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 Singapore Masters 2009
03-08 Aug, Singapore |
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08-Aug,
Final:
[1] Nicol David (Mas) bt
[3] Natalie Grinham (Ned)
11-9, 11-8, 11-9 |
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Nicol scores Singapore hat-trick
World No. 1 Nicol David underlined her dominance in women’s
squash by defeating Natalie Grinham 11-9, 11-8, 11-9 in 40
minutes.
It was a masterful performance for the 25-year-old from Penang who’s
now won all three of the CIMB Singapore Women’s Masters tournaments.
And in all three finals, she’s met a Grinham in the final, beating
Natalie this time and in 2007, and Rachael in between.
Chair Umpire Munir Shah gave both players lengthy introductions, and
even sang a song, before play started.
Game 1 was cut-and-thrust as both players tried to work each
other, with Grinham intent on keeping David at the back of the court
with lobs. She was able to stay level with the World Champion until
8-8. That was when David was able to stretch ahead and wrap up the
game.
Grinham came out firing in Game 2, mixing up her shots with
good effect. From 6-1 in front, Grinham stretched the lead to 8-2.
And that was when David started her clawing back the points, one by
one. Playing patiently, the Malaysian won the next nine points to
take the game.
It was disastrous for Grinham, it could have been one game all… but
now it’s a 2-0 hole.
Given a sniff of victory, David was not about to let up in the
third game. And despite a mid-game blip when she allowed Grinham
to close the scores, she kept her composure complete the win.
It was sweet to pick up her 39th WISPA title. More than that, she
wants to keep her focus to stay ahead of the chasing pack. And for
sure, Nicol David brought her best stuff for a third year running to
Singapore. |
“I thought I did quite well with the
pressure Nicol throughout all three games.
The second game was pretty important but I don’t think I did much
wrong, rather it was Nicol who fought her way back”
“The past couple of years I’ve
struggled with injury, which hasn’t helped, but now it’s all coming
good and I’m becoming stronger and stronger mentally. So I really
want to come back and win Singapore”
“I think it’s a matter of working on the little things, making sure
I do everything right, instead of worrying about what others are
doing.
And to make sure I bring my best each time I step onto the court.”
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07-Aug,
Semi-finals:
[1] Nicol David (Mas) bt
[4] Alison Waters (Eng)
11-5,11-8,7-11,11-8 (37m)
[3] Natalie Grinham (Ned) bt
[2] Rachael Grinham (Aus)
11-9, 7-11,11-6,11-8 (50m) |
Nicol and Natalie
set up
2007 repeat
Natalie Grinham shaded the battle of the Grinham sisters in
the semi-finals of the CIMB Singapore Women’s Open to earn a return
to the title-decider. It will be the second trip to the final for
the Australian-born player who now plays for the Netherlands. And
just like the first time around, standing in her way is World No 1
Nicol David.
Playing her sister Rachael was not perhaps the best lead-up,
but the match still went for 50 minutes.
Rachael moved around well, and showed no ill-effects from her dodgy
ankle. In fact, she even managed to leave her mark on Natalie, and
didn’t realise it till it was pointed out to her after the match.
Here’s how 31-year-old Natalie described the incident: “She stood on
my foot but she didn’t realise it, I went straight over and a bruise
came up rightaway.”
But Natalie was quick to point out that it would not affect her in
the final, seeing as she went on to beat Rachael 11-9, 7-11, 11-6,
11-8.
In the final, Natalie hopes it will be her turn to put her mark on
the World No 1: “I will go out and do my best and run everything
down and hopefully come out the champion.”
The second semi-final was an outstanding affair. Long
rallies, incredible shot making, and superb retrieves that left the
capacity crowd ooh-ing and aah-ing in delight. Despite an exhausting
80-minute quarter-final last night against Jenny Duncalf, Alison
Waters gave her very best against the World No 1.
She dropped the first two games 11-5, 11-8, paying the price for
going for quick kills that did not quite work out. But in the third
game, Waters upped the aggression and with it her accuracy. Shooting
to a 4-0 lead, she did not relinquish her lead, winning 11-7.
The fourth game was all David as the long rallies took their toll on
Waters, with the Penangite running out 11-8 winners.
Looking ahead to the final with Natalie Grinham, whom she beat here
in the 2007 title match, David said: “I played her last week I Kuala
Lumpur, and beat her in the World Games final in Kaohsiung. We have
some good matches together but knowing this is the final, I just
want to give it a good go.”
Asked if it’s important for her to land the hat-trick here in
Singapore, David replied: “For me it’s just important for play well,
and if I do play well, then the result will come.”
