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17-May,Final:
[1] Nicol David
bt [2] Natalie Grainger
7/11, 12/10, 11/5, 11/6 (39m)
David Strikes Gold In Texas
Top-seeded Malaysian Nicol David overcame defending champion Natalie
Grainger for the second time in seven days when she beat her US
rival in the final of the Texas Open.
But the world number one had to fight back from a game down, then
survive extra points in the second game, before prevailing in 39
minutes over world number two Grainger in the climax of the eighth
staging of the established event at Life Time Fitness in Plano.
"It was a close one and it wasn't an easy task that's for sure,"
said the delighted 25-year-old from Penang at the post-final
presentations.
 "She was well into playing every shot imaginable in the first game
and in the second I started to get a little bit into my own game.
Then, trailing at a crucial 10-8, I managed to pull it through and
got the match to one-all.
"Afterwards, I kept my game and Natalie started to make a few
unforced errors to give me a better lead. The last game was very
tight right throughout, but I knew I had to keep working hard to
make this final go my way. Finally, everything worked out for me at
the end.
"I'm glad to win my first Texas Open title," concluded David.
It was a confidence-boosting win for the Malaysian superstar who
fell to Grainger in the final of the KL Open, on home soil, in March
- thereby ending a remarkable 56-match, 17-month unbeaten WISPA Tour
run.
The win marks the 36th Tour title of Nicol David's career - and not
brings her appearances in successive WISPA finals to 15 since
October 2007, but also raises her total number of Tour finals to 51,
thus drawing level with Australian Tour rival Rachael Grinham.
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 Texas
Open 2009
12-17 May, Dallas, $57k |
Round One
14 May |
Quarters
15 May |
Semis
16 May |
Final
17 May |
[1] Nicol David (Mas)
11/6, 11/3, 11/4 (27m)
[Q] Dominique Lloyd-Walter (Eng) |
[1] Nicol David
11/5, 11/8, 11/7 (30m)
Isabelle Stoehr |
[1] Nicol David
11/4, 11/3, 11/6 (30m)
[5] Jenny Duncalf |
[1] Nicol David
7/11, 12/10, 11/5, 11/6 (39m)
[2] Natalie Grainger |
Isabelle Stoehr (Fra)
11/8, 9/11, 11/3, 11/6 (35m)
[Q] Raneem El Weleily (Egy) |
[3] Rachael Grinham (Aus)
10/12, 11/6, 11/9, 5/11, 11/8 (66m)
Jaclyn Hawkes (Nzl) |
[3] Rachael Grinham
8/11, 11/9, 11/7, 8/11, 11/9 (55m)
[5] Jenny Duncalf |
[5] Jenny Duncalf (Eng)
5/11, 11/5, 11/1, 11/5 (27m)
Rebecca Chiu (Hkg) |
Kasey Brown
11/6, 11/7, 11/4 (40m)
[6] Alison Waters (Eng) |
[6] Alison Waters
11/5, 11/9, 13/11 (42m)
[4] Natalie Grinham |
[4] Natalie Grinham
8/11, 11/7, 11/5, 11/4 (36m)
[2] Natalie Grainger |
[Q] Sarah Kippax (Eng)
11/8, 11/4, 12/10 (27m)
[4] Natalie Grinham (Ned) |
Samantha Teran (Mex)
12/10, 11/9, 9/11, 13/11 (57m)
[7] Madeline Perry (Irl) |
Samantha Teran
11/5 13/11 11/9 (27m)
[2] Natalie Grainger |
[Q] Emma Beddoes (Eng)
11/6, 5/11, 5/11, 11/5, 11/9 (47m)
[2] Natalie Grainger (Usa) |
13-May, Qualifying Finals:
Raneem El Weleily (Egy) bt
Sharon Wee (Mas)
14/12, 11/1, 11/6
Sarah Kippax (Eng) v Delia Arnold (Mas)
11/7, 11/3, 7/11, 11/8
Emma Beddoes (Eng)
bt Line Hansen (Den)
11/8, 9/11, 9/11, 11/8, 11/6
Dominique Lloyd-Walter (Eng) v Lisa Camilleri (Aus)
11/4, 11/7, 11/6
12-May, Qualifying Round One:
Raneem El Weleily (Egy) bt Belkys Magaly Velez (Ecu)
11/1, 11/3, 11/4
Sharon Wee (Mas) bt Amanda Shoby (Usa)
11/6, 11/3, 11/7
Delia Arnold (Mas) bt Ivonne Diaz (Mex)
11/4, 11/5, 11/4
Sarah Kippax (Eng) bt Olivia Blatchford (Usa)
11/7, 11/6, 10/12, 11/7
Emma Beddoes (Eng)
