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02-Feb, Final:
Golan claims
Motor City Title
By A. J. Hakim
Spain’s Borja Golan made the most of his first trip to the Motor
City Open presented by the Suburban Collection by taking the title
Monday night over top seed Adrian Grant of England. Number-two seed
Golan took home $5,000 and a Rolex watch from Greenstone’s Jewelers
after an emotionally-tense, physical struggle that lasted over 90
minutes, not including a break in play to dress a wound suffered by
Grant.
Both players had looked the class of the field coming into the title
bout. Neither had dropped a game in three previous rounds and both
Grant and Golan acknowledged feeling in top form and relatively fit.
Ranked #11 and #14 in the world respectively, Monday’s ultimate
round figured to be a dandy.
Golan escaped the victor after a 10-12, 11-9, 11-5, 14-12 battle
that featured 71 lets, a whack to Grant’s shoulder and that
six-minute delay to bandage a deep scrape on Grant’s knee.
“When there’s two clashing styles like that it gives way to a lot of
lets,” judged referee Julian Wellings, head pro of tournament host,
the Birmingham Athletic Club. “They kept going for drop-counter-drop
and, because these guys are so quick to the ball, you’re bound to
get in each other’s way and that was lending to a lot of lets
because they couldn’t get through each other.”
Grant, starting composed and on the attack, took Game One, 12-10.
But the Englishman quickly grew frustrated with Golan, who gave
little ground to allow Grant around him to retrieve balls.
“I found it quite frustrating to get around him,” Grant conceded
after the match. “On these courts you have to win six or seven shots
to actually win the rally. It’s not like a glass court where you get
rewarded for attacking, attacking. Here, you really have to work it.
“The match was long, but there was a lot of starting and stopping as
well,” Adrian continued. “You have to try to keep your composure and
not get wrapped up into this stopping and starting because it’s not
good for the crowd and the players get frustrated as well. But you
get that at the top of the sport because we’re all moving pretty
fast in and out of the corners, so you’re going to get some sort of
collision.”
Slowly, the lack of rhythm and fast, strenuous rallies (Game Four
alone contained 30 lets and sucked up 43 minutes), took a physical
toll on Grant. Already bothered by the knee wound, he began to
cramp.
“In the beginning of the fourth I got a cramp in my leg,” he said.
“I’ve never had a cramp, so once that happened I started
compensating and using my left leg a lot. And then I started getting
it in both, so, once that happens, it’s like, well, I need a
wheelchair or something. I knew I was pretty much done after that
because I couldn’t run and these courts, like I said, you can’t hit
outright winners. You have to work the rally and work the rally.”
Already ahead 2-1, Golan just needed to keep the pressure on.
“He’s a very good player,” said Golan, perhaps the fastest man on
the PSA tour. “He plays very tight shots and has one the best basic
games in the tour. And in his forehand he’s very dangerous, so I
just tried to put more pressure on his backhand, and tried to make
longer and put a lot of pace all the time, and it paid off because
he was more tired than me and he started to cramp.”
Borja Golan
Golan also gave rave reviews to the MCO: “Even if I don’t win this
tournament, from the first day I saw that the people here are great
and all the volunteers, there are so many volunteers, make you feel
like so comfortable all the time. Julian was great, and the family
where I stayed was unbelievable, too.”
“The club is so nice,” he continued. “They do many fine shows, many
parties for the players. I think it was so fun here, to stay here
one week, and I hope I can come next year, of course.”.
