Urquhart will face reigning Cleveland Classic champion Laura Massaro in the next round, after the Englishwoman beat Malaysian Low Wee Wern. Massaro took a well-deserved lead early on thanks to some strong lengths and canny shot selection. Wee Wern, still only 21-years-old, fought well and managed to claim the third game, before Massaro’s experience saw off the contest after 53-minutes.

The last remaining US hopeful Amanda Sobhy played well in front of home-crowds as she dispatched the experienced Rachael Grinham in straight-games. Grinham’s error count was unusually high, frequently hitting the tin early on to allow Sobhy the opportunity to establish and hold a lead from the start. From there the Harvard student found a consistent length to trouble her opponent and her intelligent use of drop shots eased her unfancied progression to the next round to play Jenny Duncalf.

No2 seed Duncalf beat English compatriot Sarah Kippax after a well-contested effort from the qualifier. After registering a controlled first-game victory, Duncalf was troubled by a more settled game-plan by Kippax, but at the midway stage of the second game, play was halted after the higher ranked played sustained a nasty blow to the knee from a Kippax racket-swing. An injury break of nearly 20-minutes was held whilst Duncalf recovered, but Kippax was clearly embarrassed by the incident and seemed unable to regain the focus she had found early on. The 3-0 result that followed was a hollow victory for the world number two.

There was nearly a surprise result at the top of the drawer, as Nicol David was forced to five-games against New Zealand qualifier Joelle King. Last week’s Greenwich Open finalist went two games down against the world No1 and David’s progression seemed inevitable as she took a 6-1 lead in the third game.

King tried a last-ditch change of tactic however, and launched upon an impressive attacking tirade to come from behind and claw back a game in her favour. More of the same followed in the fourth game as King drew level, standing firm as David looked to extend the rallies and look for signs of weakness in her opponent’s game.

At 6-5 up, King looked on the verge of a momentous upset but the world No1, using all her experience from years at the top of the sport, further tightened her width and won six points in a row to sneak ahead of the 23-year-old and progress to the quarters.

David will play Annie Au of Hong Kong in the next round, who should be well rested following the withdrawal of her first round opponent Camille Serme, following a last minute back injury.

No4 seed Madeline Perry looked to get over her disappointing Greenwich Open exit last week, with a strong 3-0 win over qualifier Jaclyn Hawkes. Hawkes, perhaps fatigued after an close 80-minute scrap with Emma Beddoes in qualifying finals the day before, was never able to establish herself against the experienced Irishwoman.

Perry’s progression sets up an intriguing quarter final clash with young Egyptian Raneem El Weleily, winner of last week’s Greenwich Open. The world No7 from Alexandria faced a stern test against former world No2 Natalie Grinham, who herself saw victory last week, winning the WSA Tournament of Champions title in New York.

Both players tend to favour the attacking drop shots and there was nothing separating the pair at 11-11 in the first game. Grinham showed little concern for the score line as she slotted in a crosscourt nick from well behind the service box, taking her to a game ball that she was able to convert. El Weleily struck back, extending a 7-point lead in the second game before a lapse in concentration saw Grinham back in the hunt at 8-7. Refocused, the Egyptian got her head down and saw off the game to draw level at 1-1.

In the third, El Weleily was able to string together a whole game of dominance, with Grinham unable to respond. But again some youthful erraticism crept into her play in the fourth and allowed Grinham a glimmer of hope at 8-4. The Egyptian flicked the switch back on though, and with some racket wizardry, worked seven out of the next eight points in her favour, to progress through to the next round.

