SquashTalk>Women's Squash >Womens World first round

[last update was 11-nov-00 ]

USA Splits: Shabana Khan advances,
Ivy Pochoda Falls in first round action

Eye Group Women's World Open Squash Championship, Edinburgh, Scotland
1st round (Prelminary round):
Senga Macfie (SCO) bt Natalia Meneu (SPA) w/o
Cheryl Beaumont (ENG) bt Lara Petera (NZL) 9-4 2-9 9-5 9-7
Shabana Khan (USA) bt Gillian Nimmo (SCO) 2-9 9-1 9-7 9-2
Madeline Perry (IRL) bt Carla Khan (ENG) 9-6 9-6 0-9 7-9 9-5
Ellen Petersen (DEN) bt Ivy Pochoda (USA) 9-0 9-2 9-3
Engy Kheirallah (EGY) bt Sally-Anne Hunt (AUS) 9-2 9-1 9-0
Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY) bt Dominique Lloyd-Walter (ENG) 9-0 9-3 9-1
Eman El Amir (EGY) bt Noellie Boden (FRA) 9-0 9-5 9-1
Isabelle Stoehr (FRA) bt Kia Paasivirta (FIN) 9-0 9-0 9-0
Laura Hamilton (SCO) bt Corinne Castets (FRA) 5-9 9-4 9-2 3-9 9-5
Wendy Maitland (SCO) bt Kim Hannes (BEL) 9-2 9-1 9-5
Rebecca Chiu (HKG) bt Helen Easton (ENG) 9-3 4-9 9-0 9-4
Annelize Naude (RSA) bt Lindsey Parker (ENG) 9-2 9-0 9-1
Louise Crome (NZL) bt Daphne Jelgersma (NED) 9-7 9-3 9-3
Elin Blikra (NOR) bt Lisa McKenna (SCO) 9-2 9-7 9-3
Kate Allison (ENG) bt Denise Sommers (NED) 9-1 6-9 9-2 9-6

11.11.00 by Howard Harding

The Women's World Open started today in Edinburgh with the "first round". This round is essentially a qualifier, or preliminary round, but has been formatted as a "first round". The top ranking world players receive byes until the third round.

Scotland's Wendy Maitland became the first home player to progress through to the second round of the Eye Group Women's World Open Squash Championship today (Saturday) in Edinburgh when she beat Belgium's Kim Hannes 9-2 9-1 9-5 at the National Squash Centre at Heriot-Watt University.

The world No34 from Aberdeen now meets Hong Kong's Rebecca Chiu, who took four games to overcome England's Helen Easton 9-3 4-9 9-0 9-4. Scotland also claimed the only first round upset when 21-year-old Laura Hamilton, the world No61 from Glasgow who is making her competitive comeback after a leg injury, beat France's Corinne Castets, ranked 16 places higher, 5-9 9-4 9-2 3-9 9-5 in 45 minutes.

Hamilton now faces another French opponent Isabelle Stoehr, who stormed to the quickest win of the day beating Finland's Kia Paasivirta 9-0 9-0 9-0 in just twelve minutes. Despite off-court support by older sister Pamela Nimmo, the event's 16th seed who begins her World Open campaign on Monday, Edinburgh's Gillian Nimmo was unable to exploit home advantage to the full, going down 2-9 9-1 9-7 9-2 in 27 minutes to USA's Shabana Khan.

Issued on behalf of: WSF/Eye Group For further information: Howard Harding Email: HowHard@aol.com 11 November 2000