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MCO Daily
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 Motor
City Open 2009
28 Jan - 02 Feb, Michigan, $30k |
Round One
30 Jan |
Quarters
31 Jan |
Semis
01 Feb |
Final
02 Feb |
[1]
Adrian Grant (Eng)
11-7, 11-6, 11-3
Julian Wellings (Eng) |
[1] Adrian Grant
11-8, 15-13, 11-7
[8]
Shahier Razik |
[1] Adrian Grant
11-9, 11-9, 12-10
Tarek Momen |
[1] Adrian Grant
10-12, 11-9, 11-5, 14-12
[2] Borja Golan |
[8]
Shahier Razik (Can)
13-11, 13-11, 11-6
Jan Koukal (Cze) |
[4]
Cameron Pilley (Aus)
11-9, 13-11, 11-
Tarek Momen (Egy) |
Tarek Momen
11-9, 11-8, 11-7
[5] Stewart Boswell |
[5]
Stewart Boswell (Aus)
11-4, 11-4, 11-4
[Q] Ryan Cuskelly (Aus) |
Eric
Galvez (Mex)
14-12, 11-5, 11-9
[6] Olli Tuominen (Fin) |
[6] Olli Tuominen
11-8, 11-7, 5-11, 11-8
[3] Laurens Jan Anjema |
[6] Olli Tuominen
11-5, 11-4, 12-10
[2] Borja Golan |
[Q] Nafiizwan Adnan (Mas)
11-6, 11-6, 11-7
[3] Laurens Jan Anjema (Ned) |
[Q] Martin Knight (Nzl)
11-7, 11-5, 11-7
[7] Hisham Ashour (Egy) |
[7] Hisham Ashour
11-6, 11-8, 11-6
[2] Borja Golan |
[Q] Yasser El Halaby (Esp)
11-5, 11-6, 11-3
[2] Borja Golan (Esp) |
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Qualifying
29-Jan, Finals:
Yasser El Halaby (EGY) bt Zac Alexander (AUS) 11/8 11/7 11/9
Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) bt Chris Gordon (USA) 11/7 11/9 11/9
Nafiidzwan Adnan (MAS) bt Wade Johnstone (AUS) 12/10 6/11 11/4
11/6
Martin Knight (NZL) bt Regardt Schonborn (RSA) 12/10 11/7 11/5
28-Jan, Round One:
Martin Knight (NZ) bt Mick Joint (AUS)
11-4, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9
Wade Johnstone (AUS) bt David Phillips (CAN)
11-6, 11-7, 6-11, 11-9
Zac Alexander (AUS) bt Adil Maqbool (PAK)
11-7, 11-6, rtd
Christopher Gordon (USA) Benjamin Oliner (USA)
11-6, 11-9, 11-7
Regardt Schonborn (RSA) Campbell Grayson (NZ)
13-11, 11-8, 6-11, 12-10
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01-Feb, Semis:
Grant & Golan make
Motor City Final
The top two seeds Adrian Grant and Borja Golan will contest the
final of the Motor City Open after securing straight games wins in
the semi-finals at Birmingham Athletic Club in Detroit, USA.
Grant, the favourite from England, brought to an end the
'giant-killing' run of unseeded Egyptian Tarek Momen. The
20-year-old from Cairo upset two higher-seeded Australians, Stewart
Boswell and Cameron Pilley, to claim his surprise place in the
semis.
But left-handed Londoner Grant was too strong for the promising
Egyptian, winning 11-9, 11-9, 12-10 to earn his 21st PSA Tour final
appearance - but his first in Detroit at his third attempt.
Second seed Golan, in his maiden Motor City Open appearance, also
defeated a surprise opponent, Olli Tuominen. The Flying Finn, a firm
favourite in Detroit, earned his place in the last four after
upsetting Laurens Jan Anjema, the third seed from the Netherlands.
But the in-form Spanish number one cruised to an 11-5, 11-4, 12-10
win over Tuominen to claim the 26th Tour final appearance of his
career.
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Semi-Final Results
MCO Daily |
30-Jan, Round One:
Tarek takes Pilley
in Detroit Upset
By A. J. Hakim
Birmingham, Mich. – Round One of the 2009 Motor City Open presented
by the Suburban Collection is in the books and, while most of the
top seeds advanced with little trouble, there was one upset - young
Tarek Momen, just 20 years old and already World #29, took down #4
seed Cameron Pilley of Australia.
It should come as no surprise, however, that Momen hails from Egypt.
Egyptian squash has been resurgence in recent years and 2008 saw a
first: The top three players in the world all came from Egypt. Their
ranks are deep as well. Including Momen, eight Egyptians rank in the
world’s Top 20 – more than any other nation.
On Friday night, Tarek used his quickness and dazzling retrieval
skills to oust World #17 Pilley. The pair had split their previous
two encounters, and are familiar with one another’s style. But, as
Pilley found out, familiarity doesn’t always breed success.
“We know (our) strengths and weaknesses,” Pilley said afterward.
“But it’s a different story to actually know how to play someone,
and to get out there and put it into action.”
The lanky Pilley struggled all night with the smaller Momen’s speed
and relentless retrieving. “He’s so fast on the court, so fast,”
added Pilley. “He hangs so far back on the court, you’ll play a drop
shot, and because he’s so far back you think you can play another
drop shot and he just gets up there ridiculously fast.”
Unable to find a groove, Pilley quickly fell behind 6-1 in Game One,
eventually losing, 11-7. And while Game Two went more promisingly -
Pilley even had game ball at 11-10 - Momen scored on the next three
rallies and stole the game, 13-11. From there, Pilley could do do
little to stem the tide, falling in straight sets: 11-7, 13-11,
11-4.
