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Madeira
International
2016
09-12 Jun, Onda Revital Club, Funchal, Portugal, $5k |
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12-Jun, Final:
Patrick Rooney (Eng) 3-2 [3] Edmon Lopez (Esp)
6/11, 11/8, 7/11, 11/6,
11/8 (68m)
Rooney reigns in Madeira
Michael Catling reports
Rising English star Patrick Rooney enhanced his
burgeoning reputation after coming from behind to shock third
seed Edmon Lopez Moller and claim his maiden PSA title in a
five-game thriller at the Madeira International.
Rooney, who turns 19 next week, was competing in his first-ever
PSA final but showed few signs of nerves as he twice fought back
to force a decider at the Onda Revital Club in Caniço, Portugal.
A three-minute injury break for Lopez in the middle of the fifth
game threatened to disrupt Rooney’s momentum, but the reigning
European Junior U19 champion remained composed to prevail 11-8
in the decider.
 "It’s
an unbelievable feeling and a nice early birthday present," said
a tearful Rooney, who later dedicated his victory to his aunt,
who passed away last week.
"I knew it was going to be a tough and really physical battle,
but I’m just glad I was able to keep the same intensity and
level of concentration all the way through the match. It’s the
perfect way to end the season."
The result completes a memorable week for the Merseyside-based
teenager, who knocked out top-seed Shehab Essam and fellow
countryman Adam Auckland on his way to the final.
The Spaniard, meanwhile, was left to reflect on another missed
opportunity after losing in the final of the Raanana Squash
Center Festival in Israel last month.
.
"I saw a really good opportunity to win this week when Carlos
[Cornes] got knocked out in the first round,” admitted Lopez. "I
am happy to reach the final but it’s just a shame that I was so
close to victory again. I am still young so I hope that I will
get plenty more opportunities to win my first PSA title.
"Physical fitness is normally my biggest strength so it’s
annoying that it let me down today. I thought I played really
well but Patrick just played better than me. I have to be
realistic and I can’t really make any excuses."
The lengthy rallies in the opening exchanges ultimately proved
pivotal to the outcome as the match quickly developed into a war
of attrition.
 Little
separated the duo in the opening two games and with the scores
locked at one-all, Rooney changed tactics by taking the ball
short at every opportunity to counteract Lopez’s incredible
court coverage.
The strategy seemed to have the reverse effect initially as
Lopez capitalised on a number of tinned drops to win the third
game. In a repeat of the second game, however, Rooney returned
reinvigorated in the fourth and reeled off a succession of nicks
to force a decider.
The back-and-forth nature of the match continued in the final
game as Rooney overturned a 3-0 deficit to edge ahead 6-4.
The following point added to the drama as Lopez, who had been
battling an ongoing wrist injury coming into the tournament,
rolled his ankle trying to retrieve a drop shot. A three-minute
injury break ensued but the stoppage only prolonged the agony
for a weary-looking Lopez as Rooney moved to within a point of
victory.
It seemed only fitting that the final point should end on a
grueling rally, and so it proved when Rooney converted his first
championship ball after Lopez’s backhand drop clipped the tin.