The 2007 final took 54 minutes with David winning 6, 5 and 5 under
the old hand-out scoring system. It’s 2009, and it’s point-a-rally
now. But will it be, as they say, déjà vu all over again?
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06-Aug,
Quarter-finals:
[1] Nicol David (Mas) bt [7] Laura Lengthorn-Massaro (Eng)
12-10, 7-11, 11-7, 11-7 (55m)
[4] Alison Waters (Eng) bt [5] Jenny Duncalf (Eng)
9-11, 11-9, 11-13, 11-6, 11-9 (81m)
[3] Natalie Grinham (Ned) bt [8] Madeline Perry (Irl)
11-7, 8-11, 11-6, 8-11, 11-9 (60m)
[2] Rachael Grinham (Aua) bt [6] Omneya Abdel Kawy (Egy)
11-5, 13-15, 11-2, 11-4 (45m) |
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Grinhams line up for
Singapore Semi
There will be a Grinham in the final of the CIMB Women's Singapore
Masters. But will it be third seed Natalie Grinham, the world No3,
or her elder sister Rachael Grinham - ranked just one place below
her, but the tournament's second seed - who will contest the climax
of the $53k event at the Kallang Squash Centre in Singapore.
The first quarter-final pitched Natalie Grinham against eighth seed
Madeline Perry - and the hour-long match set the scene for the rest
of the evening. The pair traded games before taking the match into a
fifth game. And in the decider, there were never any more than two
points between the two before Irish champion Perry had a late lapse
of concentration to allow Grinham to go ahead.
The game ended on a stroke to the Dutch star and, despite initially
thinking it was a harsh decision, Perry conceded later that it was a
fair call.
The Irish girl felt she had her chances to win: "I really felt I
could win. We were at 8-all in the final game and then I played a
weak volley boast there and just dropped off for a couple of points
and gave her the match point," said Perry after her 11-7, 8-11,
11-6, 8-11, 11-9 defeat. "Still on match ball, I felt I could win,
but I couldn’t quite do it."
For Grinham, it was a different kind of struggle: "I played well in
some points, other points I felt I was mistiming the ball. I played
on the back courts yesterday, and the show court’s a little bit
different. So my timing was a little bit off sometimes. It was a
patchy match, and I’m happy to get through it."
Rachael’s match against Egyptian enigma Omneya Abdel Kawy was more
straightforward. Except for a second game blip, the 32-year-old from
Toowoomba, Australia, was always ahead despite playing with a sore
ankle.
"The night before I had my first round, I just went over on my
ankle, crossing the street unbelievably," explained Rachael Grinham
after her 11-5, 13-15, 11-2, 11-4 win. "And I’ve already done my
ankle a couple of times this year, so it’s already quite weak. So I
wasn’t really sure I was going to be able to move alright.
"I thought tonight against Omneya, I was really going to struggle
because she’s usually quite good in the front. So I went out there
with a plan to just try and keep her in the back so that I probably
wouldn’t have to move much and hopefully she would make some
errors."
About playing her sister in the semis, Rachael continued: “Natalie
and I don’t play each other that much these days, because we’re both
struggling a bit to make it through the rounds. It’s always good
because we always know that one of us is getting through to the
final."
The third quarter-final - an all-English affair between fifth seed
Jenny Duncalf and fourth seed Alison Waters - was nip and tuck all
the way. But it was Londoner Waters who prevailed 9-11, 11-9, 11-13,
11-6, 11-9 in the 81-minute tussle to set up a second meeting in a
week with favourite Nicol David, the world number one from Malaysia
who beat her in the CIMB Malaysia Open final last Saturday.
For Duncalf, it was disappointing to be edged out: "There wasn’t a
lot in it, Alison nicked it in the end. I’m disappointed to lose but
I didn’t think I played too badly. I probably should have
capitalised on my lead in the fifth, but Ali came back strong and
took it in the end."
The crowd stayed to see top seed Nicol David in action and for a
while there, it seemed they were going to witness an upset.
England's world No9 Laura Lengthorn-Massaro played like the rising
star she has been for the past two years, running Nicol close before
losing the first game 12-10.
Laura then won the second 11-7 but that was when Nicol found the
extra gear that she often does, taking the third 11-7. Nicol shot to
a 6-0 lead in the fourth and despite a mini-comeback from Laura, the
Malaysian stayed focused to wrap up the match in 61 minutes.
Laura took heart from her defeat: “I thought I played OK. My game
plan was good but it was the execution that let me down. I was
confident because the last we met was 3/2, so I know that I can get
games, it’s just turning the games into wins, so next time, I learnt
a lot from this."
