2002 British Nationals

BEACHILL DOES IT AGAIN

Last Sunday in Manchester Lee Beachill scored a double double; the first Brit to win the national title two years in a row and also his second victory over Peter Nicol.

Now I know that I forecast Nicol to win but I also said the at Beachill was the one player who had proved he has the skill, the strategy and the fitness to beat the world number one.

Although I did not see his second victory, I was at the British open when Beachill beat Nicol so comprehensively, so decisively and with such authority that I could not quite believe my eyes. Beachill demonstrated then that the age of the English hacker was dead: he beat Nicol with a combination of defence and attack that was as solid as steel. Yes, he used the oldest – and perhaps the first – rule of squash: keep your opponents in the back corner. But that is all a hacker can do while Beachill has the armoury to finish the rally with a winner after he has forced his opponent onto his back foot. Nicol has tremendous court coverage, but even he found no answer to the Beachill strategy and when Beachill put in the winner, it stayed put. Beachill did the same thing in Manchester to demonstrate that last year’s victory was no fluke.

Nicol said that he was not happy with his movement, referring perhaps to the ankle he jammed in the semi-final of the Tournament of Champions, which may have hampered his performance in the final. I would subscribe to a psychological cause: Nicol knew that Beachill was not cowed by the prospect of playing the world champion. Nicol knew that Beachill had beaten him – and beaten him well – before.

And with those thoughts nagging at the back of his mind, he could not summon up the confidence and belief that is such an important part of his game.

Beachill is making rapid strides into the upper echelons of squash, his progress halted occasionally by ill health. On two occasions, a virus has laid him low, suggesting that he needs a specialist to give him the right treatment and the all-clear to train at full tilt. Three weeks ago in New York he kept Jonathon Power on court for one hour and 50 minutes before losing 3/2. Power went on to beat Nicol 3/0 in the final, an indication of just how well the Canadian was playing. With this Nationals result over Nicol, Beachill must now become a front runner – together with Stu Boswell and Ong Beng Hee – for a world championship title within three years. Certainly he will be feared in the British Open in April.

CORBY IN CONTROL - PLAYERS IN REVOLT

Ah! yes the British Open. England Squash is in disarray after the mass resignation of the board of directors. Sport England ( a government agency that hands out money) sent in an expert to sort them out when the Fablon deal fell apart leaving England Squash $150,000 out of pocket. The expert said the organisation was an absolute mess and no further cash would be granted unless the board resigned and a whole new management structure was put in place.

Meanwhile the British Open, now in the hands of club owner Mike Corby, will go ahead with very little input from England Squash who own the rights to the ‘Wimbledon of Squash’.

\Corby, using his position and considerable financial resources, is making every one dance to his tune. He is still refusing to register both the men’s and women’s tournament with the PSA and WISPA which will rob them of world ranking points. Both organisations are duty bounds to advise their players from participating on the grounds that they are not protected by the rules that govern a registered tournament. Peter Nicol is ignoring the advice and says he will play because he wants the title. According to my sources in Manchester, almost every man and woman up there said they will play in the British Open, regardless of low prize money and nil ranking points.

So Corby wins this battle, but will he win the war? Will this bullying tactic buy him friends in the WSF when it comes to voting for the next president of the WSF? And how will the players’ thumbing of noses at the PSA affect Gawain Briars’ position after the debacles of Melbourne, the World Open contract and the Fablon deal?

CASSIE DOES IT, BUT NOT WELL ENOUGH

It may be carping to criticise Cassie Campion who won the national title without dropping a game, but this former world champion still exhibits signs of mental frailty that, against stronger opposition, will cause her to lose. But one seasoned observer said that the standard of squash in the women’s tournament was ‘dire’.

Campion really should have won without ever being challenged in a game but in at least two matches she lost concentration badly and gave away points at no cost to her opponent’s health.

She confessed to being nervous; surely those days should be behind her? With the news that Sarah Fitz-Gerald is withdrawing from some tournaments, and with Leleini Joyce already sidelined, Campion has the opportunity to add a few WISPA titles to her national title.

Maybe I am being a little harsh – it was only last year she had back surgery – and perhaps it takes time to regain full confidence in her body. But time is running out; it would be wonderful to see her regain that form that took her to two magnificent wins over Michelle Martin and the world title. And even better if she can deliver a real challenge to Sarah Fitz-Gerald.