Finals: Power Makes Work Pay Off
April 9, 2005, Chief Reporter Martin Bronstein on the scene in Bermuda
SquashTalk Independent News Service © 2005 all Rights Reserved;

POWER, THE MASTER AT PROVING EVERYBODY WRONG

Power kept Beachill on the defensive, photo © 2005 Stephen J Line

All the signs pointed to a Beachill victory in the final of the PSA Masters in Bermuda. Beachill was younger, had not been tested the whole tournament, had played less minutes than Jonathon Power and had obliterated Peter Nicol with authority in the semi-finals. Beachill was world number three Power was world number six.

Well, my friends, the man who never ceases to amaze and surprise, once more amazed and surprised us, by not just winning the title, not just by winning in straight games, but by outplaying Beachill all over the court.

This was not the Power of surprising shots, delay and disguise and screaming fits at the referee; this was the same Power who beat John White in the semis, the player with patience and a game plan that he kept to over two nights and eight games. And when I spoke to him immediately after the final, he wasn’t even breathing hard.

It was, a remarkable performance from the Canadian and one that full deserved the PSA Masters title.

It was a sound game plan from Power, photo © 2005 Stephen J Line

The match started in scrappy form with a couple of errors from both players before the ball had been struck 20 times. Then Power settled in to his game of patience and distribution and for some strange reason, he took the game away from Beachill and never let him have it back. Power dictated the pace and, in most of the points, the final outcome. Only occasionally did he take the ball short, content, most of the time to place the ball tight to the wall and into the back corners. Beachill had no answer – which was surprising considering his performance against Nicol.

The game was over in 11 minutes, Power winning 11-7. Beachill’s seven points consisted of five Power errors and a penalty stroke!

Worryingly between games Power was on the floor having his back manipulated but he got up with the same determination on his face that he had showed for two days. Beachill started the second game with an error, a backhand drop which was probably as good an indication of his state of mind as anything. He forced an error from Power to make them equal, but that was the only time they were equal. Power went to work, steady, professional, high percentage work. If Beachill wanted to rally down the left wall for the next two weeks, that was OK with Power; he’d be there in a fortnight, his mind still focused on the Masters title. But it didn’t take two weeks, or two days or event two hours. Not even an hour.

The second game progressed as the first with Power notching up the points to reach 8-4. The next two points went to Power when Beachill was denied lets, decisions I thought quite harsh. On both occasions Power had played his backhand drop to the front left corner and Beachill was taking a direct line to the ball only to find Power in his path. The referee said that Beachill had played the man and not the ball, which a video replay will show was really not the case.

But Beachill, obviously unsettled, faced game ball again and when Power hit an overhead backhand into the nick to end the game, Beachill must have known that today was definitely not his day.

YOU THINK THAT’S BAD? WAIT FOR THE THIRD GAME
Worse was to come for Beachill as Power could do nothing wrong in the third game while Lee could do nothing right. The rallies were longer but Power was in charge and knew just the right time to go for the drop or the low drive, each time catching Beachill on the wrong foot. Power went to an unbelievable 8-0 lead and you almost started feeling sorry for Beachill who was ensnared in some sort of invisible chain. And so the rest of the sorry tale unfolded, Power finishing the match with a forehand cross court cut which eluded Beachill’s outstretched racket. Power’s racket went up in the air in joy and he shook Beachill’s hand and left the court the winner, a result, as I said at the start, that surprised the 650 people packed into this girl’s gymnasium.

A crucial win for Jonathon Power, photo © 2005 Stephen J Line

Power was composed and said he won because he was determined not to let his week’s hard work go to waste.

“It’s the best I’ve played all week. I have felt relaxed all week and I haven’t felt this good for a long time. My game plan was the same as my game plan for John White: wear him out mentally and physically and not go for shots. Let them make the first move and the mistakes. I’ve noticed it is always the fitter players who beat him, which is why I chose that game plan. It was hard on my ego not to go for winners – and everybody knows what a big ego I’ve got,” he joked.

When asked about his training he said he has no-one to play with in Montreal, but the Canary Wharf tournament was good for him.

“It gave me a chance to play some good guys without pressure which I enjoyed. So Canary Wharf was my training for this,” he said.

On the other hand a downhearted Beachill admitted he was outplayed.
“Jonathon didn’t allow me to play my game. I wanted to get him under pressure but he got me under pressure. He was quick, scrapped for every point and didn’t do anything wrong. He didn’t allow me any rhythm. He was too good,” he said, the disappointment still evident on his face.

I don’t think anyone would deny Power’s right to this title. He played the hardest five matches of any player and won them all with minimum fuss and maximum determination. He will get a whole load of ranking points for this tournament, which will hoist him in the rankings and if this means this marvelous entertainer will be around for another couple of years, I for one will not complain.

BERMUDA PSA MASTERS
[Complete draw]

FINALS
Jonathon Power (CAN) bt Lee Beachill (ENG)11-7,11-4, 11-2 (51mins)


Note: Matches use the PSA 11 point P-A-R scoring, with a tiebreaker.

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