Quarter final draw:

[1] Nicol David (MAS) v [8] Annie Au (HKG)

[4] Madeline Perry (IRL) v [7] Raneem El Weleily (EGY)

[3] Laura Massaro (ENG) v [Q] Donna Urquhart (AUS)

[2] Jenny Duncalf (ENG) v Amanda Sobhy (USA)

1st round results:

[1] Nicol David (MAS) bt [Q] Joelle King (NZL) 11-4, 11-9, 9-11, 8-11, 11-7 (63m)

[8] Annie Au (HKG) bt Camille Serme (FRA) w/o

[4] Madeline Perry (IRL) bt [Q] Jaclyn Hawkes (NZL) 11-7, 11-9, 11-6 (35m)

[7] Raneem El Weleily (EGY) bt Natalie Grinham (NED) 11-13, 11-7, 11-4, 11-9 (36m)

[Q] Donna Urquhart (AUS) bt [5] Kasey Brown (AUS) 10-12, 11-7, 11-6, 13-11 (62m)

[3] Laura Massaro (ENG) bt Low Wee Wern (MAS) 11-4, 11-5, 9-11, 11-5 (53m)

Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt [6] Rachael Grinham (AUS) 11-3, 11-7, 11-2 (19m)

[2] Jenny Duncalf (ENG) bt [Q] Sarah Kippax (ENG) 11-8, 12-10, 11-7 (52m)

Camille Serme and Donna Urquhart were first on court, with Serme needing a win to stand a chance of progressing from Group A. Neither player completely dominated the first game, but Serme pulled ahead of her opponent at 7-all to gain the upper hand. A late Urquhart surge saw the Australian pull level, but Serme held her nerve and closed the game out 11/9.

Urquhart showed a more consistent performance in the second game, cutting out the errors, chasing relentlessly and she deservedly took a close 11/8 win. As the game progressed, Urquhart’s confidence grew and with it, her anticipation of Serme’s attacking shots also improved. This attribute frustrated Serme, but retrieved well and there was nothing separating the pair throughout. At 8-all it could have gone either way, but Urquhart came through to take the match, and consigning Serme to third place in the group, just missing out on the qualification spot.

Massaro needed a win against her opponent Low Wee Wern to see her through to the semi finals, having had a day off yesterday due to Rachael Grinham’s withdrawal. The England No2 made short work of things in the first game, with her opponent amassing just three points.

More of the same confident squash followed, with Wee Wern struggling to establish herself at all on court.  Massaro length was tight and she pushed forward on the tee well and ran out the game 11/4.

For the third match in a row, Nicol David started quickly against Madeline Perry, jumping to a 6-2 lead.  From here, she rode out a confident game 11/6. The second game was a much closer affair. Despite Nicol again winning six points on the bounce, Perry found her range and was much more dangerous hitting into the corners. The game saw plenty of down-the-wall squash, with neither play wanting to give each other a hint of an opportunity. David held two match balls at 10-8, but was unable to apply the finishing touch and Perry forced the tiebreak at 10-all. A succession of three let balls in a row followed, all from backhand drives showed just how tight the game had become, and only a stroke in favour of David broke the deadlock. From there, she needed only one more opportunity to finish of the match 12/10.

Day three WSA ATCO results:
Donna Urquhart beat Camille Serme – 9/11, 11/8, 11/8
Laura Massaro beat Low Wee Wern – 11/3, 11/4
Nicol David beat Madeline Perry – 11/6, 12/10

Day four WSA ATCO Semi final lineup:
2pm – Nicol David vs Laura Massaro
following on – Jenny Duncalf vs Madeline Perry

Match photography available at http://www.jordanmansfield.co.uk

Rachael Grinham

First onto court was Madeline Perry against Camille Serme.  The cool conditions on court seemed to better suit Serme in the opening exchanges and she confidently attacked with dropshots and picked off Perry’s loose shots from the tee.  At 3-9 down, Perry began to show signs of improvement, finding a tighter length and moving her opponent around but the French international was too far ahead and Serme closed out the game 11-6.

Perry settled in well after the break and shot ahead to a 6-0 lead utilising a faster pace and much improved width.  With her improved range, she closed out the second game 11-5 with Serme unable to mount any consistent challenge.  Serme handed her opponent a further lead early in the first game, with a number of errors, but  kept her nerve to stay close to her Irish opponent and took the lead at 7-6 with a renewed attacking style and saw out the match 11/7.