While Momen provided the only upset, the night’s best match belonged
to Canada’s Shahier Razik, World #26, and World #42 Jan Koukal of
the Czech Republic. Their extraordinary rallies – sometimes lasting
longer than 100 shots - left the crowd in awe.
Both men prefer a slow-paced style, favoring lobs and touch shots
over raw power. To keep his opponent off balance, however, Razik
strayed from form by speeding things up with harder shots and less
rail play.
“I was trying to concentrate on breaking his rhythm,” Razik said. “I
think I made him do a little more work, and it sort of showed in the
last game. It’s not really the style I enjoy playing, but today I
had to play like that.”
The first two sets went into overtime and could’ve gone either way (Razik
too k both). But the Canadian dominated Game Three en route to a
three-set victory: 13-11, 13-11, 11-4.
Meanwhiile, last year’s runner-up and #5 seed Stewart Boswell,
advanced past fellow Aussie, Ryan Cuskelly, in straight sets 11-4,
11-4, 11-4. Boswell proved too strong and skilled for Cuskelly.
And the man Bosell fell to a year ago, Finland’s Olli Tuominen,
overcame a slow start in his match-up against (yet another) Egyptian
Amr Swelim. Olli is one step closer to defending his title after a
14-12, 11-5, 11-9 victory.
One week ago at the J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions in New York,
Yasser El Halaby played brilliantly in advancing through the
qualifying draw and into a first-round upset over Scotland’s John
White. But the magic wasn’t there Friday night. Qualifier El Halaby
had little answer to World #14 Borja Golan. Golan, the #2 seed,
finished El Halaby in three sets: 11-5, 11-6, 11-3.
Third-seeded Laurens Jan Anjema drew qualifier Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan.
The big Dutchman jumped out to 5-1 leads in both the first and
second games and cruised to a 11-6, 11-6, 11-7 decision.
Known on the squash circuit for his sense of humor, World #23 Hisham
Mohd Ashour was all business during his match against Martin Knight.
Ashour’s dizzying array of shots left Knight little room to counter
and the Egyptian won in three: 11-7, 11-5, 11-7.
Finally, before a boisterous local Birmingham Athletic Club crowd,
BAC club pro Julian Wellings - oldest man in the draw at 36 - gamely
tried to keep up with the top seed in Adrian Grant of England (World
#11). Surfing on a swell of crowd support, Julian hung with the
World’s 11th-ranked player for two games, but ultimately couldn’t
sustain the high energy required. Grant took the match in three
straight: 11-7, 11-6, 11-3.
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Semi-Final Results
MCO Daily
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29-Jan, Qualifying Finals:
Qualifying complete in Michigan
By A. J. Hakim
Qualifying for the 2009 Motor City Open presented by the Suburban
Collection wrapped up Thursday with four men advancing to Friday’s
Main Draw. Martin Knight of New Zealand, Malaysia’s Mohd
Nafiidzwan Adnan, Yasser El Halaby of Egypt, and Aussie
Ryan Cuskelly all scored convincing victories on a festive
Sponsor’s Night at the Birmingham Athletic Club where the crowds
were big, boisterous, and full of love for the nomad athletes that
have come to town to perform for them.
“I’ll root for you today!” called out one fan as Knight approached
the entrance of Court Two for his match-up against Regardt Schonborn.
The good tidings came just a day after Knight had played the role of
public enemy #1 in defeating local pro and crowd favorite, Mick
Joint.
“Obviously I was going to get a better crowd today than I did
yesterday,” Knight said afterwards, laughing. “But a couple of the
guys who were down here watching the game yesterday supporting Mick,
came down and supported me today. It was really pleasing.”
By the end of his match, Knight had won over the entire audience who
were captivated by the display of athleticism put on by the fit Kiwi
and his South African opponent. From tin to stern, both competitors
covered the entire court to retrieve balls that, to the crowd, often
appeared unreachable.
In the end, Knight stood victorious, thanks in large part to an
improbable come-from-behind win in Game One that set the tone for
the match. Trailing 7-10, Knight rallied for the final five points
and escaped the first set 12-10. From then on, he jump on his
opponent early in Games Two and Three, taking both for a three-game
sweep: 12-10, 11-7, 11-5.
“It was hard to get out in front of him and do anything useful,”
Schonborn said of Knight. “He’s so comfortable retrieving, and he
gets in a comfort zone and feeds off his own movement. It’s hard to
break.”
Competing in the court adjacent to Knight and Schonborn were
Australian Wade Johnstone and world #58 Adnan.
Battling fatigue from a hard fought first-round win, Johnstone
couldn’t muster the energy to maintain his form against his
more-rested opponent. As a result, Adnan secured a four-set victory:
12-10, 6-11, 11-4, 11-6.
