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| Day TWO,
Tuesday 5th April: First Round, Bottom Half: [11] Anthony Ricketts (AUS) bt Shahier Razik (CAN) 11/6, 11/6, 11/4 (44m) [5] James Willstrop (ENG) bt Rodney Durbach (RSA) 7/11, 11/10(4-2), 11/6, 11/10(4-2) (64m) Mohd Azlan Iskandar (MAS) bt [14] Adrian Grant (ENG) 11/9, 11/9, 2/11, 11/6 (62m) [3] Peter Nicol (ENG) bt Wael El Hindi (EGY) 11/8, 11/3, 11/6 (39m) Olli Tuominen (FIN) bt [15] Joseph Kneipp (AUS) 11/6, 11/4, 11/5 (27m) [8] Karim Darwish (EGY) bt Dan Jenson (AUS) 11/6, 12/10, 11/3 (39m) [13] Graham Ryding (CAN) bt Mansoor Zaman (PAK) 8/11, 11/9, 11/9, 11/9 (46m) [2] Lee Beachill (ENG) bt Bradley Ball (ENG) 11/3, 11/4, 11/6 (30m) No sweat for Nicol On the glass court Azlan Iskandar caused a minor upset with a 3/1 win over Adrian Grant, and Peter Nicol celebrated his birthday with a comfortable 3/0 win over Egypt's Wael El Hindi. In the evening session Canada's Graham Ryding recovered from a first game loss to beat Mansoor Zaman in four, and Lee Beachill finished the day off with a straightforward victory against compatriot Bradley Ball ... Framboise reports from the Jessie Vesey Centre At The Club The first session at the BSRA saw Anthony Ricketts and James Willstrop set up another meeting, but while Ricketts scored a relatively comfortable win Willstrop was stretched to the limit by Rodney Durbach. Olli Tuominen then continued the cull of the minor seeds with a 3/0 victory over Joe Kneipp. Karim Darwish rounded off the day's play with a 3/0 win over Dan Jenson. Malcolm Willstrop reports from the BSRA  |
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BIG DECEPTION FOR WAEL The Egyptian Wael El Hindi had a lot of expectations for this match. Maybe too much? Maybe he burnt all his adrenalin before the match by thinking so much about it, that he had nothing left when the encounter actually started… “It’s a way of looking at it,” said a displeased Peter Nicol on hearing my theory. Yes, there is also the other explanation. The one which says that the Boss was so up there, so dominating the rallies from the start, that he just asphyxiated his opponent, didn’t give him any chance, any opportunity, any opening, any angle to place his winning shots or his marks… Yes, it could be that as well… Whatever is was, the match was extremely one sided, and The Boss was in control of the rallies and the match from the first ball to the last, and the result was never in doubt… [3] Peter Nicol (ENG) bt Wael El Hindi (EGY) 11/8, 11/3, 11/6 (39m)
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"I
was not comfortable with my game in the front, with my short game
today, but my length was good, and I built on that. 
"I
feel like I have no energy, the court was very hot, and my legs felt
very heavy. I was so pumped up for this match, everybody has been
saying to me that I could beat him, because I'm playing well at the
moment, that I could cause an upset. |
VOLLEYING COULD BE THE KEY… “On this court, if a player volleys a lot, he can make you look like you can’t play squash,” John White said to me today, when I told him that Adrian Grant had lost against Azlan Iskandar. “Did Azlan volley a lot?” John asked. “Constantly,” I replied. “Well, there you are,” smiled the Tall Man. To tell you the truth, like Azlan mentioned in his after match interview, it was not the most fascinating match to watch. A lot of unforced errors from Adrian, a few mis-hits, some long rallies with not too much happening… But still, they both worked pretty hard, some of the rallies were really well contested, nice attacks and retrieving, good winning shots from Azlan, great lengths from Adrian. But today, Grant never seemed to really settle into the match. His cross courts were not that precise, he was a bit too reactive, and didn’t seem to be able to step up the pace as he normally can do under pressure. Still, a good victory for the young Iskandar. Neil Harvey must be happy for his player who is now facing the redoubtable Anthony Ricketts in the next round… Mohd Azlan Iskandar bt [14] Adrian Grant 11/9, 11/9, 2/11, 11/6 (62m)
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"It
feels good, but I’ve got the feeling Adrian didn’t play at his
best, he was making a lot of unforced errors that were quite
uncharacteristic of him. I had the feeling also that he wasn’t as
fit as normal, but the best man on the day won I guess.