Nicol David continued her progression through the group stages with a controlled and precise 2-0 win over Australian Donna Urquhart.  The Malaysian played a tight and patient game from the start and was quite happy to wait for her chances to attack, and for errors from her opponent. Urquhart was limited to only the occasional scoring chance throughout the match, and under pressure hit a number of balls out of court. David is through to the next round now after consecutive 2-0 wins, with Madeline Perry still to play tomorrow.

Due to Grinham’s withdrawal, Jenny Duncalf versus Low Wee Wern played the final WSA match of the day. The first game was a close affair, with Duncalf always slightly ahead of her Malaysian opponent. After establishing a small lead early on, she did enough to stay ahead of Wee Wern throughout the game and closed out a 11/7 win. The Englishwoman took an early lead in the second, winning five points in a row and putting herself in a good position to see out the game. Wee Wern’s strong retrieval kept the match from being a whitewash, and she came close to a comeback in the second game after some good recovery squash forced some errors from the England No1.  Duncalf weathered the storm though and came through her second win of the group stage with an 11/7, 11/8 win.

Day2 ATCO World Series Finals results:
Camille Serme bt Madeline Perry – 11/6, 5/11, 11/7
Nicol David bt Donna Urquhart – 11/4, 11/4
Jenny Duncalf bt Low Wee Wern – 11/7, 11/8
Rachael Grinham vs Laura Massaro – [Rachael withdraws from competition due to injury]

Day 3 fixtures:
Camille Serme vs Donna Urquhart
Laura Massaro vs Low Wee Wern
Nicol David vs Madeline Perry

WSA Women’s Groups
Group A
Nicol David (Malaysia)
Madeline Perry (N.Ireland)
Camille Serme (France)
Donna Urquhart (Australia)

Group B
Jenny Duncalf (England)
Rachael Grinham (Australia)
Laura Massaro (England)
Low Wee Wern (Malaysia)

All tournament photograpy available at:  http://www.jordanmansfield.co.uk

Nicol David, No. 1 for 65 consecutive month. Photo courtesy of M. Roslan.

The December rankings were bound to feature some big changes due to the World Open and Hong Kong Open taking place in November. There were career highs aplenty throughout the top 100 and the highest of those was at number 3.

Laura Massaro, the WISPA Player of the Year, has moved into the world’s top 3 for the first time. Massaro started the year ranked at number 10 but after success in Cleveland and the British Nationals as well as the prestigious US Open, she seems to have asserted herself as a major threat to Nicol David’s reign on the women’s game.

The world’s top 2 remain unchanged. Jenny Duncalf reached her first World Open final, showing great form before being outclassed by Nicol David. David had a few surprise losses this year but still has amassed 7 titles, including a record 6^th World Open title. It makes it 65 consecutive months at no.1 for David.

Also in the top 20, Kasey Brown makes her debut in the top 5 becoming the Australian no.1 for the first time as she leaps above Rachael Grinham. Grinham’s drop down to no.6 ends her stay in the top 5, a place she has impressively held since February 2003!

Raneem El Weleily moves back up to a career high equalling no.7 after reaching her first World Series final in Hong Kong. Natalie Grinham moves up one place to no.9, her highest ranking since August 2010, after reaching the World Open semi final in front of her home crowd in Rotterdam.

Low Wee Wern records her highest ranking at no.11. The Malaysian wasn’t having the best year as she saw her ranking drop to 21 in October. Winning the China Open, her biggest title, seemed to change her fortune and she reached the Qatar Classic and World Open quarter finals as well as the Hong Kong Open semi final, with four top 10 wins along the way.

Samantha Teran became the 1^st ever Mexican to reach the World Open semi final as she moved back up to no.13. Dipika Pallikal also became the 1^st ever Indian to reach the World Open quarter final. The Indian star’s shine looks to continue as she moves up to a career high no.17. Joey Chan had a November to remember. She captured her biggest title and first of the year at the Macau Open and then reached the Hong Kong Open quarter final, upsetting Brown before losing a thriller to El Weleily. She makes her top 20 debut at no.20.

