. After a slow start that saw Binnie in with a chance of taking the first set, Yip stepped up the pace and became steadily more focused through each set to take the match 3-0.

Meanwhile on the other court a tough battle was shaping up between qualifiers Kashif Shuja and Matias Tuomi. With the sets tied at 1-1, the third set became a seesaw of advantage with both players taking a small lead and catching up. Unfortunately Shuja sustained an injury late in the third set and while he came back for the fourth set he was unable to continue playing and had to retire.

Next up was young New Zealander Chris Van der Salm taking on the more experienced Martin Knight, also of New Zealand. Van der Salm again showed his continued development as a player that was seen in his qualifying matches, pushing Knight to a five set thriller of a match that had plenty of the long rallies Knight is so well known for here in Invercargill.

With Van der Salm holding a 2-1 lead, Knight took an early advantage in the fourth set at 9-6, however Van der Salm had other ideas and fought back hard to equalise at 9-9, before Knight refocused and applied good pressure to take the set and keep his chances alive with a 5th set.

Experience started to show through as Knight pushed his way to the lead with Van der Salm challenging him every step of the way, just not quite far enough with Knight closing the match out 11-7 in this final set.

Knight paid tribute to Van der Salm’s game saying “he played well, was accurate throughout the match, and his only slow patch came at the start of the fourth when he allowed me a big lead before coming back strong. Happy to be in the quarter-finals tomorrow.”



Over on the other court was the match that was to be the upset of the night – qualifier Lance Beddoes vs 4th seed Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu. The match promised to be exciting right from the first set, and the players did not disappoint an expectant crowd.

From 1-5 down Beddoes came back with a seven point streak to take the lead 8-5, then Sandhu fought back to level before Beddoes eventually took the set 11-9. A very determined Sandhu came out to take the second set 11-6 and the third was a very closely fought battle of skill which Beddoes just managed to take 15-13.

Sandhu again came back to take the fourth set and both players looked fired up and eager for the win as they entered the fifth set and they both played at times with caution and at other times with courage and flair in their quest to get the advantage over each other.

Beddoes eventually took the set 11-8 to secure his place in the quarter-finals tomorrow. Beddoes said after the match that he “is stoked to be through to the quarter-finals in what is one of his favourite tournaments of the year, and really happy to have had his best win so far. Looking forward to my match tomorrow!! Thanks to my awesome coach Paul Coll.”



Second seed Raphael Kandra was not keen to continue the trend set by the previous two matches and despite the very best efforts of wildcard Ben Grindrod, Kandra managed to take his match in three sets. Grindrod managed to keep up almost point for point in the first set before Kandra became more settled into the match and started to dominate the play much more. At times it seemed Grindrod had an almost impossible task to get the ball passed Kandra, and the shots Kandra was able to pull off were definitive winners.

Likewise in the match between Mathew Serediak and James Huang where Huang displayed too much control of the ball and was able to place winning shots despite the excellent retrieving skills of Serediak. Huang dominated the match right from the beginning and took just 23 minutes to secure his place in the next round.

The final matches of the night saw a battle of two young New Zealanders Paul Coll and Evan Williams, and new top seed Campbell Grayson up against Australian Matthew Hopkin.

While Williams was clearly keen to create an upset and further increase his ranking, Coll was equally determined to make it through to quarter-finals and applied plenty of pressure and hunted out his opportunities well and was “happy to get through what was a tough first round match and looking forward to a tough battle against fellow Kiwi Campbell Grayson tomorrow night.”

Despite being top seed, Grayson was not given any leeway in his match against Hopkin, with this being a very close contest in the first two sets which were open for either player to close out. Grayson was able to eventually take both sets, 11-9, 12-10 and was 1-0 up in the third when Hopkin dislocated his shoulder and had to retire injured.

As luck would have it, one of the spectators was an Orthopaedic Surgeon and Hopkin was able to have the shoulder treated straight away.

Grayson said after the match that he “was happy to get through today, not the way I wanted to win with Matt unfortunately hurting his shoulder. I made too many mistakes today at crucial times but looking forward to playing Paul Coll tomorrow. Thanks Kashif and Martin for your help tonight.”
 

SquashCity

Unlike the drama that unfolded in the Men’s draw, tonight was fairly straightforward for the Women with all the matches running as expected.

Top seed Siyoli Waters  was up against New Zealander Danielle Fourie and was in clear control of the first two sets before relaxing a bit in the third, allowing Fourie back into the match. While Fourie had opportunity to take the third set, Waters stepped back up and eventually closed the match 14-12 in the third.



On the next court a slow start by Germany’s Sina Wall saw Korean player Hwayeong Eum take the first set 11-6. Wall came out in the second much more settled and focused and completely dominated the next two sets, playing shots with clinical precision and avoiding errors.

She eased off a bit in the fourth and Eum took this opportunity to try to get back into the match, however Wall was able to shut the door and take a comfortable win through to the next round where she will face top seed Siyoli Waters.

