DOHA, Dec 5: Scotland’s second seeded John White will meet England’s ninth seeded Lee Beachill in men’s final of Qatar Squash Classic after he downed fellow Yorkshireman Nick Matthew at Khalifa Squash Complex to reach his first PSA Super Series final.
The women’s final in associated WISPA World Tour Grand Prix event will be match predicted by seedings, featuring New Zealand favourite Carol Owens and the USA’s second seeded Natalie Grainger.
Playing with same vigour that brought him his sensational upset over World No1 Peter Nicol in the quarterfinals, Beachill decisively defeated his friend Nick Matthew 15-6 15-9 15-6 in 41 minutes, his fourth successive straight games victory in less than 45 minutes in the tournament.
“This is highlight of my career so far,” said an ecstatic Beachill later. “I have reached final of Qatar Classic, which is unbelievable for me. I haven’t done this well on the circuit for a while now. My victory over Peter has given me great confidence,” said 26-year-old World No9 on eve of his first PSA Tour final appearance for almost three years.
Beachill praised his county colleague Matthew, who beat Australia’s World No3 David Palmer in previous round. “I have watched Nick play for a long time. He has improved over the years and hopefully he will kick on after making semifinal of a big tournament like Qatar Classic.
“He beat David in quarterfinals, which was a good victory for him. His Doha performance should give him great confidence for future assignments,” Beachill added.
John White, who this week narrowed gap behind World No1 Peter Nicol in the Dunlop PSA World Rankings, needed more than twice length of Beachill’s match to quash France’s Thierry Lincou, World No5 in his eighth successive PSA semifinal.
White, from Nottingham, clawed his way back from 1/2 down to overcome Lincou 15-13 11-15 5-15 15-8 15-9 in 96 minutes; a repeat of his victory over Frenchman in PSA Masters final on same court in May.
“Thierry and I always seem to play a tough match and today was no different,” said White after his marathon.
“It would be a dream come true for me to be ranked No1. I am some 30 points behind Peter, just one step away from it. Hopefully, I will win the final and then close gap on Peter. I am looking to wind up the year with a good show here and then in World Open later this month,” he added.
The first women’s semifinal signalled first meeting between Carol Owens, the World No1, and World No3 Rachael Grinham since Australian upset Owens in straight games en-route to winning British Open title in October.
“It was a totally absorbing and high-quality match, with Owens needing 61 minutes to claim her 10-8 9-6 9-7 revenge. I was like a puppy dog retrieving balls,” said the victor afterwards.
“You always remember your last loss, so British Open revenge is sweet. I was pretty happy with today, but let’s see how tomorrow goes. I have been travelling for 12 years and it is getting harder and harder with all the good players coming up,” added Owens.
England’s fourth seed Cassie Jackman saved a game ball in first game before opening up a 1-0 lead against former compatriot Natalie Grainger, second seed now playing in US colours.
Thereafter, Grainger began to show form that took her into World Open final on same court a year ago, and there was no way back for increasingly dispirited Jackman as second seed celebrated her 8-10 9-5 9-1 9-2 victory in 54 minutes.
Results
Men’s semifinals: Lee Beachhill bt Nick Matthew 15-6 15-9, 15-6; John White bt Thierry Lincou 15-13, 11-15, 5-15, 15-8, 15-9.
Ladies semifinals: Carol Owens bt Rachael Grinham 10-8, 9-6, 9-7; Natalie Grainger bt Cassie Jackman 8-10, 9-5, 9-1, 9-2.—PPI