In the first match of the$day, Australia’s Zac Alexander met
Egyptian Yasser El Halaby. Yasser arrived fresh off what he
considers his best performance as a pro at the Tournament of
Champions in New York where he advanced to the Round of 16 –
defeating former World #1 (and 2006 MCO champ) John White along the
way.
The favorite of the MCO qualifying draw, El Halaby proved the more
skilled player, controlling the tee and keeping Alexander
off-balance on his way to a three-set win, 11-8, 11-7, 11-9.
Christopher Gordon, the lone remaining representative of the United
States in the tourney, struggled against Australia’s Ryan Cuskelly
(world #63), who finished with an 11-7, 11-9, 11-9 victory. Cuskelly
got out of the blocks quickly, going ahead 8-1 in Game Two and 5-1
in the third, and Gordon didn’t have enough firepower to overcome
the deficits.
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Knight in expressive form ...
MCO Daily
Adnan ousts Johnstone
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28-Jan, Qualifying Round One:
Local favorite Joint thrills before
succumbing
By A. J. Hakim
Birmingham, Mich. – With the main draw set to begin Friday, the
Tenth Annual Motor City Open, presented by the Suburban collection,
kicked off Wednesday with a series of qualifying matches. The
eclectic mix of players – from rising stars to American hopefuls to
local favorites - gave fans at the Birmingham Athletic Club a
glimpse at the excitement and competition in store for them over the
next few days.
No player received more applause than hometown boy Mick Joint
– resident pro at the Detroit Athletic Club. Joint, a native Aussie,
thrilled the crowd during his match against world #76, Martin
Knight of New Zealand. At 36, Joint stood his ground against an
opponent nine years his junior, matching volleys and showing he was
capable of sustaining extended rallies. A packed gallery cheered his
every move. Ultimately, fatigue got the better of the determined
downtown pro from Downunder and Joint fell to Knight in four, 11-4,
11-9, 9-11, 11-9.
Another intriguing pairing pitted world #66 Wade Johnstone of
Australia against Canadian David Phillips, ranked #80.
What initially looked like an Aussie cakewalk turned into a
barnburner once a string snapped from Johnstone’s racquet in Game
Two, causing a stoppage in play and a momentum shift in Phillips’
favor. Trailing 6-11, 1-6, a recomposed Phillips ran off the next
four points, and though he still lost the game, 11-7, that string of
rallies gave him a newfound confidence as he opened Game Three with
six straight points.
“I thought I played well through the first game,” Johnstone said
afterwards, “but halfway through the second one I broke a string,
and Dave did really well to come back. I was lucky I actually had a
big lead in that second game, but then he came out real strong in
the third.”
“I was playing a little too short,” he continued, “and letting him
dictate the points on his volley and on his backhand, which is
really strong.”
Having let Phillips back in the match, Johnstone relaxed his nerves
in Game Four and worked himself back into form, maintaining a steady
pace while attacking the volleys harder and concentrating on his
counter-drops. He took the game to claim victory: 11-6, 11-7, 6-11,
11-9.
“Wade played well,” Phillips said. “He came out flying, and I got
off to a slow start. I started to pick it up in the third, but it
was too little too late.”
Australia’s Zac Alexander, world #102 and Pakistan’s
69th-ranked Adil Maqbool opened the night, with upset-mided
Alexander jumping out to a two-game lead, 11-7 and 11-6, before
Maqbool retired.
In a match-up of the only two Americans in the tourney, U.S. #2 and
world #76 Christopher Gordon met local player Benjamin
Oliner, world #81. Gordon took command from the start, jumping
out to an early 5-0 lead in the first set and never letting up,
scoring an 11-6, 11-9, 11-7 victory.
In the night’s final match, New Zealand’s Campbell Grayson
(world #65) competed against South Africa’s 90th-ranked Regardt
Schonborn. Schonborn survived in four sets - 13-11, 11-8, 6-11,
12-10 - but it was Grayson’s courage that captivated the crowd.
Midway through the fourth set, Grayson and Schonborn locked legs,
and Grayson fell to the ground with a rolled ankle. Following a
brief delay, Grayson came back to win six of the next seven points,
and remained competitive until the end.
Thursday’s second round of qualifying matches begins at 6:00 pm,
with Egpyt’s Yasser El Halaby to play against Zac Alexander,
Christopher Gordon versus Australia’s Ryan Cuskelly, Schonborn to
play Knight, and Mohd. Nafzahizam Adnan matched with Johnstone.
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MCO Daily
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