There were further career highs in the top 100:
Kanzy El Dafrawy up to no.29 after reaching the World Open last 16. That makes 6 Egyptians in the top 30.
Gaby Huber makes her top 30 debut at no.30. She started the year outside the top 50.
Yathreb Adel up to no.32. The youngest player in the top 100 pushed Massaro in the World Open 1^stround.
Melody Francis captured her 5^th title of the year at the Mackay Open and moves to no.36.
Siyoli Waters at no.38, Misaki Kobayashi up to no.39
Sina Wall up to no.41, Samantha Cornett up to no.44, Lauren Selby up to no.47, Olga Ertlova up to no.48
Ahn Eun Chan up to no.53, Lisa Aitken up to 55, Coline Aumard up to no.56,  Amanda Landers-Murphy to 57, Salma Hany up to no.59.
Tesni Evans up to no.65, Liu Tsz-Ling up to 68, Tamika Saxby up to 73, Kristen Lange up to no.82, Megan Craig up to no.84, Christine Nunn up to no.86 and Vanessa Pickard up to no.90.

The top 20:

You can find the full rankings on the following link:

http://www.wispa.net/view_rankings.asp

STEVE CUBS REPORTS

Hong Kong’s Annie Au delighted the home crowd as she took the first game off the overwhelming favourite, but David struck back to take the next three to reach a seventh successive Hong Kong final.

“I knew it would be tough, that the crowd would get behind her,” said the victor, “and she played really well in the first. I knew I had to tighten up and find my lengths from the second and I managed to do that.”

There she’ll meet Raneem El Weleily, the tenth seed who overcame Malaysia’s Low Wee Wern in a high-quality match, coming from 7/1 down in the fourth game to clinch the win.

“It’s very hot on there, difficult to breathe even for us Egyptians and I could see she was suffering too,” admitted El Weleily. ”She got a good lead in the fourth, I’m glad my mum wasn’t watching I would have given her another heart attack! Obviously I’m really pleased to get through to the final, especially in such a wonderful setting, I just hope I can play my best …”

The finals start at 18.00 on Sunday.

Semi-Finals:
[1] Nicol David (Mas) bt [8] Annie Au (Hkg)  9/11, 11/2, 11/4, 11/6 (45m)
[10] Raneem El Weleily (Egy) bt [13] Low Wee Wern (Mas)  11/6, 9/11, 11/3, 11/9 (47m)

Full reports, quotes and photos on TODAY in Hong Kong:www.squashsite.co.uk/hk/today.htm

The first two games were close, but when Grinham eased through the third the crowd looked worried. Their fears were allayed as Au took a lead in the fourth, their hopes raised when she did the same in the fifth, and were finally relieved as she ran away with it in the end.

“I felt quite comfortable when I was getting her into rallies in the second and the third,” said Grinham, “but from the end of the fourth and the fifth she was chopping the ball away and I just couldn’t get any rallies going. It was frustrating, and the harder you try, the worse it gets when it’s like that – I was still feeling fresh at the end.”

Annie was understandably happy: “Very happy, and excited for tomorrow! I was a bit nervous at the end of the match, I tried to not think about it being the last game, just tried to win a point at a time.”

The second match was also a five-setter, and also provided an Asian winner as Low Wee Wern repeated her World Open win over seventh seed Camille Serme.

It seemed that whoever got the early lead won the game – although Camille led the second 10/4 and only took it 11/9 – and although the Frenchwoman threatened to come back a couple of times in the decider, unforced errors proved her undoing. It was a crisp winner though that took the Malaysian into the semis.

“I knew it was going to be tough, because in the worlds, she was not in it in the first, but after, every game was a battle. Today, she was much quicker into the match,” said Wee Wern. “What made the difference I think today, was that I was just a bit more patient at the end of each game.”