Speaking to Wall after the match she joked that maybe she was still in Queenstown at the start of the match in acknowledgement of her slow start before picking up the pace in the second set, and she was happy to win 3-1, acknowledging respect of Eum’s ability.

Next up saw a return to Invercargill for young Australian Junior Lakeesha Rarere after she attended the Oceania Junior Championships here in April. Rarere showed improvement since April and was clearly keen to get a good result tonight. Her opponent, compatriot Jessica Turnbull was also determined to advance through to the next round and was able to better captalise on loose shots and place the ball beyond Rarere’s reach to secure points and sets, and ultimately the match.



Fourth seed Megan Craig was in complete control of her match against qualifier Yura Choi. Craig was precise in her shot selection, pushing Choi to all corners of the court and clearly looking to conserve as much energy as possible for upcoming matches.

Third seed Amanda Landers-Murphy was similarly focused and clinical as she calmly played herself through to the quarterfinals, 11-3, 11-4, 11-4 in just 17 minutes. Landers-Murphy felt she played well and was happy with a 3-0 win tonight, and feels ready for her quarter-final match tomorrow night.

Christine Nunn was also able to dominate her match and secure a quick win against Hyo Ju Seo. Seo fought hard but was unable to match Nunn’s faster pace on the ball and ability to place the ball well out of her reach. Nunn looked very comfortable and in control throughout the match.

Sarah Cardwell showed a similar ability in controlling her match against fellow Australian Jasmine Chan. Cardwell took an early lead in the first set and continued to dominate the match although Chan made a valiant effort to keep herself competitive and apply some pressure to Cardwell.

In the final match of the night second seed Misaki Kobayashi showed no leniency towards New Zealand Junior Representative Abbie Palmer, showing a clear dominance from the very start of the match and taking a quick two set lead before easing back a bit, allowing Palmer more opportunities to secure points in the last set before closing the door at 11-8.

17-Jun:
Qualifying Complete in Invercargill -
three Kiwis through to main draw

Chris van der Salm, Evan Williams and Kashif Shuja boost home interest with against-the-seeding wins as withdrawal of top seed creates a strange-looking draw ...

Karyn Flett reports

The second round of men's qualifying saw top seeded Chris Binnie up against a determined Muhammad Hannan of Malaysia.

Binnie made short work of the first set, taking it 11-6 in just over 6 minutes.

The second set saw Hannan take an early lead with Binnie needing to work hard to catch him and take the set 13-11. Hannan showed much more dominance in the third set, taking this 11-7, before Binnie fought back to claim the fourth set and the match.

New Zealander Chris Van der Salm was next to take the court against 3rd seeded Matias Tuomi and Van der Salm was clearly determined to make the match his own.

The first two sets were up for either player to take, with the lead seesawing back and forth and tie-breaks needed to finish each set.

With the score at 1-1, Van der Salm stepped up the pace and focused more on pushing Tuomi deep into the back of the court, forcing the errors to take the third set much more comfortably. Tuomi came out ready to battle in the fourth, and again both players went point for point with Van der Salm eventually managing to close out the match 12-10.

Evan Williams showed how eager he is to regain ranking points lost while out with an injury, working hard to take an early lead with the first set.

England’s Mark Fuller wasn’t going to make Williams’ comeback easy though and the second set was tightly contested, Fuller just managing to take it 12-10.

The third set was a similar battle with both players working to force their opponent into making errors and set themselves up for winning shots.

Williams managed to get the advantage on Fuller 12-10, and then get an early lead in the fourth set before Fuller started to come back reaching 8-8 before Williams was able to assert dominance and close the match out.

Kashif Shuja showed his experience and class in the final match of qualifying, upsetting higher ranked Addeen Idrakie  in a tightly contested three sets.

Despite the match being only 3 sets Idrakie put up a fierce battle, looking for opportunities and hunting down the ball with speed and agility, creating an exciting match to finish the night.

Top seed out

Shuja now meets 'Lucky Loser' Tuomi at the top of the draw after the withdrawal through suspected appendicitis of top seed Leo Au.

New Zealand's Campbell Grayson is promoted to top seed, but with the draw staying the same, he's likely to meet new second seed Rahpael Kandra in the semis!

Fourie joins Koreans in main draw

The women’s qualifying matches went according to plan with all three seeded players winning comfortably to progress to the main draw.

Danielle Fourie showed no concession to clubmate and training partner Vanessa Larsen, commanding the match from start to finish, however Larsen did put up a strong fight playing some deep length shots and Fourie felt that the scores were not an accurate reflection of how well Larsen had played.

The second match saw local junior player Emily Flett out to try and cause an upset against Korea’s Hwayeong Eum.

While Flett played well and managed some very definitive winning shots, her efforts were not quite enough against the experience of Eum who closed the match in just three sets.

The final match of the qualifying round had another local junior player, Katie Fairweather, trying her luck against Yura Choi of Korea.

Choi was fully focused as she pushed Fairweather all around the court, applying pressure and forcing the errors to take the win in a comfortable three sets.
 

SquashCity

2014 Event