VOLLEYDROP..

Borja claims milestone title in Coronation London Open triumph

Volleydrop — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 02:34:04 +0000

Coronation London Open 2011 final

Borja Golan claims his twenty-fifth PSA World Tour title as he beat Stephen Coppinger in the Coronation London Open final.

Full house || www.jordanmansfield.co.uk

A packed out crowd had gathered to watch the finale of the PSA World Tour Challenger 15 event, as both players gave it 100 per cent from the very start.

It was the Spaniard who sprang into the lead early on, with some tight lengths and impeccable lunges to hold a five-point advantage on his opponent. But Coppinger dug his heels in and stormed through an incredible 8points in a row to claim the first game, 11/8.

Golan, refocused in the second game, went toe to toe with Coppinger as both players demonstrated a determined refusal to let the ball die. Neither player could forge the kind of lead seen in the first game and stayed within a point of each other the South African edged ahead at 6-4 with some precision drop-shots. But the Spanish no1 tightened his game to force errors out of Coppinger to draw level at 9-all. The world no25 desperately hunted the winning shot at 10-9, diving across the floor on two occasions in one rally, reaching the first but missing the second by centimetres to force a tiebreak. Golan though, closed the second game off 13/11.

Golan, urging himself on.. || www.jordanmansfield.co.uk

Coppinger’s night wasn’t over yet though. From 4-2 up, he reduced Golan to snatching at shots and keeping him deep in the back. His only points from then were two spectacular but desperate volley-drop kills. The South African saw out the game as Golan admitted defeat towards the end of the fourth game, conserving his energy for the inevitable fifth game.

It turned out to be a wise tactic by Golan, as he seemed refreshed coming back on court for the final game of the match. He took an emphatic 6-0 lead as Coppinger seemed to have grown sluggish during the break. By then it was too far for the South African to come back from and Golan closed out the final match of the event, 11/3.

This title win puts Golan, from Santiago, Spain, third in the list of current Tour players with the most titles - behind Egypt’s four-time world champion Amr Shabana, but ahead of England’s world number one Nick Matthew and Egypt’s Ramy Ashour.

Champion, Boja Golan || www.jordanmansfield.co.uk

Borja said after the event: “When you play a final like this, the score is not important. Steve is playing really really well at the moment, and since I’ve been back from injury I cant remember playing such a hard match. So to win today I really had to play out my skin!

“Playing here in London has been great. The court is really nice to play on and the people here, the spectators, they are really kind. I played Englishman Chris Simpson in the semi and they still clap both players and are just pleased to see to great squash. The crowd has been very respectful and it’s really nice to experience.

“It’s a great thing for me to follow Stewart Boswell on the trophy. To me he was a great example of a player. He retired two weeks ago and I really hope I can still be playing at this level at his age.”

Final result: [3] Borja Golan beat [2] Stephen Coppinger 8/11, 13/11, 11/9, 4/11, 11/3 (73mins)

WISPA result: [1] Tania Bailey (ENG) beat [5] Farah Abdel Meguid (EGY) – 9/11, 13/11, 11/8, 11/2

Home contingent out as Golan & Coppinger to contest Coronation London Open 2011

Volleydrop — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 11:47:15 +0000

Semi final’s day of the Coronation London Open demonstrated a masterclass in retrieval in the first match as both Stephen Coppinger and Karim Abdel Gawad combined patient attacks to really boost the spectacle of the PSA World Tour Challenger 20 event.

Stephen Coppinger vs Karim Abdel Gawad || www.jordanmansfield.co.uk

Sheer consistency separated the pair throughout the match. No2 seed Coppinger always had a tighter length and was let off the hook on numerous occasions as Gawad struck the tin more frequently.

This was again evident in the second game, as three of the last four points were errors from Gawad, resulting in the South African extending his lead to two games.

The whole match was played at a furious pace as the competitors looked to gain control of the middle. Neither managed to dominate completely but Coppinger’s extra years on the tour against the 20-year-old proved to be an advantage and he closed out the match 11/8, 11/9, 11/7.

“For a 3-0 that was a really hard match,” says Coppinger after the match. “It felt like I was the one defending for most of it. He has some great shots on him and he builds the rallies really well. He was moving me all over the place.

“I just hope the guys in the other semi have a really long match now!”