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Draws &
Results
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Madeira International
2016
09-12 Jun, Funchal, Portugal, $5k |
Round One
10 Jun |
Quarters
10 Jun |
Semis
11 Jun |
Final
12 Jun |
[1] Shehab Essam (Egy)
11/8, 11/8, 11/2 (34m)
[Q] Pascal Gomez (Esp) |
[1] Shehab Essam
12/10, 11/8, 11/1 (28m)
[8] Emyr Evans |
[1] Shehab Essam 11/7, 12/10, 11/4 (28m
Patrick Rooney |
first PSA title for Patrick
Patrick Rooney
6/11, 11/8, 7/11, 11/6, 11/8 (68m)
[3] Edmon Lopez |
[8] Emyr Evans (Wal)
11/8, 11/6, 11/7 (57m)
Kyle Finch (Eng) |
[6] Sean Conroy (Irl)
11/7, 8/11, 11/8, 11/2 (48m)
[Q] Adam Auckland (Eng) |
[Q] Adam Auckland
11/7, 7/11, 11/4, 11/6 (37m)
Patrick Rooney |
[4] Rui Soares (Por)
11/6, 6/11, 9/11, 11/3, 11/3 (41m
Patrick Rooney (Eng) |
[wc] Pedro Damaso (Por)
11/5, 11/5, 11/2 (24m)
[3] Edmon Lopez (Esp) |
[3] Edmon Lopez
11/4, 11/9, 11/5 (23m)
[Q] Luke Parker |
[3] Edmon Lopez Moller 11/6, 11/6, 11/5
(31m)
[Q] James Peach |
[Q] Luke Parker (Eng)
13/10, 12/10, 11/6 (39m)
[7] Ben Coates (Eng) |
Claudio Pinto (Por)
11/4, 11/3, 11/4 (27m)
[5] Sam Gould (Usa) |
Claudio Pinto
11/8, 6/11, 11/3, 11/9 (46m)
[Q] James Peach |
[Q] James Peach (Eng)
11/13, 11/4, 12/10, 11/8 (55m)
[2] Carlos Cornes (Esp) |
Qualifying:
09-Jun, Finals:
Pascal Gomez (Esp) 3-0 Matthew Broadberry (Eng)
11/9, 11/8, 11/3 (36m)
Adam Auckland (Eng) 3-0 Owain Taylor (Wal)
11/5, 11/3, 11/7 (32m)
James Peach (Eng) 3-0 Michael Conroy (Irl)
11/6, 11/3, 11/1 (19m)
Luke Parker (Eng) 3-1 Sam Ellis (Eng)
11/9, 5/11, 11/9, 11/8 (39m)
09-Jun, Round One:
Pascal Gomez (Esp) 3-0 Ricardo Sardinha (Por)
11/4, 11/5, 11/3 (14m)
Matthew Broadberry (Eng) 3-0 Alfredo Felicade (Por)
11/3, 11/2, 12/10 (24m)
Adam Auckland (Eng) 3-0 Jorge Monteiro (Por)
11/1, 11/6, 11/4 (21m)
Owain Taylor (Wal) 3-0 Luis Tavares (Por)
11/1, 11/2, 11/6 (20m)
Michael Conroy (Irl) w/o Roshan Bharos (Ned)
w/o
James Peach (Eng) 3-0 Ricardo Santos (Por)
11/2, 11/6, 11/6 (20m)
Luke Parker (Eng) 3-1 Tess Jutte (Ned)
9/11, 11/7, 11/8, 11/5 (52m)
Sam Ellis (Eng) 3-0 Concalo Miranda (Por)
11/3, 11/5, 11/6 (17m)
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12-Jun, Final:
Patrick Rooney (Eng) 3-2 [3] Edmon Lopez Moller (Esp)
6/11, 11/8, 7/11, 11/6,
11/8 (68m)
11-Jun, Semis:
First-time PSA
champion
guaranteed in Madeira
Michael Catling reports
English teenager Patrick Rooney achieved a career
milestone after ousting top seed Shehab Essam in straight games
to advance into his first-ever PSA final at the Onda Revital
Club in Caniço, Portugal.
 The
18-year-old from Merseyside had already knocked out fourth seed
Rui Soares and former world No.105 Adam Auckland en route to the
semi final and upset the odds once again to end Essam’s hopes of
securing back-to-back titles this week.
Victory continues a rich vein of form for Rooney, who has
reached at least the quarter-final stage in each of his past
three tournaments.
“It was a massive win for me and probably my biggest yet,”
admitted the reigning European Junior U19 champion. “I’ve felt
really relaxed this week and although I’ve had some really tough
matches, I feel physically comfortable which is reassuring.
“I’m probably playing some of the best squash of my career as
well. I wanted to reach my first PSA final at some point this
year and it’s a great time to do it just before the season ends
and I take two weeks off.”