Nicol David, on the other hand, has appeared in each of the last six Hong Kong finals, and she’s won them all. The newly crowned six-time world champion stayed on course with her 33rd Hong Kong win in a row as she too gained a measure of revenge, beating England’s Laura Massaro, who had beaten her in two of three meetings this year, 11/5, 11/8, 6/11, 11/6.

Massaro mounted a too-late comeback in the second but kept that momentum to pull a game back in the third, but Nicol regrouped and looked a solid as ever as she closed the match out in the fourth.

“I came out so fast in the first two, I just dropped a little in the third and she found some good shots and played well to take it,” explained David. “I knew I had to come out strong in the fourth and my lengths and volleys were working well.”

“I know there might be some bad weather tomorrow but it would be great to play at the harbour again, it has so many good memories for me. But it’s the semi-final, we just need a court to play on!”

The unlikely dream of four Asian and two Hong Kong semi-finalists didn’t come about, but it wasn’t down to a lack of effort on the part of Joey Chan or the crowd, that’s for sure. Raneem El Weleily weathered the early storm, and from 5/7 down in the first took 18 of the next 21 points to establish a commanding-looking two game lead.

But a few typical errors in the third let Joey back in, and the left-hander needed no encouragement – although she got plenty – as she levelled the match with some scintillating and determined play.

Raneem was never behind in the decider, but never far enough ahead to be comfortable, so when Joey called her own ball out at 10/8 the Egyptian was both grateful and relieved.

“I couldn’t believe she called that out when three refs missed it, all credit to her for that,” said Raneem. “I felt good at the start then played a few poor shots and let her back into it. I was nervous in the third and fourth, I was trying to tell myself the crowd were behind me too but it was hard!”

“In the fifth it was already two-all so I had nothing left to lose and I relaxed more. It’s great to play squash in front of a crowd like that whether they’re supporting you or your opponent, and I’m really looking forward to the harbour tomorrow.”

Semi-finals commence the Cultural Centre on Victoria Harbour at 18.00 on Saturday, weather permitting – adverse forecasts mean that a decision will be taken at 15.00 as to whether play can go ahead there, otherwise matches will be played at Hong Kong Squash Centre.

Women’s Quarter-Finals:
[1] Nicol David (Mas) bt [5] Laura Massaro (Eng)    11/5, 11/8, 6/11, 11/6 (50m)
[8] Annie Au (Hkg) bt [3] Rachael Grinham (Aus)    8/11, 11/9, 4/11, 11/6, 11/4 (58m)
[10] Raneem El Weleily (Egy) bt [15] Joey Chan (Hkg)   11/7, 11/3, 7/11, 9/11, 11/8 (43m)
[13] Low Wee Wern (Mas) bt [7] Camille Serme (Fra)    11/7, 9/11, 11/9, 5/11, 11/4 (54m)

Full reports, quotes and photos on TODAY in Hong Kong:
www.squashsite.co.uk/hk/today.htm

REPORTED BY STEVE CUBS |

The Hong Kong youngster, far from being overawed by her opponent or the occasion, really made a game of the second which she lost narrowly, then fired in a series of winning shots at the end of the third to pull a game back. She continued to impress in the fourth, and at 9-8 had an opportunity of the sort she’d been making, but tinned it.
Duncalf needed no second invite as she finished the match off, a match that ended up tougher than she, or anyone else, might have imagined.
 
Coach Rebecca Chiu was pleased with her protege’s performance: “I thought she would be more nervous and make more mistakes than she did,” admitted Chiu, “but she played really well and was hitting some very good winners, and she had a chance to take it to five games.”
    
Duncalf’s next opponent is Malaysian Low Wee Wern who also faced a qualifier in New Zealand’s Kylie Lindsay. The rallies were well contested, mainly at the back of the court, but the Malaysian always had the edge, winning 11/4, 11/4, 11/7.
 