bt Aisling Blake (Irl)
11/7, 12/10, 11/7
Line Hansen (Den) bt Irina Assal (Rus)
11/2, 11/4, 11/2
Lisa Camilleri (Aus)
bt Suzie Pierrepont (Eng)
11/9, 11/7, 6/11, 8/11, 11/9
Dominique Lloyd-Walter (Eng) bt Latasha Khan (Usa)
5/11, 11/5, 11/5, 11/9
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17-May,Final:
[1] Nicol David
bt [2] Natalie Grainger
7/11, 12/10, 11/5, 11/6 (39m)
16-May, Semis:
David & Grainger
to meet again
Top seeds Nicol
David and Natalie Grainger set up a second final meeting inside a
week when the progressed to the final of the Texas Open at the
expense of Jennyu Duncalf and Natalie Grinham, respectively.
The two Natalies produced a pulsating
semi final full of all-angle exploitation, deft racket work and
counter attack.
Grinham's scurrying bought gasps from the crowd, as did Grainger's
dead nicks. While Grinham started better, as the match wore on
Grainger began to extend her opponent a little too far often enough
to induce errors, some unforced, and take leads, which she didn't
squander in any of the last three games.
"We were both edgy in the first game and she pulled away when I gave
her easy lengths - so I had to focus on improving that in the rest
of the match," said Grainger.
"I am really pleased to be in the final to defend my Texas Open
title - and such a big and enthusiastic crowd is great too."
 A
disappointed Grinham said : "It was hard because I felt that I was
getting to the ball, but missing some in the second game. lost a bit
of confidence and to her credit she took advantage and played well.
I am really disappointed that I didn't play better in the fourth."
Duncalf knew what she would be in for against the world champion,
and got exactly that from David. Under pressure throughout as ball
after ball came back and anything loose was put away, it was a
dominant performance from the world number one.
"I was just on today," said David. "I knew I had to be because she
would be gunning for me, so I was pleased with my focus and my
game."
"She seemed to be in front of me the whole time," said Duncalf. "I
played pretty well but she gave me no room or time. I tried to slow
it down but nothing worked. It was hard!"
The final will be the third meeting of the year between David and
Grainger, the world's top two. Grainger ended David's 18-month
unbeaten run in Kuala Lumpur in March, a defeat which David avenged
in last week's Cayman Open final.
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15-May, Quarters:
Duncalf despatches
another Grinham
England's Jenny Duncalf
battled for 55 minutes to upset third seed Rachael Grinham to reach
the last four in front of a full house with dozens standing behind
the two banks of seating at Life Time Fitness in Plano, near Dallas.
 The
fifth seed from Harrogate in Yorkshire recovered from losing the
first beat Grinham in five games - recording her third successive
victory over the world number three from Australia since May last
year. At 10/9 in the fifth the pair exchanged a backhand rally
amounting to around 30 shots before Rachael snapped by putting a
long cross court drop into the tin.
The win - the Englishwoman had covered the court, reaching more
short stuff than ever, which was perhaps the difference - takes
Duncalf into her second surprise semi in less than two weeks - it
was an upset over Rachael's sister Natalie Grinham that led the
England number one into the last four of the Cayman Islands Open.
 "It
was a risk to play in Cayman, as being fifth seed wasn't ideal - but
if you want to try and beat these players you have to put yourself
in the mix," explained Duncalf.