Despite 78 places separating the duo in the world rankings, the
lower-ranked Rooney took the opening game with relative ease as
the Egyptian struggled to deal with the relentless tempo.
The pattern of play was reversed in the opening exchanges of the
second as Essam forged 5-0 in front. However, a succession of
unforced errors saw Essam’s lead erode in a matter of minutes as
Rooney began to reassert control in the mid-court.
The duo traded game balls in the latter stages, before a tinned
overhead volley from Essam doubled Rooney’s advantage and left
the 20-year-old from Cairo visibly frustrated.
Essam’s profligacy continued into the third game as Rooney
quickly moved to within two points of victory.
A stunning fake shot in the front left corner bamboozled Essam
to hand Rooney six match balls and the Englishman held his nerve
to triumph 11-7 12-10 11-4 and end Essam’s seven-match winning
streak.
 Rooney
will meet Edmon Lopez Moller in Sunday’s final after the
Spanish third-seed ruthlessly ended qualifier James Peach’s
giant-killing run.
Peach, who knocked out Moller’s compatriot and second seed
Carlos Cornes in the first round, struggled to counteract
Moller’s trademark hard hitting as the 19-year-old from
Barcelona eased through the first two games in quickfire
fashion.
Peach briefly threatened a revival in the third game, but was
left to rue a number of loose shots as Moller reeled off a total
of seven winners to advance into only his second PSA final.
“I think I played my best match today so I’ve got some good
sensations heading into the final,” said Moller. “I didn’t make
too many errors but I still think I can play better.
“I played Patrick in the [European Junior] Under 19s last year
and beat him 3-0 in the quarters. We are quite well suited and
his game is very European in style and quite similar to Nick
Matthew actually.
“It should be a really good match. I lost in the [Raanana Squash
Center Festival] final in Israel three weeks ago so this is
another chance to win my first PSA title.”
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Draws &
Results
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10-Jun, Quarters:
Perfect Peach ends Portuguese hopes
Michael Catling reports
English qualifier James Peach will contest his maiden
PSA semi-final at the Madeira International after holding his
nerve to defeat Portuguese No.2 Claudio Pinto in four games in
the quarter-finals.
Peach, 18, produced a performance which belied his tender years
as he silenced a vociferous crowd and ended Portugal’s hopes of
crowing a home champion for the first time.
The Doncaster-based teenager was made to work hard for his
victory as Pinto saved four match balls before a back wall nick
came to Peach’s rescue.
"I didn’t quite play to my full potential and hit quite a few
tins,” said Peach. “I lost a bit of accuracy towards the end as
well, but overall I’m happy with the way I’m playing and how the
body is feeling."
Peach’s reward is a last-four showdown with third seed Edmon
Lopez Moller and the reigning British Junior U19 Nationals
champion admitted he’s already come up with a game plan as he
bids to repeat his giant-killing act over world number 91 Carlos
Cornes in the first round.
"Edmon plays at quite a fast tempo and when he does take it
short, he tends to play a percentage drop, rather than a
clinical one,” explained Peach. “Quite a few of his opponents
end up overrunning the ball so I will have to be careful with
that and I’ll probably use some height to slow the pace down."
Peach’s countryman and fellow qualifier Luke Parker probably
wished he employed the same tactics against Moller after the
Spaniard stormed to victory in quickfire fashion at the
quarter-final stage.
The 19-year-old from Barcelona raced through the opening game in
just five minutes and was barely troubled by the unranked
Englishman thereafter, winning in just 23 minutes.
Parker, though, can take solace from knocking out seventh seed
Ben Coates in the first round and did not rule out turning
professional in the future.
In the top half of the draw, Egyptian top seed Shehab Essam
remains on course to win his second PSA title in as many weeks
after brushing aside eighth seed Emyr Evans.
Essam, who upset Karim El Hammamy to win the Arab Federation
Open last week, needed two game balls before taking the first
game in a tie-break. However, the 20-year-old remained in the
ascendency throughout the second game and reeled off a
succession of winners in the final game as a visibly exhausted
Evans faded.