Camille Serme looked determined not to let her young Hong Kong opponent Liu Tsz Ling get a sniff of an upset, moving on with a 11/3, 11/3, 11/1 scoreline.
 
An upset – on paper, not necessarily on current form – came about in the following match as Emma Beddoes won her all-English match with 14th seed Sarah Kippax.
 
“It’s always weird when you play another English player,” commented the winner, “the crowd are very quiet, I don’t think anyone applauded anything for the first two games!”
 
Beddoes took those two 11/6, 11/6 but Kippax stormed back with 11/2 in the third. “She came out hitting winners, which I wasn’t expecting,” said Beddoes, “but I was pleased with how I regrouped to take the fourth.
 
“I’m very pleased, of course, I’ve been playing well and that’s my first ever win over Sarah after playing her a lot over the years, so it’s nice to do it in a big event like this. It’s the last tournament of the year for most of us so the further we can go the better.”
 
The shortest match of the day saw in-form Egyptian Raneem El Weleily breeze past German qualifier Sina Wall 11/6, 11/4, 11/7 in just 17 minutes, while her prospective opponent Madeline Perry needed just over an hour to see off the challenge of another in-form youngster, Dipika Pallikal.
 
The Indian number one had chances of a two-nil lead until a few errors at the end of the second let the fourth seed back in, but it remained an even contest until the death, the Irishwoman eventually winning 5/11, 11/8, 12/10, 5/11, 11/7.
 
“She was firing in winners from everywhere at the start,” said a relieved Perry, “I was expecting the ball to come back to me but it just didn’t. It was all pretty quickfire stuff, not many long rallies until the end, but it was always going to be close as she’s been playing very well.
 
“I felt that if I could stick in I would get some errors from her, which I did, but the fourth was poor from me, the fifth was good though – it was a good match to get me used to the court!”
 
Where Lee Ka Yi had earlier delighted without being a realistic prospect for the second round, the Hong Kong crowd expected Joey Chan to progress and she duly delivered, repeating her Macau Open final victory just days ago, beating Aisling Blake again 11/6, 11/8, 11/6 to join Annie Au in round two.
 
“I was confident going into the match,” said Joey, “having already beaten her in Macau and playing on my home courts this time. I tried to stay calm and keep patient, but I felt she was tiring towards the end of the second so I started to attack more.
 
“I’m really happy to get through to the second round for the first time.”

Women’s Round One (bottom):
[2] Jenny Duncalf (Eng) bt [Q] Lee Ka Yi (Hkg) 11/4, 11/9, 8/11, 11/9 (34m)
[13] Low Wee Wern (Mas) bt [Q] Kylie Lindsay (Nzl) 11/4, 11/4, 11/7 (29m)
[7] Camille Serme (Fra) bt Liu Tsz Ling (Hkg) 11/3, 11/3, 11/1 (23m)
Emma Beddoes (Eng) bt [14] Sarah Kippax (Eng) 11/6, 11/6, 2/11, 11/5 (43m)
[10] Raneem El Weleily (Egy) bt [Q] Sina Wall (Ger) 11/6, 11/4, 11/3 (17m)
[4] Madeline Perry (Irl) bt Dipika Pallikal (Ind) 5/11, 11/8, 12/10, 5/11, 11/7 (61m)
[15] Joey Chan (Hkg) bt Aisling Blake (Irl) 11/6, 11/8, 11/6 (42m)
[6] Kasey Brown (Aus) bt Melody Francis (Aus) 11/5, 11/6, 11/7 (30m)

Full reports, quotes and photos on TODAY in Hong Kong: www.squashsite.co.uk/hk/today.htm

REPORT BY STEVE CUBS |

Selby was also satisfied: “I thought I did alright, considering the matches I’ve had so far this week. Rachael’s not the easiest to play when you have heavy legs, she holds the ball so well and you have to stop and start and turn so often. But I’m pleased with my tournament, I thought I did credit to myself and I got my laundry done!!”

