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TODAY at the Nationals
Wednesday 13th Feb, Day FOUR:
Men's Round Two, Women's Round One, More Masters ... |
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Men's Second
Round:
Alister Walker bt Andy Whipp
11/1, 13/15, 13/11, 11/2
Alex Stait bt Peter Barker
11/6, 11/4, 14/12
Jon Kemp bt Tom Richards
11/2, 11/6, 11/9
James Willstrop bt Ben Ford
11/8, 11/7, 11/5
Daryl Selby bt Joey Barrington
11/4, 11/7, 7/11, 11/6
Adrian Grant bt Jon Harford
7/11, 11/3, 11/9, 11/3
Alex Gough bt Chris Ryder
7/11, 9/11, 11/4, 11/4, 11/6
Lee Beachill bt Simon Parke
11/6, 11/5, 11/2
Women's First Round:
Dominique L/Walter bt Lauren Siddall 11/8, 6/11, 11/6, 12/10
Laura Lengthorn/M bt Sarah-Jane Perry
11/4, 11/3, 11/5
Sarah Kippax bt Kirsty McPhee
11/7, 11/9, 11/4
Tania Bailey bt Laura Mylotte
11/4, 11/6, 11/5
Lauren Briggs bt Becky Botwright
11/8, 11/2, 11/4
Alison Waters bt Laura Hill
10/12, 11/4, 11/7, 11/4
Madeline Perry bt Emma Beddoes
11/4, 11/4, 11/5
Jenny Duncalf bt Vicky Hynes
13/11, 9/11, 11/8, 11/4
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Morning Session Roundup:
Selby upsets the Seedings
Day four started with two wins to the seedings in the women's
first round, Dominique Lloyd-Walter and Laura
Lengthorn-Massaro setting up a quarter-final clash on the
glass court tomorrow.
Meanwhile, the first men's match was another long one for Daryl
Selby, who created the first major seedings upset of the event
by beating seventh seed Joey Barrington.
There was nearly a second upset when Chris Ryder went two games up
against Alex Gough, but the wily Welshman worked his way
back into it, eventually winning in 73 minutes.
He'll meet Lee Beachill who eased past Simon Parke who may
well have been saving himself for the O35 competition ...
Sarah Kippax and Tania Bailey will also meet on the
glass court, both straight-game winners in just under half an hour
each.
Evening Session roundup:
Stait delights Sportcity crowd
Where Nick Taylor and Andy Whipp failed, local boy Alex Stait
- he's been living in Manchester four four year - delighted
the fans at the National Squash Centre with a straight-games win
over third seed Peter Barker to create the biggest upset of the
event so far. He'll now play former schoolmate Alister Walker
in the quarters after Walker had earlier put paid to Whipp's
chances in an up-and-down match on the same court.
Jon Kemp was in no mood to be upset as he swept past
yesterday's surprise winner Tom Richards in half an hour, to await
the winner of the last match of the day, defending champion
James Willstrop.
No such worries for the women's seeds in the early matches, with
Alison Waters and Lauren Briggs moving forward to
their allotted quarter-final meeting while Madeline Perry
continued her return to form after three months out with a solid
win over qualifier Emma Beddoes.
Last up was defending champion Jenny Duncalf against Vicky
Hynes. Vicky had game balls in the first, won the second, and was
6/2 up in the fourth before the second seed got her game together
towards the end. |
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Alister Walker bt Andy Whipp
11/1, 13/15, 13/11, 11/2
WEATHERING HURRICANE ANDY…
Framboise reports
Andy Whipp reminds me a little of John White, in the sense that
utter brilliance can give way to numerous tins…. And I guess for
the opponents, it’s all a question of patience, and waiting for
the error that is bound to come at some point.
 Today,
Andy had a good reason to try and make it short, as he basically
felt poorly, and couldn’t really afford to spend too much energy
in fuel consuming rallies. And boy did he enjoy making it short.
He just went for everything, attacking hard, finding stunning
feathery drop shots, volleys from all angles, and even a shot
which I’m still wondering how/why he did it, and that I’ve
nicknamed ‘a Whippy”!