English teenager Patrick Rooney now has the unenviable
task of ending Essam’s seven-match winning streak as he halted
Adam Auckland’s comeback from injury in four high-quality games.
The duo, who treated the Portuguese crowd to a catalogue of
nicks and trick shots, traded the opening two games before
Rooney capitalised on a succession of errors by Auckland at the
front of the court to triumph in 37 minutes.
"I knew it was going to be tough, especially as this is
Adam’s first tournament since coming back from injury,” said a
delighted Rooney afterwards. “I think I played quite a
disciplined game and I feel like I’ve really adjusted to the
courts now. I try not to set too many targets before a
tournament starts, but it would be great if I could reach my
first PSA final now."
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Draws &
Results
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10-Jun, Round One:
Madeira madness as qualifiers
send seeds tumbling ...
Michael Catling reports
Unfancied Englishman Luke Parker’s
fairytale run at the Madeira International Squash Tournament
continued as he battled past seventh seed Ben Coates on a day of
huge drama in the first round in Canico, Portugal.
Five seeds were ousted from the tournament, with three
qualifiers booking their place in the quarter finals. The
biggest scalp saw second-seed Carlos Cornes bow out at the hands
of Parker’s countryman James Peach in an ill-tempered
encounter at the Onda Revital Club.
The Spaniard, who received a conduct warning in the fourth game,
was left to rue several unforced errors as Peach reveled in the
“biggest win” of his young career.
Parker was in an equally celebratory mood and struggled to
comprehend making the last eight in only his second-ever PSA
tournament.
"It’s definitely one of the best wins I’ve had,” said Parker.
“I was 10-8 down in the first and second games so he could
easily have been two love up.
"I’m rarely in a situation where I expect myself to win. I’m
quite honest about that but I felt like I was fitter and quicker
than Ben. I’m in a fortunate position that I’ve got absolutely
nothing to lose now."
 In
the top half of the draw, Patrick Rooney and Adam
Auckland also made a mockery of the seedings to set-up an
all-English clash in the quarter finals.
Auckland, a former world number 105, saw off Irish No.2 Sean
Conroy before Rooney overturned a 2-1 deficit to send fourth
seed and Portuguese number one Rui Soares crashing out.
Disappointment soon turned to ecstasy for the patriotic home
crowd, however, as local favourite Claudio Pinto romped
past American fifth seed Sam Gould to set-up a last eight
showdown with Peach.
 In
the longest match of the day, Welsh eighth seed Emyr Evans
repeated his 3-0 victory over Karl Finch at the Northumbria Open
in March, while Egyptian Shehab Essam endorsed his #1
seeding with a comfortable straight game win over Spanish
qualifier Pascal Gomez.
Third seed Edmon Lopez Moller completed the quarter-final
line-up after eliminating Pedro Damaso by the same scoreline.
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Draws &
Results
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09-Jun, Qualifying Finals:
Parker leads English charge in Madeira
Michael Catling reports
Unranked Englishman Luke Parker stunned fellow compatriot
Sam Ellis to qualify for the main draw of a PSA event for the
first time at the Madeira International in Caniço, Portugal.
 Parker,
who also upset the odds by ousting Dutchman Tesse Jutte earlier
in the day, showed flashes of his younger brother George’s
shot-making as he battled to a four game victory at the Onda
Revital Club.
The 21-year- old now faces English seventh seed Ben Coates for a
place in the last eight, but admitted he’s already exceeded his
own expectations.
"I didn’t really expect anything this week," explained
Parker. “I came to Madeira for a holiday with my girlfriend so
it’s a bonus that I’ve made the main draw.
"I’m not a particularly flashy player but I just try not to give
too many points away. Thankfully, I managed to frustrate Sam and
hopefully I can do the same tomorrow."
