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TODAY in Paderborn,
Tue 23rd, Day THREE
Steve and Fram in
Germany ... |
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Final Pool Matches
Malaysia 3-0 Austria E
Pakistan 1-2 Denmark E
Switzerland 3-0 Ukraine H
USA 0-3 Italy H
Australia 2-1 Finland D
Colombia 3-0 Bermuda D
Egypt 3-0 New Zealand B
Hong Kong 3-0 Sweden B
Canada 3-0 Namibia G
Mexico 1-1 Scotland G
Kuwait 3-0 Hungary F
India 3-0 South Africa F
Germany 3-0 Spain A
England 3-0 Ireland A
France 3-0 Korea C
Netherlands 2-1 Argentina C
Playoff
Draws
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Pools Decision Day
 The
third day of Pool Play saw the teams split into two halves with
the top two in each pool going through to the last 16 playoffs,
third and fourth going to the 17/32 equivalent.
While some of those going through were already decided there
were still places up for grabs, and lots of jockeying for
positions to earn favourable draws for the next round.
The big winners on the day were Denmark, who beat
Pakistan to join Hong Kong as the only unseeded teams to
go through, while Italy beat 10th seeds USA to leapfrog them at
the top of Pool H.
Germany, Mexico and Netherlands all won
their pool deciders to secure places in the top half, while top
seeds England, Egypt, France and
Australia all claimed their expected places.
Read on for a roundup of the matches and more details USA v
Italy, Pakistan v Denmark, India v South Africa, Mexico v
Scotland and France v Korea ... |
ROUNDUP:
Berrett & Swelim put Italy past USA,
Danes take out Pakistan ...
 One
of the big clashes of the day was USA v Italy, with both already
through in Pool H but the winner likely to get a more favourable
draw in the next round - a runner-up rather than a pool winner.
Veteran Marcus Berrett got the Italians off to a great
start, playing superbly to beat Chris Gordon in straight games.
The American closed the gap in the third, getting back to 9/10
but a desperate dive on the final point couldn't prevent Berrett
putting the ball away to give Italy the lead.
 Amr
Swelim then wrapped up the win for the Italians, recovering
from losing the first game against Todd Harrity to win with
increasing authority (and Stephane Galifi beat Julian
Illingworth 3/2 for good measure).
Defending champions Egypt made sure of top spot in Pool B
as they breezed past New Zealand, while Sweden made Hong Kong
work hard as they secured second place.
Australia made a good start on the glass court, but
Stewart Boswell had to work harder than he would have liked to
get past Finland's Henrik Mustonen - "I probably needed a hard
game to get me into the tournament, but not as hard as that,"
quipped the Aussie after his 3/1 win.
Meanwhile in Pool E Malaysia duly wrapped up their third
win, beating Austria, but Pakistan failed to make the last
sixteen as a jubilant Denmark beat them 2-1.
Yasir Butt won a tough opener 3/2 to put Pakistan ahead, but
Morten W Sorensen played out of his skin to come from two games
down against Waqar Mehboob, and Kristian Frost scored one of his
best-ever wins to beat Aamir Atlas Khan in four to put the Danes
through.
Germany make the last sixteen
 Hosts
Germany looked to be facing a challenge against Spain,
but in the event Jans Schoor and Andre Haschker both won
comfortable in straight games to put Germany through, along with
Pool A winners England, who consigned Ireland to bottom
place.
I never expected something
like this after the first two matches," admitted German coach
Oliver Pettke.
 "It
was my dream that we would win the deciding tie 2/0 so that it
would take the pressure off Simon. Both Jens and Andre played
the best I have ever seen them.
"It's good for the tournament that we have another match on the
glass court. I'm speechless, and very proud of the team. They
are very focussed, which makes it very easy."
Germany now play defending champions Egypt in the
knockout phase while England meet surprise package Hong Kong.
 India
topped pool F with two hard-fought wins against South Africa by
Siddarth Suchde and Harinderpal Sandhu (watch
the video), while Mexico finished second behind
Canada in Pool G after Cesar Salazar beat Alan Clyne 3/1 in a
winner-take-all decider.
The Netherlands had to rely on Laurens Jan Anjema to see
them through after Hernan D'Arcalengo beat Dylan Bennett to put
Argentina ahead. Piedro Schweertman levelled and Anjema duly did
the business for the Dutch.
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 Well,
that’s a heck of a team.
