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Tuesday 20th May, Day TWO: |
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 ATCO
David Palmer
(W2) bt Ong Beng Hee (W0)
11/7, 11/7, 11/9 (42m)
PRINCE Lee Beachill (W1)
bt James Willstrop (W0)
13/11, 11/5, 11/5 (40m)
ATCO
Gregory Gaultier (W2) bt Wael El Hindi (W0)
13/11, 11/7, 11/6 (52m)
PRINCE Amr Shabana (W2) bt Thierry Lincou (W1)
7/11, 11/5, 12/10, 11/2 (47m)
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 Decision
day ... for some
David Palmer took a big step towards the semi-finals
when he recorded his second win of the event, beating Ong Beng
Hee in straight games in the first match of the evening. The
four-time British Open champion kept his nose in front
throughout the first two games, and stepped on the gas to
recover from 7/4 down in the third.
Lee Beachill took on his Pontefract training partner
James Willstrop in the first Prince group match, and after
taking a tight opening game always looked the likeliest of the
pair to pick up a first win, to give himself an even shot at
the semis.
 The
qualifiers from the ATCO group were decided when Gregory
Gaultier prevailed in an exciting three games against Wael
El Hindi. He and Palmer will meet tomorrow to decide who tops
the group (thus avoiding Shabana in the semis).
Top seed Amr Shabana put both feet into the playoffs as
he came from a game down to beat Thierry Lincou. The third was
crucial as the Egyptian saved three game balls before taking
the third, then took the fourth comfortably.
Shabana is guaranteed a semi-final place - and has already
topped the group - and will be joined by the winner of
tomorrow's Beachill v Lincou match. |
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ATCO David Palmer
(W2) bt Ong Beng Hee (W0)
11/7, 11/7, 11/9 (42m)
BENG HEE A BIT FLAT…
 Well, you can’t really be that surprised, the boy has been
travelling all across Europe in the last few day, standing in
for Ramy in the German Leagues and other competitions, and
honestly, played his last cartridge against Greg last night in
the fourth, giving everything he had left.
So tonight, brain was on, legs were off really. And against a
David Palmer focused from the start, hitting hard and low, as
fast as ever on the volley both forehand and backhand, the
Malaysian didn’t have much to say in the match.
It doesn’t mean he didn’t speak out though, staying on David’s
heels for the first two games, never letting him run away with
it, and even succeeding to give the Marine a good scare in the
third, where he gave it a last push, leading 7/5.
But the flicks and wrong footing of that Malaysian wizard were
not enough to destabilise the Australian, who’ll be delighted
with a 3/0 victory after a disputed 3/2 last night against
Wael…
 "Not
the best last six months for me, I seemed to keep on running
into Shabana, and kept on losing, like 5 or 6 times, which
became a bit frustrating. And my defeat against Lee in the
second round of Kuwait really crushed me. So I went back to my
old training, the one my body is used to, and it paid
dividends last week, where I managed to move it around. Now,
I’m going to try and finish the season on a high.
"Tonight, Beng Hee is an attacker, and he gets pretty
confident if he gets in front, so I tried to keep on top of
him. Last night against Wael was a good win, and very happy
about my win against Beng Hee, even if it was not the best of
matches, a win is a win. Hopefully, Greg can win tonight, and
get the pressure off me for tomorrow!
We were talking with James yesterday, and we really think we
played a very good match in the British Open, we are two big
guys, who like to hit the ball hard at the back, and then
volley at the front. And as two big guys, we move around a
lot, hardly any lets, that was a big achievement I thought.
"It’s so nice to have Mel and Kayla with me, this afternoon,
we were resting, and Kayla was on the bed, watching Winnie the
Poo on her mini dvd… I can’t explain how it made me feel, all
relaxed and happy. It’s getting harder and harder to leave
them…
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 "I
was a bit lethargic, a bit flat tonight, but I thought David
played extremely well, pinned me to the back wall, and made it
nearly impossible for me to get pass him.
"The ball was very cold tonight too, extremely slow, I was
doing my best to hit it as hard as I could, but it didn’t seem
to go anywhere fast.