The following match wasn’t as long as Chris Simpson’s last bout on court, but his first game against no3 seed Borja Golan was certainly what Coppinger had hoped for.

Golan started quickly and Simpson was forced to play catch-up for much of the first game. The initial rallies saw the Spaniard hitting a good length and looked in control of the tee, with much of Simpson’s play being recovery shots.

The Englishman was always just off the pace and Golan closed out the first game 11/9 in 21mins.

Borja Golan vs Chris Simpson || www.jordanmansfield.co.uk

Simpson responded well in the second, attacking confidently and claiming some outrageous backhand volleydrops. At 6-4 up he looked to have turned a corner after coming so close in the first game, but Golan was not about to lie down and let him have it. The world no25 put together a surging run that saw him take an impressive 7-points in a row to claim the second game 11/6 with Simpson unable to retaliate.

By now the Guernsey-born Englishman was visibly struggling to stay in the game. Golan continued his unanswerable streak with a further six points in the third game, and Simpons was clearly weighed down by his efforts in yesterdays five-game marathon against Aamir Atlas Khan. More errors came by his racket and the no2 seed had only to keep up his consistency and ride the Englishman into the ground. He claimed the match, and his progression to tomorrow’s final in 42 minutes.

“My goal is to just keep improving my ranking,” spoke Golan after the match. “And I am achieving this slowly but surely at the moment. I played Chris about 3months ago and won 3-0, but today was a completely different game. He has improved a lot and it was a very tough three games. I’m glad it wasn’t longer. I tried to push him as much as possible after his 3-2 yesterday and thankfully he began to tire.”

Final:

[2] Stephen Coppinger (RSA) vs [3] Borja Golan

Semi final results:

[2] Stephen Coppinger (RSA) bt [4] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) – 11/8, 11/9, 11/7 (39mins)

[3] Borja Golan (ESP) bt Chris Simpson (ENG) – 11/9, 11/6, 11/5 (42mins)

Quarter final results

[4] Karim Abdel Gawad bt [Q] Eddie Charlton – 9/11, 11/8, 11/6, 13/15, 11/7

[3] Borja Golan bt Andrew Wagih Shoukry – 11/4, 11/6, 11/7

[2] Stephen Coppinger (RSA) bt Mark Krajcsak (HUN) - 11/9, 11/5, 11/5

[1] Aamir Atlas Khan (PAK) bt Chris Simpson (ENG) - 15/13, 7/11, 11/9, 9/11, 11/9 (71mins)

–

WISPA semi results:

[1] Tania Bailey (ENG) bt [4] Tesni Evans (WAL) – 11/5, 11/5, 11/5

[5] Farah Abdel Meguid (EGY) vs [3] Lisa Aitken (SCO) – 11/1, 12/10, 5/11, 11/5

Three come from behind to book quarter final places

Volleydrop — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 11:17:48 +0000

In the first of three matches in which higher-ranked players survived from two games down, four-time world champion Amr Shabana prevailed against fellow Egyptian Hisham Mohamed Ashour on the opening day of PSA World Open action on an all-glass squash court at the New Luxor Theatre in Rotterdam.

Left-hander Shabana, who had never before lost to his Cairo compatriot, also came back from behind in the fourth game before triumphing 3-11, 8-11, 11-4, 11-9, 11-5 in 48 minutes to reach the quarter-finals of the premier PSA World Tour event for the ninth year in a row.

“The way things were going early on, it was very one-sided,” said the relieved 32-year-old former world number one. “I was thinking at 2/0 down that there’d be a flight home for me this evening!

“The desire is still there, otherwise you’re just going to lose and look bad.”

In what will be their 23rd Tour meeting since 2004, Shabana will now face James Willstrop, the fourth seed from England who ended the sensational maiden World Open run of 18-year-old Marwan El Shorbagy by beating the Egyptian qualifier 11-8, 11-3, 11-0.

“I’m playing James tomorrow – he’s an amazing player,” continued Shabana. “We’ve had so many battles. I think both of us have to raise our game for the World Open and the spectators are going to be in for a treat.”

Willstrop, the only player not to have dropped a game in Rotterdam, felt that the second game was really important after getting a good start: “Mentally I was good there today, I stayed focussed.

“We obviously have one less rest day than the top half, but we do get onto the glass court a bit quicker – so whichever way you look at it, there are advantages. Obviously having won like that today and not spent too much time on court, it’s better to do what I have been doing.