And it has to be said that the favourite of the encounter, as in
Ali Walker, a real hope of English Squash, went into a “panic
mode” after losing the second game 15-13, having been unable to
transform any of the for game balls he had, and then found himself
down 6/0 in the third….
But the answer was in slowing down the pace, as ever with Andy,
and Ali succeeded to frustrate his opponent by giving him very
high and soft shots he just couldn’t attack as well, forcing him
to go for “silly shots” for the back of the court…
The tin rate went up, and Andy lost his heart, as Ali found his,
and the last game lasted as long as the first one, five minutes,
much to his relief. Pfffew, that was a close call, Ali, wasn’t
it…?
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In the third, at 6/0, I felt a rabbit in the headlight, what to do
next???? The worse is that I was slowing down the ball, and was
still finding the winners! And at that point I thought, that’s it,
it’s just going to be one of those days, where he is just going to
hit everything, outrageous shots…
Actually, did you see that one, where he reversed his racquet, and
still found the nick???? Probably the best shot I’ve ever seen…
I’ve been so ill! But funnily enough, after the first game, I felt
good. Still, I had to go for it a bit more than normal, and as
attacking is my strength, might as well play in your strength!
Already, I didn’t think I would win yesterday, and in the 4th, I
felt so dizzy.
But then again, I guess that if I had taken the 3rd, I wouldn’t
have felt it at all, when you are on top, you always feel great,
don’t you!
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I came here on the high of last week, my final in Sweden, where I
was delighted to get to the final, and wanted to have a very
positive mindset for this event.
And yes, I did injure myself last week, but still, as far as I’m
concerned, when you get on court, you are fit to play, and when I
play against somebody, I couldn’t give a monkey if he’s injured.
And I don’t want to take anything away from Alex, who played
superbly, or of this event.
Today, I didn’t have much, and he had plenty, and will still have
plenty for tomorrow as well…
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Alex Stait bt Peter Barker
11/6, 11/4, 14/12
OUT WITH IT…
I didn’t see much of the match, I must admit, as I was finishing
my report on Andy/Ali, except the end of the match, the third,
where Peter had four game balls before succumbing on Alex’s second
match ball.
 What
surprised me was Peter’s calm about it all, and that’s when I
assumed something was not right, as Peter HATES losing, and gets
rather frustrated when he does…. Actually, playing Daryl in the
first round of the Swedish last week, Peter broke his toe, and
still made it to the final of the event.
And when, off the record, I asked him “Why the hell did you play a
squash match with a broken toe”, he replied with a naïve smile
“well, I was told it couldn’t make it worse…" Bless…
But at no moment during our aftermatch interview did Peter even
mentioned the injury, or take it as an excuse for his loss. He was
only praise for Alex. Like Anthony Ricketts and a few others,
we’ve got a few players around that never present excuses for
their loss but their opponent was better that day….
What I saw from Alex was impressive. He was so fast, he was
determined, and he was hungry for that next round on the glass
court. Well, he’s got it, against another mate of his, as Peter
is, Alistair Walker, with whom he went to school … A very friendly
affair again then…
 Last
year, when I played James, although I didn’t think I was going to
win, I took a game off him, and in front of my home crowd, I felt
I left myself down. This year, Peter and I being very close
friends, I knew he was bound to be tired, with the accumulation of
matches he had recently, and in my home venue, I really wanted to
do well….
And I didn’t know he was injured, I just heard it now, but he
still played very hard, and I know he doesn’t like to give
excuses, he is a very fair player.
I feel a bit sad for him, having been injured myself so many times
recently, I know how hard it is, but I still played great…
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Jon Kemp bt Tom Richards
11/2, 11/6, 11/9
BETTER AT IT…
As somebody in the audience summarised the encounter, “they have
similar games, Kemp is just better at it”… And it quite true,
really. They both like to attack, they don’t know how to spell the
words “up and down the wall”, and long rallies is not their forte.
But Jonathan Kemp takes the ball so early, possess such weaponry
at the front, and gets the ball so hard in the back corner, that
poor Tom spent most of his time on the back foot, or running like
a headless chicken… till the usual errors started to creep into
Jon’s game….