"And the way he was playing didn’t do anything to make me look
good either!!!!!!!!"
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Lee Beachill (W1) bt James
Willstrop (W0)
13/11, 11/5, 11/5 (40m)
MAGIC SPONGE…?
Well, for those who saw James playing and struggling against
Thierry last night, and saw him running like a fresh stallion
tonight, one word comes to mind… Magic Sponge????
James told me that Paul and Ziad’s physio team has been doing
wonders, and trust me, they did. Yes, James was not fully
confident, and sometimes took a bit more time to come back to
the T than he normally does. But honestly, what a change! And
it mustn’t have been easy for Lee, who had to twist and turn
his mate to take him out of his comfort zone.
And that, he did, forcing errors out of him, securing a 3/0
victory in a match that was extremely tactical and technical –
with in particular some stunning drives glued to the wall for
both players, and a few gorgeous short shots on a court not as
dead as it seemed yesterday.
Still, another gutsy performance from James Willstrop, who
still ran and fought, and a good mental victory for Lee, who
stayed focused and concentrated despite the circumstances…
 "That
was AWFUL! Normally, we play some high quality matches, but
knowing that he had a bit of a niggle made it very difficult.
And until the start of the afternoon, I didn’t know who I was
going to play, to be honest…
"So it was very difficult to keep my concentration, at times
he was running like a greyhound, stringing three points in a
row…!
"I gave myself a bit of a chance in the competition, I just
hope that he didn’t do too much damage to himself…
"I’ve been hitting the ball as well as I ever did for a few
weeks, playing without any niggle, but it’s the lack of
preparation for this tournament.. After losing in the British
Open, I threw my shoes in the bin, and was preparing myself
for a couple of weeks of rest before starting training again.
So, I definitely played better today than yesterday, and
hopefully will play better tomorrow than I did today…
"What’s great with that format of event, is that I lost
against Shabana last night, and I still have a chance to make
it to the final. So the spectators get such a treat to see the
top players for a week, it’s like seeing three or four finals
per night!
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"I felt a little niggle at the weekend, but I honestly didn’t
think anything of it.
"But yesterday against Thierry, at 5/2,
we had a long rally, and I knew there was a problem..
"Last night, I was pretty confused, I didn’t have anybody to
advise me on the physical side. Sometimes, you’ve got a niggle,
and you just play through them, and it’s fine, and sometimes,
if you persist, you can actually make it much worse…
"But last night and today, Steve and the team of massagers/physios
here did a superb job, I’m so grateful to them, as they put a
lot of time in me, and made it possible for me to play
tonight, which proves how important treatment, physio is.
"Now, it’s all about managing the end of the week, and I’m
counting on them to get me on court again…
"Last night, after playing Thierry I really thought I’d have
to pull out, but I really want to play here, there is such a
buzz, so tonight, I was really happy to be able to get back on
court, and I hope they can get me through the rest of the
week…"
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Gregory Gaultier (W2) bt
Wael El Hindi (W0)
13/11, 11/7, 11/6 (52m)
Greg secures his semi-final
Steve Cubbins reports
They may have only played three times in rankings tournaments
- in 2001, 2003 and 2006 - but the know each other and each
other's games very well, having been training partners in Aix
over the last couple of years.
So they had few surprises for each other, but plenty of fast
action for the crowd to enjoy, plenty of cut and thrust with
neither afraid to go for their shots on a cooling court.
Wael it was who made the better start, taking a 6/3 lead in
the opener, but as the rallies lengthened Greg came back to
level, eventually taking the lead on his third game ball.
 The statistics say that he was always ahead in the second and
third games, but that doesn't tell the whole tale. The
collisions and discussions started to grow - but never to a
problem level - and Wael lost out at the end of the next game,
clipping the tin with a handful of volleys at the end of long
rallies to give Greg the initiative, and a two-game lead.
The Frenchman was in no mood to let it slip and came out
quickly in the third, winning some scrambling rallies to take
a lead he had no intention of letting slip. Wael tightened up,
recovered, but at 7/5 a "no let decision unsettled the
Egyptian, and what energy he had left seemed to dissipate.