“Had I played a longer match today, then it would have been difficult having to play tomorrow too. It’s difficult because it has to be organised one way or another, but I think it’s evened out quite well,” explained the 28-year-old from Leeds.

“I’ve performed consistently so far – I’m at No3 in the world now. I don’t need to convince anyone – and getting to the final last week was good. But it’s about producing it on a given week, and this is the one week of the year when we’re all trying to do that at the same time – and that’s the great thing about the challenge at the moment.”

Domestic hopes were pinned on Laurens Jan Anjema – and by the time the six-time Dutch champion had gone two games up against sixth-seeded Frenchman Gregory Gaultier, a two-time world finalist, the crowd had worked itself up into a frenzy.

But after all the Dutchman’s hard work, it was Gaultier who assumed control of the next two games to draw level. A good lead in the decider held the Frenchman in good stead as Anjema – urged on by the crowd – mounted a comeback.

But it was too late, and Gaultier prevailed 8-11, 5-11, 11-5, 11-2, 11-7 after 97 minutes.
The Frenchman then addressed the Dutch crowd: “And you guys chased me out so much. I’m not pleased with you all tonight, but hopefully tomorrow night you will come and cheer for me this time!”It was difficult in the beginning to make my mark on the court tonight,” said world No5 Gaultier when interviewed court-side by Dutch international Vanessa Atkinson afterwards. “I was behind him and I managed to stay focussed.”

“I’m used to playing the home favourite. Last week, for example, in Qatar, when you play an Egyptian there you get the crowd against you. Maybe tomorrow I’ll get some support!”

And there was more drama in the final match of the night when 2008 champion Ramy Ashour, the No2 seed from Egypt, also fell two games behind – to unseeded Alister Walker, of Botswana.

But the Cairo-based 24-year-old increased the tempo to draw level, then calmed down in the decider before closing out the match 8-11, 3-11, 11-6, 11-9, 11-3 in 69 minutes.

“It was one of the toughest matches I’ve played for a while,” admitted Ashour later. “At this stage of the year everyone’s hitting the ball as good as a world No1 so you have to be prepared and you have to be on your toes.

“I could barely see the ball in the first two games, he was all over me. The pace of the game is so high and I had to keep up with him, there was no way of winning unless I kept up the momentum.

“This win has given me more confidence in my body, and in my head and I’m enjoying it so far so I hope I can keep going.”

The World Open takes to the big stage with the second leg of Round 3

Volleydrop — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 11:04:50 +0000

After three nights at the perfectly suitable Victoria Club in Rotterdam, the World Squash Open 2011 has moved to the New Luxor Theatre in the heart of the city.

Qualifying, rounds 1 & 2, and the first rubber of round 3 were held at Victoria, and now the rest of the competition will be contested at the Luxor in front of it’s 1500 seater gallery.

Nick Matthew will play Peter Barker tomorrow, along with David Palmer vs Karim Darwish for the quarter finals, and they will be joined by today’s victors.
[3] James Willstrop (ENG) v [Q] Marwan El Shorbagy (EGY) – 15.00
[15] Hisham Mohd Ashour (EGY) v [5] Amr Shabana (EGY) – 16.00
[6] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v [12] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) – 20.30
Alister Walker (BOT) v [2] Ramy Ashour (EGY) – 21.30

The full draw and what has happened so far can be found on the PSA World Tour site, here

Live coverage starts at 1pm on SquashTV, or for game-by-game updates follow @PSAWorldTour on Twitter

WORLD OPEN starts in Rotterdam – Quals today!

Volleydrop — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 08:52:24 +0000

Featuring a stunning line-up including five former world champions and seven world number ones, the premier PSA World Tour, World Open will be held for the first time in Rotterdam, from 30 October to 6 November. After qualifying (28/29 October) and early rounds at the renowned Victoria Squash club, the event will move onto an ASB all-glass court which will be erected on the podium of the New Luxor Theatre in the Dutch City of Sports.

Tournament top-seed Nick Matthew has enjoyed a remarkable run since becoming England’s first ever worldchampion in Saudi Arabia last year. The 31-year-old from Sheffield went on to pick up two PSA World Series titles at the PSA Masters and North American Open, in addition to winning the Swedish Open and Canary Wharf Classic.

But the double Commonwealth Games gold medallist met his match in Doha, going down in straight games to Tarek Momen, a 23-year-old Egyptian ranked 25 places lower.