The first match on, if you could send that video to the kids who
are playing squash, it was a masterclass in how to play squash,
that’s what squash is all about. It was such an accurate,
economical, technical squash, Marcus makes it look simple and
attainable, he makes you believe you can play squash.
The second match on, Todd just didn’t have enough experience at
that level, and although he took the first one, things turned
quickly, and Amir took confidence in his game as it went along.
For Julian, he played much better than he played yesterday, he
got a bit of his confidence back…
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USA 0-3 ITALY
Chris Gordon 0-3 Marcus Berett
4/11, 6/11, 9/11
Todd Harrity 1-3 Amr Swelim
11/8, 9/11, 3/11, 6/11
Julian Illingworth 2-3 Stephane Galifi 11/7,
4/11, 6/11, 11/7, 9/11
“That’s the way squash should be played” Stevie Richardson
(Ireland)
 Well,
thanks Stevie, that’s the way squash was played 20 years ago!
It was a bit edgy in the end, because I don’t get to play many
matches on that calibre, but happy overall.
Chris had two heavy matches the past two days, and I could see
him a bit slow to get to the ball a few times, but I also always
doubt about my own fitness.
Still, I like being the underdog, even when I was back in
England, I had more confidence getting into those guys….
My wife, my two kids and myself are very happy to be in Italy.
We went there about 6 years ago, a bit of a life experience
really. And now, we are far from the grey and drizzle from North
England…
My oldest is 3 and will be getting in kindergarten next month.
She speaks better Italian than me, I’m learning from her, it’s
embarrassing really…
It was tough today, especially as it was a tight turn around
from last night, we were the last on, and the first on today.
He is so experienced, his timing of the ball is astonishing, I
had to work so hard to get him out of position. And he is so
accurate with his lobs. You’ve got to commit to get in front to
pick up his drop shots which are so perfect, and then he kills
you with a great lob…
 "This
win was great for the team's morale. To be honest, we feel that
we are one of four teams of similar standards – including USA -
but this a great confidence-booster.
"We did well last time in Odense – finishing in seventh place –
so it would be nice to make the top eight again.
"Stephane has strengthened the team since then. Marcus's win
really opened up the opportunity for us – it was important to
get that momentum."
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Pakistan 1-2 Denmark
Yasir Butt 3-2 Rasmus Nielsen
2/11, 11/4, 11/9, 9/11, 11/9
Waqar Mehboob 2-3 Morten Sorensen
11/3, 11/7, 11/7, 11/3, 11/8
Aamir Atlas Khan 1-3 Kristian Frost
2/11, 11/9, 4/11, 9/11
In the first game I was trying to
keep the ball at the back, trying to stay on court as long as
possible, and in the second, the ball started to slow down, so I
was able to play my game.
He impressed me today, I never saw him play before, and I must
admit I didn’t expect him to pick up so many good shots, and
force me into 5 games.
It was a good game, I feel more and more confident at the days
advance…
Waqar v Morten
Well, battle of the age this
one was. Morten Sorensen, 32, versus Farhan younger brother
Waqar Meboob. Not many gave the Danish as the winner on that
one. And oh boy oh boy…. Morten will sleep well tonight, as he
just played the match of his life.
 I’m
happy I’m not the Danish coach, because already the first match
ended 11/9 in the 5th, and at 9/9, it was anybody’s match. Yasir
just found the last two, all credit to him, not an easy match to
finish.
But Morten was down 2/1, came back to force a decider, and in
the 5th, just buried mentally and territorially young Waqar, who
never put a foot wrong! The Pakistani was patient, played a very
mature game, didn’t go for silly shots, was very accurate both
at the back and at the front.
Morten today found a game I’m pretty sure he never knew he had.
Playing for his country timed his strength, skills,
determination by 10, and it’s a gutsy performance of a lifetime
that put the clock back on 12, Pakistan 1, Danemark 1.
And the third match is well, History. For the first time of
Pakistan great Squash Past, they don’t make the last 16. Their
worst ever ranking was 12 and last time in Denmark, they
finished 5th…
 I’m
really happy for the team, that’s what we’ve all been fighting
for. And I know that we support each other quite a lot, and I
think that’s probably what made the difference today.
This is my biggest win, and it’s not just for me, but it’s for
my country, it’s very special, especially doing it in front of
my mum, dad, girlfriend, and my friends that came from very far
to see us perform today.