In short, first game, like four minutes, not sure that Tom hit the
back wall once, I was told. Then the second, Kempy is comfortably
up 5/0, and lets his opponent in again. Same story in the third,
7/1 up, and it ends 11/9….
Against a “young” player like Tom, one may afford a few lapses of
the kind. But against stronger players, that can be a very
dangerous game indeed…
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 We
are a similar type of players, we both like to play at a high
pace, and we both like to attack as much as possible, I was just a
bit better at it than him today…
My lapses come from a lack of concentration. When I get up score
wise, I start to feel comfortable, and I slow down a bit. As he
likes to do the same than I do, he gets better control of the
middle, and forces me into making errors.
Hopefully, in the quarters, it shouldn’t happen… But Tom is a
tough player to play, he just came back from injury, and he did
pretty well. I’m sure he’ll do well on the circuit…
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James Willstrop bt Ben Ford
11/8, 11/7, 11/5
DON’T BE RIDICULOUS…
Ben is a bit like me, he hates being ridiculous. And that was his
biggest fear today against Giant Willstrop, to be out in 15
minutes, and not score a point.
Far from it.
Those two gave us some good rallies, although James made a few
errors, a bit uncharacteristic under no pressure, but maybe was he
trying to find his marks for the rest of the tournament?
Ben did well. He kept with the rallies, fought hard, but often was
wrong footed or totally fooled by James’ short game. But then
again, he is not the only one…!
I was not looking
forward to it, I was worried that I was going to be embarrassed,
as James can really make you look silly and end the rally with two
shots. And I have to say that I did better than I thought,
especially, I moved better than I did the past two months, which
is good news.
Once I got a few points in the first, I was able to relax a bit.
It’s just that I coach a lot of kids, and you don’t want them to
read the results the next morning like 11/0, 11/1, 11/1!
 And
James has such a good nature, he doesn’t do it on purpose, but he
is so fast that he can really make you look silly. The previous
years, I did ok, five against Parkie last year, and the year
before, I took a game from Peter Nicol, so I wanted to do well
this year too…
I actually stopped the circuit when I was 23. I was struggling for
money, I couldn’t fulfil my potential, I couldn’t get in enough
PSA tournaments to get high in the rankings.
But for a few years now, I used to say to my wife that I was going
to play a last 12 months full blast, but never got round doing it.
So in November 2006, I decided to go for it. And I loved it! There
is no pressure, money is not a problem anymore, as I’m coaching,
and I get to play young players that have the pressure, and have
problems getting by….
I have an agreement with my wife that I would only play for 12
months, so, time is up really. I’m still going to play PSA events,
but only in the UK, and maybe the odd European one, where she can
come with me…
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[9]
Daryl Selby bt [7] Joey Barrington
11/4,
11/7, 7/11, 11/6
GOOD WIN FOR DARYL…
Framboise reports
 As
James Willstrop said after his win in Pakistan a few years back,
squash is such a mental game it’s a joke. And mentally today, I
feel that Daryl was more confident he was going to win than Joey
was.
First, Daryl is the challenger, nothing to lose, no pressure
really. Two, he’s put a lot of energy into training at the start
of the year, including a few sessions with the Boss, that did him
a hell of a lot of good obviously. Three, his recent good
performances against Peter Barker, one win in Edinburgh, and one
close defeat in Sweden.
One of Daryl’s strengths is his low percentage game. One mishit in
the first game at 3/0, then we would have to wait nearly 40
minutes to see the second one, a tin at 7/7 in the second… Talk
about putting the pressure on your opponent…
The court played a very important part in this game too. These two
have a mid pace, long rallies, grinding the other one kind of
game. But on a warm court that bounces all over the place,
favouring loose shots, lets and strokes, it was hard for them to
find much rhythm. For example, in the first, we had 6 lets ending
with a stroke for Daryl at 3/7 for Joey. And in the second, again,
at 2/2, 4 lets, ending with a stroke, this time for Joey.
All the games were long and disputed, 19m, 28, 17m and 19m. If the
first one was all about Daryl, the second one started with Joey
more aggressive, and Daryl losing his famous length, to find it
all back and fight back to lead 2/0.