Teran was happy too: “I’m happy to get started, and to have a tough game to get me ready for the next round, Tesni played well. It’s normally hard to adjust after the travel from Mexico, but I’ve been here a couple of days already and I feel quite comfortable, I’m in good rhythm and playing well.

There was a huge upset in the second batch of women’s matches as teenage Egyptian qualifier Kanzy El Dafrawy ousted eighth-seeded compatriot Omneya Abdel Kawy in three delicately poised games, 12/10, 11/9, 12/10.

“I can’t believe it,” said a delighted Kanzy, “I’ve never even taken a game off her before. But I was playing well, even if she isn’t at her best at the moment, but when I was 10/6 down in the third I told myself I mustn’t let an opportunity like this slip.”

Another upset followed when Dipika Pallikal, who has just moved into the world’s top twenty, took out 14th-seeded Kiwi Jaclyn Hawkes in four games.

“I started well then made too many errors in the second,” said the Indian number one. “In the third and fourth I was trying to be more steady and I thought I did that well. I played Jackie in Malaysia in July so I knew what to expect, you have to be prepared to run and run like she does. “Really happy to get through, it should be a good game against Kanzy …”

There were no further upsets in the afternoon session women’s matches, as Jenny Duncalf, Annie Au, Laura Massaro and Joelle King all progressed never looking in serious danger. King found Swiss qualifier Gaby Huber a bit of a handful: “I’d never really seen her play, so it came as a bit of a surprise to find she hits the ball as hard as I do, which I’m not really used to,” admitted the Kiwi commonwealth gold medallist, who won 11/7, 11/6, 11/6. “It’s good to get started though and I’m very happy to win that one three-nil.” King now meets second seed Duncalf, who had just as tough a time of it against Line Hansen, coming through 11/9, 12/10, 11/7 in just over half an hour.

Meanwhile Duncalf’s English team-mate Massaro managed to quell the lively young Egyptian Yathreb Adel 11/9, 11/7, 11/6 and she’ll meet Annie Au, who won her all-Hong Kong match with Joey Chan in four games. “We play each other so often, it feels strange to come all the way over here just to play each other again,” chuckled Au.
 
The ladies got their first outing on Victoria’s showcourt as locals Orla Noom and Natalie Grinham started their campaigns. Noom, who won the qualifying competition for the wilcard spot, performed well enough but Australia’s Kasey Brown was a tough opponent, and the sixth seed came through in straight games despite Noom’s best efforts and a noisy partisan crowd.”It’s never easy playing the crowd’s home favourite,” admitted Brown, “and they were definitely against me and pretty loud too, but I thought I coped with it well and played pretty well too.”

The following match, featuring four-time finalist Grinham against her qualifier training partner Aisling Blake, was one the crowd had altogether different expectations of, and they weren’t disappointed as the former Aussie who has just returned to the world’s top ten came through in straight games in front of her watching husband and son.

Two contrasting women’s matches followed. France’s seventh seed Camille Serme, having lost to one young Egyptian (El Weleily) in Qatar was in no mood to lose to another today as she took a close first game against Nour El Tayeb, doubled her lead with more ease in the second and gratefully accepted the world junior champion’s retirement with an ankle injury at 2/1 in the third.

Fourth seed Madeline Perry went two games up as well, but her opponent, Emma Beddoes, far from conceding stormed back to take the next two games. It was fairly comfortable for the Northern Irishwoman in the decider, who after an tough hour long match will be grateful for a day’s rest before she takes on Natalie Grinham at the Luxor Theatre on Thursday.

Low Wee Wern had to work hard to secure a three-nil win over US veteran Latasha Khan, while five-time and defending champion Nicol David started off her defence on an outside court against compatriot Delia Arnold. “Delia was struggling with the bounce on the court,” said Nicol after her 11/3, 11/5, 11/6 win, “but I was too to start with, it took a little time to get comfortable on there. I had to remind myself it was the first round of the World Open and not let her get into it, she can be very dangerous if she does.”