"Rachael has a really good touch, and puts the unexpected one in
short and it had to be in the back of my mind to cover it."
Grinham senior, who clearly found the court's unusual clear glass
right side wall difficult, added: "She is moving very well these
days, which is a bit of a pain! It is a bit hard as the court is
tricky. The forehand side is not so easy, but she held it together
better than I did."
 Duncalf
now faces favourite Nicol David, the world number one from
Malaysia who beat France's No8 seed Isabelle Stoehr, the French
champion's great technique blunted by Nicol's pace.
Natalie Grinham made up for her Grand Cayman disappointment
by beating England's sixth seed Alison Waters.
The fourth seed from the Netherlands did go game ball down in the
third at 10/11, but was moving and breathing well. As she said
afterwards, "I'm still coughing but feeling better than last week.
She went out better in the third and I had to kind of stick in
there. I played as if I had already lost it, got relaxed and got
another chance."
Grinham now meets Natalie Grainger - though the second seed
from the USA had to fight back from 1-8 down in the second game
before going on to beat unseeded Mexican Samantha Teran.
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14-May, Round One:
Teran takes top tenner
The afternoon session of the first
round saw one significant upset as Mexico's Samantha Teran beat
Madeline Perry - her first ever win over a top ten player - in five
games to reach the quarter-finals ...
 "This
tournament gives me good luck!
"The first time I won against a top 20 player was in Dallas, last
time I got to the semis against the seeding, and now here I have won
against a top 10 player for the first time.
"I like Dallas a lot!"
13-May, Qualifying
Finals:
English Players Dominate
Texas Open Qualifiers
English players claimed all but one of the qualifying places in the
Women's Texas Open after impressive victories by Sarah Kippax,
Emma Beddoes and Dominique Lloyd-Walter in the $57,000
event at Life Time Fitness in Plano, near Dallas, Texas.
Beddoes secured the biggest upset, fighting back from 2/1 down to
beat Denmark's world No24 Line Hansen. The world No36 from
Nottingham earns a first round match with second seed Natalie
Grainger, the world No2 from the USA looking for her third
successive Texas triumph.
Kippax reached three places higher in the world rankings to overcome
Malaysian Delia Arnold in four games. The world No26 from Halifax
now faces Dutch star Natalie Grinham, the No4 seed.
But Lloyd-Walter's reward for her straight-games win over Australian
Lisa Camilleri is a main draw clash with top seed Nicol David.
The world number one from Malaysia is making her first appearance in
the event since 2005, when she crashed out in the quarter-finals.
The 25-year-old from Penang arrives in Plano fresh from her triumph
in last week's Cayman Islands Open.
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13-May, Qualifying
Finals:
28-Mar-09:
Texas goes Big
 WISPA is celebrating the fact that the
2009 Texas Open - the eighth edition of the event since 2002 - will
be the biggest ever.
Bucking the world financial climate, the championship - which
alternates between Houston and Dallas - will boast a total prize
fund of $57,750.
Dallas SRA President Sanjeeb Samanta is pleased to report:
"This year, we met an unprecedented milestone. While local
corporations found the economic situation a barrier to supporting
the event, nearly sixty individuals from the Dallas squash community
stepped forward to fund 100% of the cost."
This support has enabled the event to elevate to WISPA Gold band -
and already has world number one Nicol David, from Malaysia,
indicating that she will enter the event she last played in 2005.
WISPA Chief Executive Andrew Shelley expressed delight with
the success of the Dallas SRA fund-raising operation: "It is a
tribute to the generosity of local enthusiasts that they stepped up
to the plate when there was a danger of the tenth anniversary of the
first WISPA event in Texas not taking place.
"And to take it higher too is awesome. Their reward will be a great
week of squash and lots of interaction with the players and I am
sure a great time will be had by all. They deserve it."
The event - whose title-holders include former world number ones
Natalie Grainger, Vanessa Atkinson, Rachael Grinham and Carol Owens
- takes place from 12-17 May at Life Time Fitness in
Plano, near Dallas.
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