Now one win away from her third successive final, David agreed she
was not at her best: "I was not having the best focus today but
Laura played really well today and worked the court well. I got
sucked into her game but then I managed to find my own game and
bring it to her at the end." |
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05-Aug, Round One:
No surprises in Round One
It was the World No. 1 against a player ranked 16 places below her
but the match was over in 27 minutes. And not for the lack of trying
from Samantha Teran. The lass from Mexico City tried her hardest but
Nicol David was always a step ahead of her.
And unlike past years when Nicol often started cold at the Kallang
Squash Centre, this time the 25-year-old from Penang shot off like a
rocket, taking the first game 11-5, before taking the next two 11-8
and 11-7.
“Samantha
has been playing well lately, she keeps going and going. So I wanted
to start off strong and keep the mistakes to the minimum.”
“It’s about getting used to the change from the glass courts in
Malaysia to the concrete one here, working the court well for your
own game and working right through.”
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Second seed Rachael Grinham was equally clinical in despatching
Malaysia’s Sharon Wee 11-9, 11-3, 11-3 to stay on course for a
repeat of last year’s final, the match taking 30 minutes. She next
meets Omneya Abdel Kawy who downed Isabelle Stoehr 11-7, 11-3, 11-3
(31m).
Madeline Perry attended a radio recording in the morning, alongside
WISPA Chief Executive Andrew Shelley, and Singapore players Mao Shi Hui and
Pamela Chua.
From all accounts, Madeline put up a good performance during at the
938LIVE radio studios in the morning, and in the evening took 17
minutes to brush aside Pamela.
The Irish girl lines up a meeting with 3rd-ranked Natalie Grinham
next, while her Singaporean opponent, ranked 137th, heads next to
the United States for tertiary studies. And while Madeline will
continue as a touring pro to study the angles of a squash court,
Pamela will be doing undergraduate studies in Mathematical and
Computational Science. What a contrast!
England’s Laura Lengthorn-Massaro despatched Malaysia’s Delia Arnold
11-8, 11-6, 12-10 to earn a meeting with top seed Nicol.
Alison Waters took 33 minutes to defeat Donna Urquhart 12-10, 11-5,
11-4. Her next assignment would be against a familiar opponent in
Jenny Duncalf who took care of Vanessa Atkinson 11-8, 11-9, 11-5 (35m). It will be an interesting quarter-final to watch. |
Qualifying Articles |
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  Singapore
Masters 2009
03-08 Aug, Singapore, $53k |
Round One
05
Aug |
Quarters
06 Aug |
Semis
07 Aug |
Final
08 Aug |
[1]
Nicol David (Mas)
11/5, 11/8, 11/7 (27m)
[Q] Samantha Teran (Mex) |
[1] Nicol David
12/10, 7/11 11/7 11/7 (55m)
[7] Laura L.Massaro |
[1] Nicol David
11-5,11-8,7-11,11-8 (37m)[4] Alison Waters |
[1] Nicol David
11-9, 11-8, 11-9
[3] Natalie Grinham |
[7]
Laura L.Massaro (Eng)
11/8, 11/6, 12/10 (27m)
[Q] Delia Arnold (Mas) |
[4]
Alison Waters (Eng)
12/10, 11/5, 11/4 (33m)
[Q] Donna Urquhart (Aus) |
[4] Alison Waters
9/11, 11/9, 11/13, 11/6, 11/9 (80m)
[5]Jenny Duncalf |
[5]Jenny Duncalf (Eng)
11/8, 11/9, 11/5 (35m)
Vanessa Atkinson (Ned) |
Pamela Chua (Sin)
11/2, 11/1, 11/2 (17m)
[8] Madeline Perry (Irl) |
[8] Madeline Perry
11/7, 8/11, 11/6, 8/11, 11/9 (60m)
[3] Natalie Grinham |
[3] Natalie Grinham
11-9, 7-11,11-6,11-8 (50m)
[2] Rachael Grinham |
Kasey Brown (Aus)
11/7, 11/3, 11/3 (25m)
[3] Natalie Grinham (Ned) |
Isabelle Stoehr (Fra)
11/3, 12/10, 11/9 (31m)
[6] Omneya Abdel Kawy (Egy) |
[6] Omneya Abdel Kawy
11/5, 13/15, 11/2, 11/4 (45m)
[2] Rachael Grinham |
[Q] Sharon Wee (Mas)
11/9, 11/3, 11/3 (30m)
[2] Rachael Grinham (Aus) |
04-Aug,
Qualifying Finals:
Samantha Teran (Mex) bt
Aisling Blake (Irl)
13/11, 11/8, 12/10 (43m)
Donna Urquhart (Aus) bt Sarah Kippax (Eng)
11/3, 11/4, 11/9 (20m)
Sharon Wee (Mas) bt Line Hansen (Den)