The third was Joey all along, he was more aggressive, more hungry,
and “there’s five setter written all over it” said a ref sitting
next to me, we all thought. But no. Daryl took an excellent start
in the fourth, 5/2, but at 3/5, a “stroke” against him seemed to
make Joey lose his concentration, and even if he clawed back from
10/3 match ball to 6/10, Daryl just found THE winner of the match,
a superb crosscourt that rolled off the front right corner… |
That last shot of the day was probably the best I ever played in
my life!
Joe made more errors than me today, and before the match, I told
myself that if I could keep the errors down, I could win. But
against Joey, it means that you’ve got to be mentally prepared to
play a very hard game, as like Jonah told me a few days ago, “Joey
plays every point as if it was match point”. And it’s true, he
never gives up, he never gives you anything…
I guess that my win today is also due to the confidence I have in
my game at the moment after the hard training I did in January,
and also the sessions I had with Peter Nicol, which I think (I
told you that already in Edinburgh) made me take a step backwards
to make me go three steps forward. And I thought I could be on the
verge of a good win, and this is definitely a good win.
Also, I had a good mental preparation, I was ready to accept the
ref’s decisions, especially after I watch a video of my match with
Peter Barker in Sweden, where my discussions with the ref did play
a role in my defeat I feel. Today, I was just accepting the
decision, it’s a let, ok, fine, let’s get on with it, and so did
Joey actually, he is very good for that. And as ever, was gracious
in defeat, as he always is.
Very glad to get to play on the glass court this year at last, and
very happy with my win…
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Adrian Grant bt Jon Harford
7/11, 11/3,
11/9, 11/3 (48m)
 These
are not the easiest courts to play on, and can be a real leveller.
It doesn’t feel like it from the spectator’s point of view, but
it’s very hot on here. You can’t just go for winners, you’ve got
to work the ball, and move your position out of position.
Jon was playing well, he came out firing, but on that court, it
was difficult to keep the pace up. …
Today, I was up with rather big gaps, 7/1, but even with that kind
of gap, on that court, you can’t afford to switch off for just a
moment, whereas on the glass court, you can sometimes lose one or
two points. But not here, you just can’t afford it.
Looking forward to playing tomorrow now…
Adrian played really
well, although I started very well, in the second, I hurt my knee,
and just couldn’t stop thinking about it, instead of concentrating
on the game!
I don’t feel I did anything wrong, I actually thought I was
playing OK, but he was just too good at the end, he showed his
class really, his length was just too good for me, still he had a
lapse in concentration in the 3rd, he was up 8/2, and nearly lost
the game!
At the moment, I’m happy with the way I played, I had a few good
matches, and I feel that I can compete with those boys, I just
need to get a bit fitter and stronger…
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SAVING HIMSELF ???
Sir Simon Parke didn’t really stay long on the court today against
Hungry Lee Beachill, and my theory is that Parkie just wants to
keep his strength to win the Over 35 event.
Well, tough competition, this year, Sir Simon, Alex G, Marsh and
Nick T! So, no wonder retired-from-the-circuit Parke needed to
keep some fuel in the tank…
And do not worry, I’ll keep an eye on that competition for you,
I’m here to tell you…
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 He
is such a good player, isn’t he?
I beat him last time we played in the English Open in December, so
I was quite up for it. It was a bit patchy, I had some good
moments, but at the end, I just struggled with the motivation.
I didn’t feel any pressure really, I’m quite relaxed about the
event, but obviously, I want to do good here…. All credit to
Goughie, he played very well, and hang in there…
It hasn’t been a great start of the year for me, I’m experiencing
lapses in concentration, and I’m looking forward to get back into
a “zone”…!
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Alex Gough bt Chris Ryder
7/11, 9/11, 11/4, 11/4, 11/6
GOUGHIE AT LAST…
He made it hard for himself, the Welsh Devil, you may think, but
actually, I think it’s more Chris whose played extremely well,
especially at the start, as his short game is of the highest
standard, and Alex had to wear his rollers to be able to retrieve
them!