Matthew is expected meet his greatest rival Ramy Ashour, the world No2 from Egypt, in the Rotterdam final.

Matthew begins his title defence against a qualifier – and is expected to meet his England team-mate Peter Barker, the world No7 from London, in the quarter-finals. And Egyptian rival Karim Darwish, the No3 seed from Cairo, is his expected semi-final opponent.

The dream final between the world’s top two players would mark Matthew and Ashour’s fifth meeting in 2011 – with the Egyptian boasting a 3/1 advantage over the year, and a 9/6 career lead.

Ashour, winner of the 2008 title and already champion of three PSA World Series events in 2011, also begins his Rotterdam campaign against a qualifier. The 24-year-old from Cairo would expect to meet top-ranked Frenchman Gregory Gaultier in the quarter-finals, before a semi-final clash with England’s James Willstrop, the fourth seed.

Gaultier, the sixth seed from Aix-en-Provence, is currently riding high on the PSA Tour after emerging as the 2011 Qatar Classic champion in Doha, where he beat Willstrop in the surprise final.

Dutch interest will be led by Laurens Jan Anjema, the six-time national champion from The Hague who is the 12th seed. Anjema, winner of the recent PSA International 35 NetSuite Open in the USA, will be making his eighth appearance in the event – and looking to reach the quarter-finals for the first time.

Anjema will be joined by wildcard Dylan Bennett, the 27-year-old former world No43 from Eindhoven who lines up against Gaultier in the opening round. Bennett will arrive in Rotterdam fresh from winning the Leinster Open trophy last week in Ireland.

Volleydrop will be in Rotterdam to comment on all the goings on of the World Open, so stay tuned. And remember you can watch the squash live with SquashTV.

Draw:

Main draw, 1st round:
[1] Nick Matthew (ENG) v Qualifier
Tom Richards (ENG) v Tarek Momen (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER) v Qualifier
[9] Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) v Jonathan Kemp (ENG)
[16] Cameron Pilley (AUS) v Qualifier
Olli Tuominen (FIN) v Chris Ryder (ENG)
Stephen Coppinger (RSA) v Chris Simpson (ENG)
[7] Peter Barker (ENG) v Aaron Frankcomb (AUS)
[8] David Palmer (AUS) v Alan Clyne (SCO)
Joey Barrington (ENG) v Ryan Cuskelly (AUS)
Stewart Boswell (AUS) v Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (MAS)
[10] Thierry Lincou (FRA) v Qualifier
[14] Omar Mosaad (EGY) v Qualifier
Borja Golan (ESP) v Julian Illingworth (USA)
Wael El Hindi (EGY) v Arturo Salazar (MEX)
[3] Karim Darwish (EGY) v Qualifier
[4] James Willstrop (ENG) v Qualifier
Shahier Razik (CAN) v Qualifier
Farhan Mehboob (PAK) v Qualifier
[11] Daryl Selby (ENG) v Qualifier
[15] Hisham Mohamed Ashour (EGY) v Qualifier
Jan Koukal (CZE) v Martin Knight (NZL)
Aamir Atlas Khan (PAK) v Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
[5] Amr Shabana (EGY) v Qualifier
[6] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v Dylan Bennett (NED)
Adrian Grant (ENG) v Qualifier
Saurav Ghosal (IND) v Qualifier
[12] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) v Qualifier
[13] Mohd Azlan Iskandar (MAS) v Ong Beng Hee (MAS)
Alister Walker (BOT) v Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY)
Nicolas Mueller (SUI) v Mohd Ali Anwar Reda (EGY)
[2] Ramy Ashour (EGY) v Qualifier

