|
|
Salzburg Open 2007
01-04 Mar,
Salzburg, Austria, $4k |
|
|
|
04-Mar-07, FINAL:
[Q]
John Rooney (Irl) bt [Q] Ricky Davies (Wal)
11/6, 11/2, 11/2 (26m)
Qualifier Rooney takes
Salzburg title
Aqeel Rehman reports from Austria
The final of the Salzburg Open 2007 was staged today between the two
qualifiers, John Rooney from England and Ricky Davies from Wales - John
probably started favourite for this match after showing very strong
performances during the tournament.
At the beginning of the opening game the rallies were close and level, but
from the middle of that game it was John who took control of the match and
dominated his opponent as he took the first game 11/6.
Ricky looked to be tired after his marathon match yesterday, and John made
him work hard throughout. Ricky could not stand the pressure and after
just 26 minutes the final was over with a scoreline of 11/6, 11/2, 11/2.
Still the crowd was fascinated having seen good quality squash from all
the players for four days, and it was a great return to action for Rooney
- his first ever PSA title after being out for almost two years with
chronic fatigue syndrome.
I would like to thank all players for being in Salzburg, all the Sponsors
and the Squash Club and I hope to see some of the players again for next
year...
 |
 |
 |
|
03-Mar-07:
Qualifiers Quash
Opponents in Salzburg ...
Salzburg, the Austrian
city famed as the birthplace of Mozart, struck a historical note in squash
on Saturday when all four qualifiers made it through to the semi-finals.
 Welshman
Ricky Davies and Denmark's Morten W Sorensen both survived
marathon five-game thrillers to reach the last four - Davies, from
Caldicot, fighting back from 1/2 down to beat New Zealand's third seed
Campbell Grayson in 85 minutes, and the 27-year-old Dane from
Copenhagen toiling for 64 minutes to upset second-seeded Frenchman
Romain Tenant.
The pair then met in the semi-final, with 25-year-old
Davies prevailing in 55 minutes to reach his first PSA final.
 Irishman
John Rooney is the only qualifier to have come through the event
without dropping a game. After beating unseeded South African Regardt
Schonborn in the quarters, the Galway-born 27-year-old faced English
Premier League St George's Hill team-mate Joe Lee in the
semi-finals.
Lee, 17, reached his first Tour semi-final after a
60-minute triumph over unseeded compatriot Neil Hitchens, surviving
a two-game deficit.
But it was the fresher Rooney who claimed the other
place in the rare all-qualifier final, beating Lee to also record his
maiden appearance in a PSA climax.
|
Quarter-finals:
[Q] John Rooney (Irl) bt Regardt Schonborn (Rsa)
12/10, 11/9, 11/4 (39m)
[Q] Joe Lee (Eng) bt
Neil Hitchens (Eng)
7/11, 6/11, 11/1, 11/7, 11/2 (60m)
[Q] Ricky Davies (Wal) bt [3] Campbell Grayson (Nzl)
12/10, 8/11, 9/11, 11/5, 11/9 (85m)
[Q] Morten Sorensen (Den) bt [2] Romain Tenant (Fra)
8/11, 11/5, 11/4, 9/11, 11/7 (64m)
Semi-finals:
[Q] John Rooney (Irl) bt [Q] Joe Lee (Eng)
11/6, 11/7, 11/3 (34m)
[Q] Ricky Davies (Wal) bt [Q] Morten Sorensen (Den)
11/8, 11/3, 8/11, 11/9(55m)
FULL DRAW |
 |
|
|
03-Mar, Round One:
Seeds
Slump in Salzburg
Only two of the top eight seeds survived the first round of the Salzburg
Squash Open in a sensational opening day of upsets in the Austrian city.
Irish qualifier John Rooney recorded the biggest shock, ousting fellow
countryman Arthur Gaskin, the top seed. Rooney will now face Regardt
Schonborn, the unseeded South African who upset Germany's seventh seed
Andre Haschker.
English qualifier Joe Lee disappointed local fans by upsetting tournament
organiser Aqeel Rehman, the No4 seed. The 17-year-old from Surrey will now
take on compatriot Neil Hitchens for a place in the semi-finals.
|
No
local breakthroughs in Salzburg qualification
Aqeel Rehman reports from
Salzburg
Only one local player could manage to win his first qualification match,
it was Andreas Fuchs, but in the last round it was the young
Joe Lee from England who saved himself a place in the main draw,
after beating local hero Fabian Stenzel - who used to be member of the
Austrian National Squad - in the first round.