Still, at 5/4 in the 4th, the Englishman started to run out of
steam, both mentally and physically, as he saw a match he was up
comfortably slip away from him. And once Alex felt him tired, he
just speeded up the pace, and left the poor Chris wonder how he
could have left such a chance pass by…
 He
played the match better, he played the court better… The ball
stops off the front wall, and I kept on crossing it, and he kept
on cut it, intercepting everything for the first too games.
Then I had a good talk with Parkie, who was such good advices, and
helped me get back into the match. Then I started playing
straighter, and hitting the ball harder especially.
Physically, I was happy, as I felt strong today, and I feel that
he may have got a bit tired in the middle of the 4th…
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Women's First Round |
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Dominique
Lloyd-Walter bt Lauren Siddall
11/8, 6/11, 11/6, 12/10
Laura Lengthorn-Massaro bt Sarah-Jane Perry
11/4, 11/3, 11/5
Sarah Kippax bt Kirsty McPhee
11/7, 11/9, 11/4
Tania Bailey bt Laura Mylotte
11/4, 11/6, 11/5 |
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 "She
runs well and picks up so much, she makes it really tough. I
watched her play yesterday and she made a lot of errors, but there
was no pressure on her today and lots of her shots were coming
off.
"I haven't played Laura for a year, she beat me 3/2 in a National
League match which was also American scoring. I think it's a good
thing, but it makes a huge difference to the game and takes some
time to get used to …"
 "With
this scoring you really have to concentrate, both of us were
trying no to take too many risks so there were a lot of long
rallies, plus the court was very lively anyway.
"We've played each other so often, we know each other's games so
well but I do usually come out on top.
"It's my first time in the quarters, on the glass court. I played
one match on the glass in Hong Kong, and a couple in Sweden so I'm
getting more experienced on it, but Tania is obviously very used
to playing on glass."
 "It's
always nice to get the first match out of the way, and it's good
to be on the glass court now, it's such a nice court we all like
playing on it.
"As top seed everyone expects me to win, but I'm very much taking
it one match at a time - I had hamstring injury and I haven't even
stepped on court since Apawamis. Laura's strong and fit and has
good shots so you just can't afford to take anything for granted."
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Lauren Briggs
bt Becky Botwright
11/8, 11/2, 11/4
Alison Waters bt Laura Hill
10/12, 11/4, 11/7, 11/4
Madeline Perry bt Emma Beddoes
11/4, 11/4, 11/5
Jenny Duncalf bt Vicky Hynes
13/11, 9/11, 11/8, 11/4 |
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 "I
was a bit lucky, I don't think Jenny was playing at her best. I'm
just not fit enough really, I couldn't keep up the pressure like I
did in the first three games.
"I wasn't thinking about the scoring, I was just thinking that I
wasn't breaking away, I just couldn't shake her off because she
was playing so well and she has some really nice attacking shots.
 "I
was 8/3 up in the second, relaxed a bit and suddenly she was back
with me again. She's always been a very determined player and she
stuck in well, we had a few good battles in juniors although she
was a little older than me.
"It's a nice feeling to come into the tournament as defending
champion, but you can't afford to think about that, I'm just
thinking about Madeline in the quarters after a rest day.
 "After
three months out I've started to feel I'm getting there over the
last couple of weeks, I've noticed the difference. It was a good
match to get into the tournament, we had a few long rallies but I
always felt pretty much in control.
 "She
played well, she was steady throughout and gets most things back.
I tried to step up and volley more from the second and felt more
comfortable once I was doing that.
"I got to the Greenwich final and won in Edinburgh, so I feel I'm
coming into the tournament in good form. It will be great to get
on the glass court, it's a great venue and a really good
atmosphere.
 "I'm
pretty happy with how I played there, I moved well and managed to
keep my concentration throughout the match. I played her in the
English Open so I was quite confident going in there, and I'm
delighted to reach the quarters for the first time.
"I like the scoring, you have to stay more focussed, you can't
switch off mentally which I'm prone to do – I was 4/0 up in one
game, thinking 'this is nice', then suddenly it was 4-all, you
have o trigger back in quickly."
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The
main arena is almost ready and today's winners - men and women -
earned themselves quarter-final places on the glass court.