So for Greg a guaranteed semi-final - just the small matter of
meeting Palmer to decide who tops the group - while Wael will
be looking to avoid the dreaded 7/8 playoff ... and Greg and
Wael are due to meet again in 2010!
 "I'm
really pleased to win that one, especially in three games.
Wael's one of my best mates and we train a lot together, and
it's always a hard battle. I feel sorry for him, but you have
to think of yourself at times!
"When I got to the World Open final in 2006, I was much
younger, and probably lacked experience in the handling of
such an event. But now, hopefully, I’ve learned an awful lot
since. And I’m still young, I am aren’t I???
"I’m just trying my best, giving it my 100%. I’m working a lot
to improve things at the moment, it's true that the structure
I got up to now got me where I am now, but today, it's
important for me to rethink and refocus to get to the top.
It’s so nice also to have the support of
people around you, to share the bad, but also the good
moments, and I’m really grateful to them…
"I’m also very grateful to the people here, Ziad, Paul,
Robert, who’ve worked so hard to make this event, and events
like this what they are. Without them, we couldn’t make a
living, so thank you, and please keep on supporting us, we
need you."
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"Really disappointed, and a bit
frustrated really, because we were so close until the end of
each game, and it’s always at that point that I seem to make
the error at the end of a very long rally, or make the wrong
choice of shot, or get the bad call from the ref.
"I’m not blaming the refs for making what could or could not
be the right call, I’m not sure what’s happening in my head at
the end of the games, maybe I want to do so well that I put
too much pressure on myself, I’m not sure…
"Also, the court was pretty dead, and it felt like we were
both just going for shots at the front, no rallies, no plan.
But hey, he played very well indeed, it’s not about me me me!
He put a lot of effort in, and rightly deserves to win.
"It’s so frustrating still, like if the work was not done, not
finished, like a house that you build, but not paint. Doesn’t
look good because it’s not painted. That’s what I feel. Not
finished…"
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Amr Shabana
(W2) bt Thierry Lincou (W1)
7/11, 11/5, 12/10, 11/2 (47m)
SHABANA RELAXES…
Bless
the Prince of Egypt, it took him until the middle of the third
to start to breathe and find his humour again. Like I told you
yesterday, he really wants to do well here, and he generally
doesn’t, not to mention that the last time he lost against
Thierry was actually here in Broadgate in 2006…
And the Frenchman started with the perfect game on a frozen
court where we could actually see the ball slowing down as it
moved in the air, producing a few loud mishits that took both
players aback! He pinned the Egyptian to the back with
stunning drives that did wonders to put the pressure and force
some worrying tins from the world number one.
But as ever with Shabana, “it’s all in the head” he would tell
you himself. And he put it right in the second, while Thierry
lost his length completely, allowing his opponent to exerted
his magic at the front.
The third was crucial, and the Frenchman missed his chance at
10/8, two game balls he couldn’t transform, then an
uncharacteristic tin at 10/10 that set up a game ball for
Shabana, who found an nth stunning backhand drop shot to close
it out.
Mentally taken aback, Thierry seem to lose his way a little in
the third, Shabana went for the jugular, and zoom, in a few
minutes, was in the semis for his third time in his five
appearances in the event.
 "It’s so
hard to be the one ahead of the others, but it’s such a great
feeling. I remember when I got on the PSA circuit, I remember
being 14/15, and looking at Peter Nicol, Jonathan Power and
thinking that those guys were so far away in front, and now,
after years of hard work, I find myself being in front… You
can’t really enjoy it, because everybody wants the spot, but
it’s an amazing feeling…
"But you just can’t waste your time thinking about number one
spot and all that. You’ve just got to take a match at a time,
do your best, it’s a day by day process.
"My wife is my boss now! They say that behind every great man,
there is a great woman, well she is a great woman. And I hope
she is reading this too….!"
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"It was a good match, I was happy with my length, that allowed
me to keep him at the back, but in the fourth, I completely
lost my length, and he punished me at the front…"
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