It’s even more difficult for us as we are only 3 players, plus
one coach, we don’t have a fourth team mate, which means that we
have to play every single match. But we are doing our best,
every single time…
 "That
was a really big win for us. We've been training solidly for the
past six weeks – we tried to prepare the best we could. We were
hoping to get a win today, we thought we had a 50/50 chance, and
we did it. Our best ever place was 15th, in ’91 and 99, so, we
hope to get even better this time…
I'm really happy with the form and condition of the players. We
thought we had the chance to compete with Pakistan, and were
disappointed when Rasmus lost in the fifth, 11/9. Morten played
an amazing game. And Kristian played so well…
The whole team played with heart. I couldn’t be happier about my
players, what they accomplished today is just magic…
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India 3-0 South Africa
Siddarth Suchde 3-2 Shaun Le Roux
7/11, 11/7, 8/11, 11/1, 11/6.
HarinderPal Sandhu 3-2 Clinton Leeuw 12/10,
9/11, 6/11, 11/9, 11/8
Saurav Ghosal 3-0 Steve Coppinger
11/5, 11/3, 11/4
India win two thrillers to clinch the win, Ghosal wraps it
up ...
 This
was a great day!
Both my players could have lost you know, but they both played
with their heart, and they both believed they could win.
On top of that, they are supremely fit, and when you are fit,
you don’t go for so much short cuts, and you keep the unforced
errors to a minimum…
I’m very happy indeed with their performance, a good day at the
office, as they say…
I’m very happy for the team that I won, but I’m so disappointed
about my own performance.
 I
was all over the place for most of the match really, my squash
level was really poor, I made far too many unforced errors, and
in my opinion, I played 8 good rallies at the start in the first
game, and that was it!
So, I’m extremely disappointed in myself, although of course,
very happy for the team…
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Mexico 2-1 Scotland
Eric Galvez 3-1 Stuart Crawford
10/12, 11/1, 11/7, 11/1
Erik Tepos 2-3 Chris Small
11/9, 11/9, 4/11, 10/12, 7/11
Cesar Salazar 3-1 Alan Clyne 5/11,
11/9, 11/6, 11/5
Tepos loses from 2-0 up for the second day in a row but
Salazar saves the Mexicans ...
 I
feel ok, although I haven’t slept too well, because of the
jetlag, but hey, I’m not complaining, and I’m just trying to win
all my matches.
Today was a crucial encounter for both our teams, we both wanted
to finish 2nd of our pool, and I was lucky I feel to take that
first point.
The first game was very long, very disputed, I even was up 9/7.
But although I lost it, I could feel from that point on that he
was a bit slow and tired.
It was hard, and I’m very happy with that win…..
A good victory for Mexico, and for me.
 In
the beginning, I really wasn’t in the match, because I thought
that most probably, we were going to be two up by the time it
came to me, so I really wasn’t concentrating much there, and
Alan never let me settled either, he was playing very well, he
was strong and fast.
In the second, my focused improved slowly, and I started varying
my game much more, and from a length, length, length in the
first, I played a much larger choice of shots.
That second game was crucial I think, and I saw that after
losing it, he started to look very tired, both mentally and
physically…. Today, I think it was more of a mental battle than
a physical one.
Very happy to get through, and tomorrow, we are playing Italy…
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Mexican
heartbreak for Scots
Christopher M.
Grieve reports
Stuart Crawford v Eric Galvez
 High
tempo 1st game on a bouncy, skiddy court; a bit of altitude in
the mix and we might as well be in Mexico. Galvez played a canny
game using his bullock-like physique to dominate mid-court.
Crawford worked the ball well but time and again had his pocket
picked by his opponents unerring hold over the tame refs.
However, the tide turned in the second 10mins of the opening
game and the Scot swept to victory as the Mexican error count
increased. Game 2 and with the trenches duly dug, battle
resumed. Great start for the Mexican, a couple of nice nicks and
some forced errors. He motored into a 7-0 lead.
 The
walls seemed to be sweating more than the players, resulting in
some angles that Pythagoras wouldn't recognise. But Galvez raced
away unperturbed to even up affairs. A mammoth first rally in
the 3rd followed by Mexican errors and uncharacteristic Scortish
flair left Crawford in the ascendency but Galvez fought bravely
and evened things up at 4-4.
Crawford's width was penetrating, while Galvez looked to close
things down, as the game reached it's critical point. But some
deft touches by the Mexican saw him home in 15 mins.
In the fourth Galvez dominated to bring it home for Mexico, a
very professional performance from the fiery Mexican. However,
Crawford should be commended for pushing his more illustrious
opponent all the way.
