[TOC DRAW and RESULTS ]

BOSWELL SURVIVES  ALARCON ASSAULT  AND DRACONIAN REF

Back in November  2003 Stu Boswell was number four in the world and looking good for a challenge for the top position. But then injury stopped him dead in the tracks and 18 months later he had crashed out to 301 in the world. After surgery  he started his long climb back but  he still has not found the form that could put him back in the top ten – the nearest is 13 in the last year.

On the other hand Rafael Alarcon  has beenon the PSA lists for nearly ten years and  has never reach beyond 36. So on these background facts you would expect Boswell to have a fairly easy time in getting past Alarcon and for the  first game he did have it easy. But in the second he found himself on equal terms  right up to 9-9 and then managed to squeak through 11-9.

In the third game Alarcon increased his attack and was going short at the slightest opportunity but  his winners were being nullified by his errors,  He had played well enough to at least come off the court with a game under his belt. Maybe the referee thought the same thing because when Boswell bounced his racket – gently – off the floor the ref immediately docked him a penalty point at 8-8. to give Alarcon the 9-8 lead. (Good thing he didn’t swear – he would have had tongue cut out).

It was enough to put Boswell off and give Alarcon  the push to win 11-9.

Alarcon continued his fine attacking game in the fourth and deserved his 9-4 lead and  looked good to tie the match. Boswell, however was not prepared to give up and leave it all for the fifth and slowly worked his way back in, taking advantage of some overeagerness from Alarcon to force a tie- break  and despite losing the first point came back to win 12-11 and take the match.  Alarcon showed that  with a little more control he can mix it with the big boys and he has the ability to attack from many angles.

WILLSTROP STARTS SLOWLY BUT FIGHTS BACK WELL

In the World Open in Bermuda last year, James Willstrop  had to fight back twice from two games down in the early rounds, getting a bit of a reputation as a slow starter. It happened again tonight against  Azlan Iskander from Malaysis who came out in top gear going short and keeping it tight while Willstrop was still playing himself in down the left wall. Iskander was playing good squash  and eanred his 8-4 lead and looked as though he would capitalise on it. Willstrop kept his head, played it tight and kept moving Iskander around. Suddenly he had strung  seven points together in a row – without doing anything spectacular – to win the game 11-8.

The same slow start by Willstrop  in the second game and once again Iskander  had won  a healthy  5-1 lead. Willstrop buckled down as Iskander seemed to let up and unbelievably Willstrop ran a string of  10 points together to win 11-5  in ten minutes.

Willstrop was not playing at speed until the third game and then he upped the pace from the start. The rewards were immediate as he overwhelmed  Iskander to go 6-0 up in a few minutes. They were both now  using the entire court and the volley drops from both players made  this a completely different form of squash from the first two games. This was modern-day attacking squash  and they were both up to the demands.

This time it was Iskander who made the comeback to 7-7.  Willstrop stopped the run with a couple of fine winners and moved on to match ball at 10-8. Iskand  saved two match balls and then got to game ball when Willstrop slammed a forehand into the tin.

He saved the game with a low drive and then tinned again to put  Iskander at game ball for the second time. Willstrop never blinked and got his twelth point with a forehand drop. Iskander then mishit to give Willstrop a stroke and match ball, and this time Willstrop made no mistake to  take the game 14-12. Willstrop will have to get out of the starting blocks a little more quickly while Iskander will have to learn to keep his well-earned leads.

KEMP PUSHES WHITE. REFS PUSH CREDULITY

It was probably the best and most entertaining match of the day if not of the main draw so far. That wonderful Australian/Scottish entertainer John White played up and coming Jonathan Kemp of England  and was run off the road that led to a straight games win to the point where it looked as though he could well lose it.

Kemp started badly by giving away easy points with impetuous errors – probably due to the big occasion getting to him. But you can’t give John White five points a game and hope to beat him. But Kemp likes to go for shots, which made the second half of the match worth watching.

White was relaxed  and even hit a few Philadelphia boasts  to keep things interesting. The talk is usually of how hard White hits the ball; it is worth mentioning that despite those spindly legs, he can move pretty fast as well.

Having won the first two games fairly easily, he might have relaxed a bit or Kemp finally hit his stride. From the start of the third game Kemp was playing  at his best, which is a pretty good mixture of attack and defense. White seemed caught off guard and Kemp ran away to win 11-4.  He continued into the fourth to lead 4-0 which is when White decided he wanted to avoid a fifth game. Battle was joined and it was probably the first really competitive match of the day. There was very little of the medium pace down-the-wall game and a lot of  dynamic slamming into the corners with  both players  making some wonderful retrievals. They managed to maintain this level despite three referees making a hash of the most straightforward decisions. Even the score eluded them at times and communication skills were not at their best.

White has been in these perilous positions before and he has the ability to clear his mind after either a bad shot or a bad decision. He pulled level, still hitting amazing shots while on the run and finally got to match ball at 10-9. Kemp was now matching him in all parts of the court and  he pulled level to force the tie break and win the  next two points to force a fifth game. Once more White smacked his racket against his leg in annoyance and prepared for a fifth.

Like I say, White has been there before and he came out determined not to let this youngster take his place in the quarter-finals. Kemp was  a little sloppy and as the game wore on, showed that fatigue was now affecting his performance. White got to match ball, 10-5, Kemp made one last push to earn three more points but, finally White put the ball beyond his reach to close out the 58 minute match. They left the court to loud applause, but then, John White always does.  Kemp should be happy with his performance, although he might spend a sleepless night with the “If only I’d…” nightmare. For the spectators, it was a good night at Grand Central Station. 

SECOND ROUND RESULTS
Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Omar Elborolossy (EGY) 11-2, 11-9, 11-2 (36mins)
David Palmer (AUS) bt Ryan Cuskelly(AUS)  11-9, 11-9, 11-9 (34mins)
Mohammed Abbas (EGY) bt Miguel Rodriguez (COL) 11-6, 11-5, 11-2 (35mins)
Wael  El Hindi (EGY) bt Julian Illingworth (USA) 11-6, 11-5, 11-5 (42mins)
James Willstrop (ENG) bt  M.Azlan Iskander (MAS) 11-8, 11-5, 11-10(4-2) (54mins)
Stewart Boswell (AUS) bt  Rafael Alarcon (BRA) 11-4, 11-9, 9-11, 11-10(3-1) (56mins)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt Hisham Ashour (EGY) 11-3, 11-5, 11-9 (32mins)
John White (SCO) bt Jonathan Kemp (ENG) 11-8, 11-6, 4-11,  10-11(0-2), 11-7 (58mins)

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