Joe now plays against another local star and the tournament organiser
Aqeel Rehman.
Morten Sörensen caused a little upset beating the number one
seeded in the qualification event Shaun Le Roux in straight games.
Nevertheless it was a very close encounter with a lot of discussions
with the referee! Sörensen now meets Patrick Gässler from Germany
in the main draw
John Rooney seems to be in great form giving his opponents
Karamatullah Khan and Tom Pashley no chance. Rooney will now face
his Irish compatriot Arthur Gaskin, the number one seeded of the main
draw!
Last place for the main draw goes to Welshman Ricky Davies,
after a solid match against Matias Tuomi of Finland he will now face
Friedrich Scheel from Germany.
 |
Jakob Dirnberger, Aqeel Rehman
& Fabian Stenzel
 |
 Salzburg
Open 2007
Salzburg, Austrria, 01-04 Mar, $4k |
Round One
02 Mar |
Quarters
03 Mar |
Semis
03 Mar |
Final
04 Mar |
[1] Arthur Gaskin (Irl)
11/8, 11/6, 11/8 (48m)
[Q] John Rooney (Irl) |
John Rooney
12/10, 11/9, 11/4 (39m)
Regardt Schoborn |
John Rooney
11/6, 11/7, 11/3 (34m)
Joe Lee
|
John Rooney
11/6, 11/2, 11/2 (26m)
Ricky Davies
|
[7] Andre Haschker (Ger)
8/11, 11/5, 11/5, 11/4 (49m)
Regardt Schoborn (Rsa) |
[4] Aqeel Rehman (Aut)
11/9, 11/7, 13/10 (45m)
[Q] Joe Lee (Eng) |
Joe Lee
7/11, 6/11, 11/1, 11/7, 11/2 (60m)
Neil Hitchins |
[8] Ryan Thompson (Nam)
9/11, 11/8, 11/9, 11/3 (65m)
Neil Hitchins (Eng) |
[Q] Ricky Davies (Wal)
11/4, 8/11, 11/4, 11/9 (47m)
[6] Friedrich Scheel (Ger) |
Ricky Davies
12/10, 8/11, 9/11, 11/5, 11/9 (85m)
Campbell Grayson |
Ricky Davies
11/8, 11/3, 8/11, 11/9 (55m)
Morten Sorenson |
Jakob Dirnberger (Aut)
11/5, 11/4, 11/3 (25m)
[3] Campbell Grayson (Nzl) |
[Q] Morten Sorenson (Den)
13/11, 11/7, 11/9 (41m)
[5] Patrick Gaessler (Ger) |
Morten Sorenson
8/11, 11/5, 11/4, 9/11, 11/7 (64m)
Romain Tenant |
Rene Mijs (Ned)
11/4, 11/5, 11/7 (33m)
[2] Romain Tenant (Fra) |
|
Qualifying:
Finals:
Morten W Sorensen (DEN) bt Shaun le Roux (ENG)
13-11, 12-10, 11-8 (60m)
Joe Lee (ENG) bt Andreas Fuchs (AUT)
9-11, 11-6, 11-9, 11-7 (38m)
John Rooney (IRL) bt Tom Pashley (ENG)
11-2, 11-2, 11-5 (32m)
Ricky Davies (WAL) bt Matias Tuomi (FIN)
15-13, 11-3, 11-7 (41m)
1st qualifying round:
Shaun le Roux (ENG) bt Lukas Gnauer (AUT)
11-3, 11-0, 11-6 (25m)
Morten W Sorensen (DEN) bt Andreas Wiesner (AUT) 11-0, 11-2,
11-5 (15m)
Andreas Fuchs (AUT) bt David Vidal (ESP)
11-13, 11-9, 11-13, 11-6, 11-5 (56m)
Joe Lee (ENG) bt Fabian Stenzel (AUT)
11-4, 11-8, 13-11 (25m)
Tom Pashley (ENG) bt Armin Schmelz (AUT)
11-5, 11-3, 11-5 (17m)
John Rooney (IRL) bt Karamatullah Khan (PAK)
11-2, 11-4, 11-3 (26m)
Matias Tuomi (FIN) bt Stefan Brauneis (AUT)
11-0, 7-11, 11-1, 11-9 (40m)
Ricky Davies (WAL) bt Christian Coufal (AUT)
11-1, 11-7, 11-4 (28m)
|
|