3/11, 12/10, 11/9, 8/11, 11/8 (49m)
Delia Arnold (Mas) bt Joey Chan (Hkg)
9/11, 11/6, 11/7, 9/11, 11/7 (49m)
03-Aug, Qualifying
Round One:
Samantha Teran (Mex)
bye
Aisling Blake (Irl)
bt Yuko Ikeda (Jpn)
11/3 11/2 11/4 (19m)
Sarah Kippax (Eng)
bt Joshna Chinappa (Ind) 11/7 11/4 11/8 (26m)
Donna Urquhart (Aus)
bt Yan Koh (Sin)
11/8 11/4 11/4 (21m)
Sharon Wee (Mas)
bt Jerryca
Teo (Sin)
11/2 11/5 11/3 (20m)
Line Hansen (Den)
bt Low Wee Wern (Mas)
11/8 12/10 8/11 10/12 12/10 (60m)
Joey Chan (Hkg)
bt Wei Lin Hooi (Mas)
11/3 11/3 11/4 (12m)
Delia Arnold (Mas)
bt Mao Shi Hui (Sin)
11/4 11/6 11/2 (26m)
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2007 Event
2008 Event |
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04-Aug, Qualifying Finals:
WEE EDGE HANSEN TO MAKE MAIN DRAW, ARNOLD
FOLLOW SUIT
For a second consecutive night, Denmark's Line Hansen was
involved in a five-gamer but this time the 26-year-old emerged on
the wrong side of the result. Instead, it was Sharon Wee of
Malaysia who made it through to the Main Draw of the CIMB Singapore
Women’s Masters 2009.
Qualifying Round two was always going to be tense with the winners
going through to the Big Dance. And the action at the Kallang Squash
Centre was frenetic.
World no 17 Samantha Teran got the ball rolling by defeating
Aisling Blake. But the straight games win for the Mexican
belied the fact it was a very close tussle that ran 43 minutes.
Teran prevailed 13-11, 11-8, 12-10, and will play World No 1 Nicol
David in the Main Draw.
Next to win a place in the Main competition was Australia's Donna
Urquhart who upended a higher-ranked opponent in Englishwoman
Sarah Kippax. A late surge by Kippax was not enough to prevent
her from going down 11-3, 11-4, 11-9. Urquhart lines up against
Malaysian Open runner-up alison Waters.
Then came the five-game thriller between Hansen and Wee, and what a
contrast in styles. Hansen's power game worked a treat in the
opening game, with an easy 11-3 win. But back came Wee who started
mixing up her shots, taking the ball high, and making effective use
of the back court volley drop. And she levelled the match at
one-game each.
The pair traded the next two games to take the match to a decider.
Hansen shot to an early 3-0 lead only to see Wee coming back. And
after looking tired in game four, Wee found her second wind to seize
a decisive lead at 8-7. And she went on to win 11-8 and Hansen's
composure frayed.
It was easily the quality match of the evening and afterwards,
A relieved Wee, who will meet Rachel Grinham in the Main Draw, said:
“Line's tough to play, and I knew I needed to start playing the
trickier shots. The risk paid off and I'm glad I'm through to the
Main Draw. I felt I wanted it a bit more tonight and I hope the draw
will be kind to me.”
Match four was also close affair as rising star Joey Chan of
Hong Kong gave a fright to Malaysia's Delia Arnold who's
ranked 13 places above her. Chan took the first game 11-9 but Arnold
came back to take the next two 11-6, 11-7.
Chan fought back to take the fourth game 11-9 to force the decider.
But the Hong Konger ran out of steam, giving away cheap points with
unforced errors while Arnold stayed steady to win 11-7 and earn a
meeting with World no 9 Laura Lengthorn-Massaro in the Main Draw.
Said Arnold: “My past matches with Joey have always been close
affairs. I am dead tired after this match. But I'm really looking
forward to meeting Laura whom I've never played before. I hope to
put up a good show and and learn as much as I can from the
experience of playing a world top ten player.”
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03-Aug, Qualifying Round One:
Things go to form
on day one of qualifiers ...
The seeded players are safely through to the second qualifying round
at the CIMB Singapore Women’s Masters 2009.
A late pullout by Egypt’s Raneem El Weleily due to visa issues
resulted in a mini-reshuffle. Samantha Teran gained a bye,
going through to Round two without effort.