Commenting on his first round clash with Coates, Parker added:
"He has got a lot more tournament experience than I have, but
I remember playing him a few times when we were juniors and it
was pretty close.
"He’s obviously turned professional since then, whereas I
haven’t, but I’m still quietly confident heading into the
match."
Meanwhile, Adam Auckland continued his comeback from a
near two-year injury layoff as he cruised past Welshman Owain
Taylor in straight games.
Auckland, who reached the semi-finals of the British U23 Open in
January, barely surrendered control in a one-sided encounter and
now faces Irish sixth seed Sean Conroy for a spot in the
quarter finals.
But while Auckland and Parker will steel the headlines, the
biggest cheer of the day was reserved for Spaniard Pascal
Gomez who edged past Matthew Broadberry to book a first
round matchup with top seed Shehab Essam.
Gomez’s boundless energy drew plenty of gasps from the
Portuguese crowd and ultimately proved the difference maker as a
frustrated Broadberry fell to a three-game defeat.
On the adjacent court, England’s James Peach secured a
last-16 meeting with second seed Carlos Cornes after
comprehensively outclassing unranked Irishman Michael Conroy.
Conroy, who was bidding to join Parker as a first-round
debutant, struggled to keep pace with Peach’s intensity and fell
to a 3-0 defeat in just 19 minutes.
The result leaves Michael’s brother Sean as the sole Irish
representative in the main draw, while Peach is part of a
six-strong English contingent left in the tournament.
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Draws &
Results
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09-Jun, Qualifying Round One:
Auckland revels in return
Michael Catling reports
Former world No.105 Adam Auckland ended a 20-month
injury-enforced absence from the PSA Tour as he led a quintet of
English players through to the final round of qualifying at the
Madeira International Squash in Caniço, Portugal.
Auckland, 23, has barely played competitively since landing his
maiden title at the 2014 North Coast Open in Australia, but
showed few signs of rustiness at the Onda Revital Club as he
brushed aside Jorge Monteiro in straight games.
 “It’s
been a long road to recovery,” said Auckland. “I sustained an
injury to my adductor just before I went to Australia and I
actually haven’t played on the PSA Tour since the Bexley Open in
October 2014.
“I tore my adductor for a third time in February last year and
that was when I discovered the underlying problem was caused by
Gilmour’s Groin.
“I had two operations in Harley Street last March so it’s just a
relief to play my first tournament on the PSA Tour in nearly two
years. My main goal now is to play injury free and if I manage
to win this week, it will be a huge bonus.”
Standing between Auckland and a place in the last 16 is Welshman
Owain Taylor, who lost just nine points en route to
thrashing Luis Tavares of Portugal.
Elsewhere, Luke Parker sprung the first major upset of
the tournament as he knocked out Dutchman Tess Jutte in four
games to set-up an all-English clash with Sam Ellis.
Parker, who is the older brother of last year’s runner-up
George, recovered from losing the opening game to record one of
the biggest wins of his young career. The 21-year- old also kept
alive his hopes of making the main draw of a PSA Tour event for
the first time.
The result completed a miserable couple of days for Dutch
representatives after Roshan Bharos was forced to pull
out on the eve of the tournament after misplacing his passport.
The Dutch No.5’s withdrawal sees Michael Conroy, brother
of Irish No.2 Sean, advance into the final round of qualifying
without even hitting a ball.
Conroy now faces James Peach for a place in the main draw, after
the 18-year- old swept past Ricardo Santos in three games.
Top qualifying seed Pascal Gomez was in a similarly
ruthless mood as he marked his return to competitive action with
a convincing straight-game victory.
The Spanish No.10 has not played on the PSA Tour since his
last-16 defeat at the Finnish Open in January, but needed just
13 minutes to advance at the expense of co-tournament organiser
Ricardo Sardinha.
Next up for Gomez is a meeting with Matthew Broadberry,
who overcame a third game wobble to beat Alfredo Felicidade 3-0.
Ellis completed a clean sweep for England after defeating local
favourite Goncalo Miranda by the same scoreline.
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