That left Donna Urquhart and Nour El Sherbini, who were by now into their fifth game too, Sherbini having taken the lead 2/1 after saving game balls in what proved to be a crucial third game. The fifth was a relative canter, the young Egyptian finally able to celebrate her 16th birthday with an 11/2 decider.

Full reports with quotes and photos available on TODAY on the World Open site here!

Men’s Quarter-Finals
[3] Karim Darwish (Egy) bt Nicolas Mueller (Sui) 2/11, 11/8, 11/5, 11/4 (35m)
[6] Gregory Gaultier (Fra) bt Tarek Momen (Egy) 11/5, 11/8, 11/7 (65m)
[4] James Willstrop (Eng) bt [7] Peter Barker (Eng) 6/11, 11/7, 11/4, 13/11 (56m)
Stewart Boswell (Aus) bt Cameron Pilley (Aus) 11/8, 11/5, 4/11, 11/4 (68m)

REPORT BY STEVE CUBS |  After a seemingly endless succession of upsets in round two, normal order was restored in quarter-final action in the XIth Qatar Classic at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha as all but one of the eight matches went according to expectations.

Top seed and defending champion Nicol David was always in control against young Egyptian Raneem El Weleily, who didn’t help her own cause with numerous unforced errors in each of the three games. Only in the third did the Egyptian threaten to extend the match, but David soon closed that opening to win 11/6, 11/4, 11/8 in 27 minutes.

Third seed Rachael Grinham took just a little longer to end the run of England’s Emma Beddoes who had scored two upset wins to reach this stage, but for the Australian it was a case of taking the first game in the face of a stiff challenge from Beddoes. Thereafter Grinham’s shotmaking held sway.

The first men’s match promised another upset when unseeded Swiss Nicolas Mueller raced into an 11/2 and 4/1 lead against Karim Darwish, the third seeded defending champion. Darwish settled, and dominated from that point on to win 2/11, 11/8, 11/5, 11/4 in 35 minutes.

James Willstrop and Peter Barker had met at this stage in the US Open just over a week ago, and just as then it was Willstrop, the fourth seed, who won 3/1 after Barker had taken the first game.

The match looked as though it was heading for a decider as Barker led throughout the fourth, but his frustration grew as Willstrop pegged back the lead, saved two game balls, and took the match in extra points, 6/11, 11/7, 11/4, 13/11.

The evening session started with a hard fought straight games win for Madeline Perry over Malaysia’s Low Wee Wern. Each of the games were close to the midpoint but the Northern Ireland fourth seed’s experienced showed as she forged ahead in all three to win 11/8, 11/5, 11/9 in 26 minutes.

Nour El Tayeb and Nour El Sherbini met in a replay of their recent World Junior and WISPA Alexandria finals. In a match featuring dramatic retrieving and tremendous shotmaking from both Egyptian teenagers, it was the elder of the two El Tayeb who emerged the 3/1 winner this time, thus emulating her achievement last year in making the semi-finals.

There was to be no further upset for Tarek Momen, who after his explosive dismissal of top seed Nick Matthew last night, found Gregory Gaultier a step too far.

Not that the sixth-seeded Frenchman had it at all easy—despite winning in straight games 11/5, 11/8, 11/7 the match took over an hour (some of it wasted with some, shall we say confusion, over the video referral decisions) and the young Egyptian had his chances in each of the last two games.

An upset of sorts finally arrived in the last match of the day as Stewart Boswell got the better of fellow Australian Cameron Pilley in four games, 11/8, 11/5, 4/11, 11/4. Both are unseeded, but if there were to be sixteen seeds then Pilley, ranked #16, would have got the nod. On the night however it was Boswell, who beat another compatriot in David Palmer in the previous round, who won through.

Semi-finals begin at 17.30 on Thursday.

Full reports with quotes and photos available on TODAY on SquashSite here!