Chris Small v Erik Tepos
A battle of Small versus small.
 Both
players looked hungry, as in needing a meal, but there was
plenty of appetite for victory too. Small seemed to dominate the
early exchanges but the small Mexican hung in well.
At 7-7 bums were squeaky all round. However, Small was on the
wrong end of some big decisions and Tepos chased everything down
to win by the tiniest of margins. Game 2 started scrappily but
both players found their range with some length winners which
lodged in the back corner swamps.
Deft winners to the front from small and Small alike kept
onlookers guessing who would produce that little bit extra, but
the Mexican's courage again just defeated the Scot's craft, 11-9
as for the previous game.
The difference between the players remained small. Tepos
retrieved like his life depended on it but Small dug deep to
take the lead. Incredible stuff: big lungs, massive hearts and
huge balls. 11-4 to Small.
At the start of game 4 all results were still possible including
sudden cardiac death. Tepos found height with some stunning lobs
but Small hung in using all four corners and all his might.
Balls, cojones, whatever you call them, wherever you're from,
they were all on display as both players pushed themselves to
the limit.
 Tepos
had a point for top 16, Small saved it with an outrageous
forehand volley drop winner. Somehow he closed out the game to
take it to a final game shootout.
Neither look like they can stand, but when they see that ball
somehow they run, like kamikaze moths to a malevolent, sadistic
light bulb. Tepos again takes the lead 7-4, Small again battles
back to parity. Death looks the most likely outcome. Can they
draw?
 In
a blink, Small is 10-7 match ball, Tepos' return barely makes
the front wall. The little man from Mexico has put himself
through hell and doesn't deserve to lose.
A big, big effort; a giant of a man. But Scotland's Small
produced something truly special to triumph against the odds.
And now, the decider...
Alan Clyne v Cesar Salazar
 The
opening exchanges were all-court, all-action affairs both
players demonstrating their supreme athleticism. Clyne used his
physicality to dominate the middle of the court with Salazar
content to retrieve.
The drops were pinpoint and the front court exchanges a blur.
Perhaps equal on the agility stakes it was Clyne who seemed more
patient, keeping Salazar under relentless pressure. A solid
first game to Scotland.
Salazar started the 2nd with renewed verve, the tins became
winners, giving the young Mexican confidence and an extra
adrenalin boost (as if he needed it). 6-2 Salazar. But Clyne
rode the storm and produced some great shots of his own to
decrease the deficit. 6-4 became 8-6, the pace dropping a little
as both players hit to a fuller length.
Salazar's face said he was tired but his squash improved - more
accurate and measured. Clyne looked powerful but couldn't quite
get back level, Salazar holding out for 11-9.
 The
Mexican raced to 2 but Clyne stood up and punched he ball in the
nick to lead 3-2. Salazar was tired and dangerous, one floor,
one dead winner as he looked for that extra inch. But suddenly
the equilibrium favoured winners and Clyne seemed frustrated
that he could be winning the rallies but losing the points. 6-5
Clyne became 10-6 Salazar and the game quickly followed. 2-1
Mexico...
The 4th game and Salazar gets to 4 in a flash, and the Scot now
seems tired. A couple of decisions and two 50:50 rallies go to
Mexico. But Clyne digs in, as he always does. A scrappy battle
ensues but the squash gods are now with Mexico and Salazar moves
to 9-3. 10-4... and then 11-5 and the match.
Heartbreak for Scotland, a tremendous win for Mexico. An
almighty battle between two teams who now head in very different
directions.
Too much for this supporter/reporter anyway...
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 France
3-0 South Korea
Andre Delhoste reports
Mathieu dominates his
opponent fairly easily trying to find his marks both technically
and tactically. Despite a very high temperature on the court,
Mathieu finds very good dropshots which hurts his opponent.
Final score : 11/2 11/1 11/3.
Gregoire had a hard time to find his marks against his
opponent who fought very well and had an almost error free game.
Final score : 11/7 11/7 11/8.
 Thierry
starts the match on a fast pace, but his opponent doesn"t give
anything away.
Every time Thierry gets a few points lead, he commits unforced
errors which bring the Korean back in the game.
Another unforced error from Thierry and a winning shot from his opponent
gives the first game to Korea.
Led in the first game after 5 errors, Thierry scores 8 points in
a row to take the second game.
The last two games are concluded quickly by Thierry, as the
Korean seems exhausted from his previous efforts.
Playoff Draws
Photos and Videos |
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