1st qualifying round draw:
Stephane Galifi (ITA) v Rasool Hashim Abdullah (IRQ)
Dick Lau (HKG) v Lucas Buit (NED)
Eric Galvez (MEX) v Gabor Marges (NED)
Kristian Frost Olesen (DEN) v Aqeel Rehman (AUT)
Max Lee (HKG) v Tomas de Paauw (NED)
Joel Hinds (ENG) v Tom Lucas (NED)
Zac Alexander (AUS) v Piedro Schweertman (NED)
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) v Joan Lezaud (FRA)
Adrian Waller (ENG) v Rick Penders (NED)
Shaun le Roux (RSA) v Marc ter Sluis (NED)
Jens Schoor (GER) v Stephen Cooke (NED)
Marwan El Shorbagy (EGY) v Rene Mijs (NED)
Davide Bianchetti (ITA) v Kim Are Killingberg (NOR)
Kashif Shuja (NZL) v Amr Ramsy Swelim (ITA)
Siddharth Suchde (IND) v Sander van Tour (NED)
Shawn Delierre (CAN) v Michael Ernst (NED)
Gregoire Marche (FRA) v Charles Sharpes (ENG)
Matthew Karwalski (AUS) v Fabien Verseille (FRA)
Wade Johnstone (AUS) v Neeraj Aggarwal (AUS)
Campbell Grayson (NZL) v Philip Nightingale (ENG)
Robbie Temple (ENG) v Joe Chapman (IVB)
Clinton Leeuw (RSA) v Guido Ploem (NED)
Christopher Gordon (USA) v Eddie Charlton (ENG)
Joe Lee (ENG) v Roshan Bharos (NED)
Cesar Salazar (MEX) v Mazen Gamal (EGY)
Yann Perrin (FRA) v Lewis Walters (ENG)
Leo Au (HKG) v Raphael Kandra (GER)
Julien Balbo (FRA) v Frank Hartkoren (NED)
Henrik Mustonen (FIN) v Reiko Peter (SUI)
Ivan Yuen (MAS) v Sebastian Weenink (NED)
Omar Abdel Meguid (EGY) v Bart Ravelli (NED)
Mark Krajcsak (HUN) v Steven Finitsis (AUS)

2011 Legends of Squash, Surrey starts this evening…

Volleydrop — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 15:43:03 +0000

John White, will return to the 9 Telecom Legends of Squash tournament held at St. George’s Hill, Weybridge this evening.
The world’s hardest hitter of a squash ball and the former world No1 from Scotland came 4th last time around after a gripping battle with Simon Parke, but will be hoping to improve in this year’s event which runs from 16th-19th September.
White, a finalist at the World Open and the British Open, has been drawn in the same group as old adversary Jonathan Power so the crowds are sure to be entertained in their final pool match on Sunday 18th. In the first game of his final pool match against Peter Nicol at last year’s tournament, White blew the Englishman away with winners all over the court. Having survived the onslaught Nicol then narrowly won
the next two games to make the final but everyone in the draw is aware of the threat White will pose.

One of the professional tour’s most popular players, White has recently taken up the role of Head Coach of the Men’s and Women’s Squash Teams at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania host to next month’s US Open. A 12 time winner on the PSA tour, the Scot will be hoping to take his first Legends title back to his students.

Pictures from the opening matches are now available, courtesy of Jordan Photo on the VOLLEYDROP GALLERY - check ‘em out.Order of play:
Simon Parke vs Stephen Meads
John White vs Nick Taylor
Jonathan Power vs David Evans
Peter Nicol vs Martin Heath

England internationals aiming to stem the Egyptian onslaught in Manchester after Australian Open and World Team disappointments

Volleydrop — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 10:01:48 +0000

England internationals Nick Matthew, James Willstrop, Peter Barker and Daryl Selby will be aiming to make up for their defeat by Egypt in the World Team Championship final in Germany at the ROWE British Grand Prix Squash Championship in Manchester later this month.

The ROWE GP, one of the year’s nine PSA World Series championships, will take place at the National Squash Centre in Manchester from 19-25 September.

A high-quality field is guaranteed for the biggest event to be staged in the UK in 2011 – led by England’s own world No1 Nick Matthew and defending champion Ramy Ashour, the world No2 from Egypt.

But these formidable players will have their work cut out against competition provided by Egyptians Karim Darwish and Amr Shabana, the world No3 and No5, respectively; Englishmen James Willstrop and Peter Barker, ranked four and seven; plus French pair Gregory Gaultier and Thierry Lincou, both former world number ones currently ranked No6 and No8.

Matthew, along with his fellow English compatriots, will be after revenge when as they compete in for the Championship after Matthew’s 3-2 loss to Ramy Ashour in last months Australian Open in Canberra, followed by disappointment at the Nationals as England were beaten in the Final by Egypt.

Matthew, will be expected to face title-holder Ramy Ashour again in the event’s final on the spectacular all-glass showcourt in Manchester.