In the remaining seven ties, only one went beyond a 3-0 scoreline,
and that was the evening’s highlight. A 60-minute tussle between
World no 28 Line Hansen and Malaysia’s Low Wee Wern
who’s ranked 5 places below the Dane.
Line took a 2 game lead (11-8, 12-10) only to see the 19-year-old
from Penang coming back to take the next two. Hansen found it hard
to keep her composure, tossing her racket in frustration on several
occasions, and drawing a stroke from the umpire.
Game five was nip and tuck as the duo exchange points, but Hansen’s
court command paid off, taking the decider 12-10.
Despite the loss, Low was upbeat with the result: “Line played two
great shots at the end of Game five and she deserve the win. I knew
I had to hang in there and if I could get her to the fifth game, I
would have a chance. I’ve been training well in the past three
months in Penang, so this is an improvement to the 3-0 loss to Line
the last time we met.”
Sharon Wee accounted for local lass Jerryca Teo and
will meet Hansen tomorrow for a place in the Main Draw.
Delia Arnold brushed aside Singapore’s Mao Shi Hui in
28 minutes (11-4, 11-6, 11-2) to set up a meeting with Joey Chan
from Hong Kong. Chan disposed of Malaysia’s Hooi Wei Lin 11-3, 11-3,
11-4 ( 12 mins).
Donna Urquhart ended Singapore’s hopes of sending a second
player into the Main Draw by defeating Koh Kar Yan 11-8, 11-4, 11-4
and will meet England’s Sarah Kippax, who beat India’s Joshna
Chinappa.
And Ireland’s Aisling Blake ended the hopes of Japanese
veteran Yuko Ikeda.
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Nicol bids for
Hat-Trick
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2008
2007
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Nicol bids for Singapore hat-trick
In
one of the busiest months on the 2009 WISPA
tour,
the world's leading players are set to compete in this week's CIMB
Singapore Masters, the fifth WISPA
Gold event of the year
which will be staged at the Kallang
Squash Centre from
05-8 August.
It
is the third year of Singapore's premier squash tournament - and
Malaysia's world number one Nicol David is
seeded to win the title for the third time in a row!
"The
CIMB Singapore Masters is one of my favourite tournaments," said the
25-year-old from Penang who successfully defended her Malaysian
Open title last
week. "The fans have never failed to make me feel at home and that
always lends me the advantage as I face up to the stiff opposition
that shows up at this first-class tournament.
"I
look forward to returning to Singapore for the CIMB Masters in this
very important year for squash as we make a concerted bid to place
Squash in the 2016 Olympics."
Andrew Shelley,
Chief Executive of WISPA, echoes David’s thoughts: "Two years ago,
we were delighted with the return of top-notch squash to Singapore
with the CIMB Singapore Masters. We have now been able to build upon
this by welcoming back the New Zealand Open after 16 years.
"The
Asia-Pacific swing - which takes in Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and
this year Tauranga in New Zealand - will surely become a real focal
point of the WISPA calendar as we continue to grow our sport.
"This year, we will also be holding our WISPA Annual General Meeting
in Singapore, as we look forward to the outcome of our bid to enter
Squash into the Olympic Games for 2016. And the continual success of
the CIMB Singapore Masters is as crucial to the global growth of
squash, as much as it is important for Singapore squash."
The
Grinham sisters, Natalie and Rachael,
who are ranked third and fourth in the world, will be back to deny
David her hat-trick - and as always, the strong British
representation of Jenny
Duncalf, Alison
Waters, Laura
Lengthorn-Massaro, and Madeline
Perry from Ireland,
make this one of the most star-studded squash events in the region.
Singapore Squash Rackets Association President Desmond
Hill welcomes the
continued support of the title sponsor: "For an event like ours to
take off, we cannot do without the strong support of our sponsors. And
CIMB Bank has proven its commitment to squash not only in its home
country Malaysia, but also in the region with its sponsorship of the
Singapore Women’s Masters for a third year running.
"Our
tournament has also been a window into the future as we welcome the
emerging youngsters in Kasey Brown of Australia, Mexico's Samantha
Teran and Raneem El-Weleily of Egypt. We also welcome the delegates
to WISPA staging its AGM here in Singapore for the first time, which
gives us a shot in the arm that Singapore squash is heading the
right direction," added Mr Hill.
Singapore will be
represented in the $53k tournament by top local player Pamela
Chua in the main
draw, while Mao Shi
Hui, Koh Kar Yan and Jerryca
Teo are entered in
the qualifying competition.
USA's world number two Natalie
Grainger, who missed the World Games due to a foot injury, will
also not be in Singapore - but hopes to return next week in New
Zealand.
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