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V Botwright Surprises Atkinson

© 2003 Jane Parker, SquashTalk; all rights of reproduction reserved.
Feb 1, 2003             

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Botwright shows new strength (photo © 2003 D Tessier)

Semi-final matches took place today at the Vassar College Kenyon Hall squash courts in Poughkeepsie, New York.

Two weeks after celebrating the first WISPA World Tour final appearance of her career, England's Vicky Botwright has reached her second - pulling off the second successive upset in the $18,000 Women's Vassar College Class of 1932 Squash Open to reach the event's climax in Poughkeepsie, New York, USA.

Sixth-seeded Botwright, the 25-year-old world No18 from Manchester, will face Australia's top seed Rachael Grinham, the older sister of Natalie Grinham, her conqueror in the Southport Open final in Connecticut last month.

Botwright, who crushed third seed Fiona Geaves in straight games to reach the
Vassar semis, stormed through the first two games against second-seeded
Vanessa Atkinson with controlled power and well-placed short volleys.
Atkinson, the Dutch No1 and world No5 from The Hague, rediscovered her form
to win the third but the English underdog took charge again to steal the
fourth to claim a magnificent 9-2 9-2 3-9 9-7 victory.

The rich vein of form which Botwright has unearthed over the past month in
the USA will provide momentum for the local star in the British National Championships in Manchester later this month when, unseeded,
she will face defending champion Cassie Jackman in the opening round.

Botwright gained notoriety a year ago, when she became part of the now infamous "thong incident" - taking the court for the British Open in obviously inappropriate attire. Since then, she has been completely unable to equal that public notoriety with any sort of strong results on court. This tournament, therefore is a breakthrough for her.

In the other semi-final, England's fourth seed Jenny Tranfield took the first
game by finding a good length and taking the ball early to force errors from
favourite Rachael Grinham. The Australian took charge in the second game and
had a 4-1 lead in the third before Tranfield had to leave the court to treat
a bleeding elbow. Tranfield regained her focus on returning to force a 6-6
position before Queenslander Grinham advanced to win the match 1-9 9-1 9-6
9-2 and claim a place in her 15th WISPA World Tour final.

Semi-finals:
[1] Rachael Grinham (AUS) bt [4] Jenny Tranfield (ENG) 1-9, 9-1, 9-6, 9-2
[6] Vicky Botwright (ENG) bt [2] Vanessa Atkinson (NED) 9-2, 9-2, 3-9, 9-7

The final between Rachel Grinham and Vicky Botwright takes place at 3.30pm on Sunday February 2, 2003.

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