After twice leading his Egyptian rival in last week’s final of the Viridian Australian Open – the third PSA World Series event of the year – Matthew went down in five games in his first loss to Ashour since January.

“So far this season, Ramy is playing the best squash but a lot can change,” said 31-year-old Matthew after his defeat. “But I have to go away and look at how to play him. He raised the bar and I have to respond to that.”

Matthew begins his 2011 ROWE British Grand Prix campaign against German wild card Jens Schoor.

Willstrop and former world number one Darwish are also in opposite halves of the British Grand Prix draw – and could only meet again in the final.

It was Peter Barker who scored England’s lone win in the world championship final – his sixth successive win in an undefeated run in England shirt in Paderborn.

Barker vs Matthew in April | Jordanphoto.co.uk

Barker, the seventh seed in Manchester, looks set to have to beat team-mate Matthew to progress to the final, according to the draw.

Daryl Selby, the world No11 who was making his world championship debut for England, won all but one of his four matches. The Manchester draw predicts that the 28-year-old from Brentwood will line up against Gregory Gaultier, the world No6 from France, in the last 16.

And the full draw features a number of exciting young players – all eager to make inroads into the elite top eight group after success on the National Squash Centre’s spectacular all-glass court.

Tickets for the ROWE British Grand Prix – Manchester 2011 can now be booked online at www.isportgroup.com/ticketing or by telephone on 0844 8797 949. For further information email: sales@isportgroup.com

[1] Nick Matthew (ENG) v Jens Schoor (GER)
Mohd Ali Anwar Reda (EGY) v Ong Beng Hee (MAS)
Mohd Azlan Iskandar (MAS) v Qualifier
[7] Peter Barker (ENG) v Qualifier
[5] Amr Shabana (EGY) v Hisham Mohamed Ashour (EGY)
Tom Richards (ENG) v Qualifier
Adrian Grant (ENG) v Olli Tuominen (FIN)
[4] James Willstrop (ENG) v Qualifier
[3] Karim Darwish (EGY) v Stewart Boswell (AUS)
Alister Walker (BOT) v Qualifier
Omar Mosaad (EGY) v Jonathan Kemp (ENG)
[8] Thierry Lincou (FRA) v Qualifier
[6] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v Saurav Ghosal (IND)
Daryl Selby (ENG) v Qualifier
Cameron Pilley (AUS) v Aamir Atlas Khan (PAK)
[2] Ramy Ashour (EGY) v Qualifier

For all the latest information, visit the official website: www.britishsquashgrandprix.com

Australian Open draw sees one-time world beaters matched in first round

Volleydrop — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 16:53:05 +0000

Australia’s David Palmer will have to get past world number five Amr Shabana of Egypt in the first round of the Australian Open if he is to have any chance of adding a second title to the one he claimed in 2008.

The 2011 Australian Open, the third PSA World Series squash event of the year, will be played on the all-glass court at the Royal Theatre in Canberra from 8-14 August.

Palmer and Shabana, both one-time world number ones with five World Open titles between them, have already faced each other 20 times on the PSA World Tour since 2000 – with the Egyptian boasting a 12-8 advantage.

All four Australian men who qualified directly for the main draw of the tournament have tough openers, highlighting the quality of the elite field.

Cameron Pilley takes on world number six Gregory Gaultier of France, while Aaron Frankcomb is up against seventh-seeded Englishman Peter Barker.

Four-time Australian Open champion Stewart Boswell will take on Indian number one Saurav Ghosal, and if he wins that clash he will most likely face second seed Ramy Ashour of Egypt in the second round.

Top-seeded Englishman Nick Matthew opens his title defence with a testing clash against South African Stephen Coppinger, who won Brisbane’s Hibiscus Gardens Open in April, ahead of a probable second round clash against Malaysia’s Ong Beng Hee.

Ashour plays a qualifier in the first round, as does third seed and fellow Egyptian Karim Darwish, while fourth-ranked Englishman James Willstrop plays fellow countryman Chris Ryder.