"He
was up at the front, and was taking the ball very early, he was
volleying a lot, and putting me under a lot of pressure. I responded
too late, that’s the whole story I’m afraid…"
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MANSOOR: CLOSE, SO CLOSE... There are a few players on the circuit that are a mystery. Some days, they could be world number one, and the next, even I could coach them… Well, Mansoor Zaman is one of those enigmatic players. I saw him throwing matches away, I saw him playing amazingly well, for a whole game, against Peter Nicol in particular I Kuwait, and today, he stayed concentrated and focused for the whole match… Graham Ryding has got so many tee-shirts he could open a memorabilia shop, he has the experience of an old timer, the heart of a beginner, and the legs of Marathon Man.  In
other words, he is a bit dangerous, is the Canadian.But today, he had to dig in, not too deep though, but dig in nevertheless… Mansoor was precise, his volley drop shots lethal, he placed a few rolling nicks, hit low, and followed the ball to the four corners … But most of all, most of all, he stayed in the match the whole time, the length of the game attests of the player’s concentration: 9, 14, 13 and 11 minutes and he got close, very close, probably too close for the Canadian’s taste. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th games were all on the same pattern. Mansoor would be up, then would be caught up, then they would go 7/7, 8/8, 9/9, and then, Graham was able to push that much more, and, maybe the experience was talking there, was able to play the crucial points that much better. But overall, Mansoor can be proud of himself, he did well today… [13] Graham Ryding bt Mansoor Zaman 8/11, 11/9, 11/9, 11/9 (46m) |
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BRADLEY: DISAPPOINTMENT… Like
I told him after the match, I was expecting more today from the tall and
passionate Englishman, who is getting closer and closer to a spot in the
English National Team. Especially on the glass court, so beneficial to the
volleyers, and God knows that Bradley Ball can volley…Yes, but then again, he was playing the former world number one, Mr Lee Beachill, the Controller, as Robert Edwards calls him… And once Lee has got some speed, once he is on his way, caracoling in front, try and stop him, try and tell him that you would like very much him to stop… Yeah, like that’s going to happen… So, when courageous Bradley tried a comeback in the third, and played his best game of the match, reducing his unforced errors tremendously, Lee could contain him with not too much trouble, by lengthening the rallies and placing THE drop shot at the right place at the right time… A little tired after a long and successful season for Ball, an eye on the Trophy for Beachill, and a very logical result, 3/0 in 30 minutes. Logic prevailed… [2] Lee Beachill bt Bradley Ball 11/3, 11/4, 11/6 (30m) |
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"I
think Bradley was probably a bit nervous, the game was a bit scrappy,
it was difficult to get into any rhythm. It’s always good to win, but
he may be disappointed with the way he played today…
"Physically,
I don’t feel at the top of my game, and if you are feeling that way
when you play Lee Beachill, you’ll get beaten easily. I’m pretty tired
of this year really, it has been twelve long months, I’m ready for a
break now…
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 AT
THE CLUBMalcolm Willstrop watches the matches on the BSRA courts ... Ricketts overpowers Razik The first of the day's matches at Bermuda Squash Club was between Anthony Ricketts, resurgent after his Tournament of Champions win in New York, and Shahier Razik, the Canadian whose recent form has been below his best level. Were it a boxing match it probably would never have been allowed - the frail, forlorn-looking Razik against the heavyweight aggressor Ricketts. The Australian, as is his wont, soon asserted himself with the officials, demanding oddly to be told which side to serve from every rally - that's a new one to me. Razik's paceless, delicate game doesn't suit Ricketts in some ways, but when the Canadian had an opening the same lack of power prevented him from finishing. He battled well enough, but in truth he never even ruffled Ricketts' feathers enough to get him really vocal. The scoreline doesn't flatter Razik, but it does illustrate the hopelessness of his task. [11] Anthony Ricketts bt Shahier Razik 11/6, 11/6, 11/4 (44m) Durbach tests Willstrop James Willstrop and battle-hardened Rodney Durbach were next on and it turned out a much closer-run thing than might have been anticipated. Durbach settled the quicker and controlled the first game at 7/2. Willstrop came back to 6/8 and 7/9, but the South African deservedly won it 11/7. The young Englishman found better depth in the second, led 8/3 before Durbach eventually levelled at 10-all, aided by some deft touches in the front right. Willstrop won the tie-break 14/12 and quickly went 2/1 up, playing a little better without ever convincing. There had already been a blood stoppage for Durbach in the second game and Willstrop was finding the court slippy and wanting it wiped, whereas the South African had no problem with it. Willstrop went clear in the fourth, 8/3, but a series of unfocused rallies brought another tiebreaker, which the fifth seed won 13/11, much to his relief I suspect. Durbach certainly played determinedly well, but Willstrop will have to play at a higher level to beat Ricketts tomorrow. [5] James Willstrop bt Rodney Durbach 7/11, 11/10(4-2), 11/6, 11/10(4-2) (64m) |
 Olli tames Joe The third match promised plenty, but delivered very little, as Olli Tuominen faced up to Joe Kneipp. The Australian seemed very testy and spoke to the referee Ian Allanach in the first game in an unacceptable manner, especially as the referee's decision was correct and his explanation clear and concise. It seemed as if he didn't want to be on court, as the Finn got down to work purposefully, moving well and using the drop to advantage.
Surprisingly Kneipp grew less and less
interested, seemingly wishing he was elsewhere and Tuominen ran away with
it 3/0. Even he must have been surprised at the ease of it all, since
everyone knows Kneipp can play.
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| Worrying
Trends ... Some of the behavioural trends are disturbing: addressing referees arrogantly is not acceptable and there seems to be a lot of mistrust amongst certain players, who continually doubt their opponent's pickups. Let's not emulate the way of soccer, with its commonplace cheating, defiance of officials, bad language ... ... there will never be an Olympic place on that basis. Malcolm Willstrop  |
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"I
was mentally and physically weak, and he was playing very well and he
was hungry for it, which I was lacking… Now, back to the drawing
board, and let’s find some motivation…"
"I
was lucky to have a really good start. My game plan was to try to
surprise him, as I was hoping he wouldn’t be ready for a very fast
pace right from the start. And luckily enough, he wasn’t.|
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