1st round draw:
[1] Nick Matthew (ENG) v Stephen Coppinger (RSA)
Ong Beng Hee (MAS) v Qualifier
Nicolas Mueller (SUI) v Julian Illingworth (USA)
[8] Thierry Lincou (FRA) v Laurens Jan Anjema (NED)
[5] Amr Shabana (EGY) v David Palmer (AUS)
Mohd Azlan Iskandar (MAS) v Tom Richards (ENG)
Qualifier v Qualifier
[3] Karim Darwish (EGY) v Qualifier
[4] James Willstrop (ENG) v Chris Ryder (ENG)
Qualifier v Qualifier
Adrian Grant (ENG) v Simon Rosner (GER)
[6] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v Cameron Pilley (AUS)
[7] Peter Barker (ENG) v Aaron Frankcomb (AUS)
Wael El Hindi (EGY) v Qualifier
Stewart Boswell (AUS) v Saurav Ghosal (IND)
[2] Ramy Ashour (EGY) v Qualifier

World Series Finals update

Volleydrop — Thu, 19 May 2011 14:42:05 +0000

PSA World Series Finals 2010 updates:

18 May 2011

The PSA is assuring its members that it is keen to reschedule the flagship PSA World Series Finals final, but is unable yet to move forward until certain legal issues are resolved.

Staged in spectacular style at The Queen’s Club in London in January, the ATCO PSA World Series Finals was prevented from reaching its’ conclusion.

Amr Shabana was looking forward to the prospect of fighting for his first title win on British soil in the final against Nick Matthew, but the inflatable structure in which court was housed became unsafe after strong winds the night before.

“We have been working closely with the promoters and event managers to determine what went wrong and why,” PSA CEO Alex Gough told his members. “We are still in the process of discussions with the various companies involved in staging the event. Regrettably we may be forced into litigation to recover the substantial monies invested in this showcase of squash.

“We will be unable to move forward with the proposed finals until this is resolved.

“The matter is now in the hands of the PSA Director Richard Bramall. We are pressing the responsible party to conclude our reasonable claims to enable the showcase to be staged in 2011.”

Squash world series 2011 schedule confirmed

Volleydrop — Tue, 10 May 2011 00:44:35 +0000

PSA Confirms 2011 World Series Line-Up

The Professional Squash Association has confirmed the nine events that will comprise the top tier PSA World Series calendar for 2011.

In addition to this will be the PSA’s premier annual championship, the World Open – the 33rd edition of which will take place in Dutch city of Rotterdam from 30 October to 6 November.

The PSA World Series, launched this year, features events which have prize-funds upwards of $115,000. These championships represent the pinnacle of the men’s game and are the main focus of the PSA’s global TV coverage provided by the online squash channel www.psasquashtv.com

The events form a series throughout the year that will produce eight players who will compete in the PSA World Series Finals.

Following the first two PSA World Series events of 2011 in the USA – the JP Morgan Tournament of Champions in New York in January and the North American Open in Virginia in February – the Australian Open will celebrate its second year as a World Series event in Canberra, from 8-14 August.

The ROWE British Grand Prix, for the second year the biggest event to be held in England, will take place at the National Squash Centre in Manchester from 19-25 September.

The US Open, one of the oldest events in the world squash calendar, becomes a World Series event for the first time from 30 September to 6 October in Philadelphia. The championship returns to the largest city in Pennsylvania for the first time since 1993.

The Qatar capital Doha becomes the focus of World Series activity from 16-21 October with the tenth staging of the Qatar Classic – which is followed by the 25th edition of the Hong Kong Open from 15-20 November.

The Kuwait Open, from 24-29 November, leads to the final World Series event of the year, the Punj Lloyd PSA Masters in India, from 12-18 December.

“We are delighted to have secured another great World Series line up for 2011,” said PSA CEO Alex Gough of the year’s elite programme of PSA events which boast a total prize-fund of $1,225,000. “The prize money is ever increasing and the standard of the events is improving all the time.

“Our event organisers have to be congratulated as we are looking at more and more commitment from them as we push the game forward in many areas. This year’s TV output and distribution will be the best yet and we are all looking forward to the players battling it out for this year’s PSA World Series title.”

Full 2011 PSA World Series calendar:

21-27 January JP Morgan Tournament of Champions, New York, USA
20-26 February North American Open, Richmond, Virginia, USA
08-14 August Australian Open, Canberra, Australia
19-25 September ROWE British Grand Prix, Manchester, England
30 Sept – 06 October US Open, Philadelphia, USA
16-21 October Qatar Classic, Doha, Qatar
15-20 November Hong Kong Open, Hong Kong
24-29 November Kuwait Open, Kuwait
12-18 December Punj Lloyd PSA Masters, India