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The SG Cowen US Open Pro Squash Championships
Power defeats Parke to win second title
Tournament
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Final report
By Andrew R. Tripaldi, Globe Correspondent, 11/4/2000
Two out of three ain't bad, just ask Jonathon Power. Power, a native of Toronto, and Simon Parke, hailing from Nottingham, England, met for the third time in four years last night at the US Open Squash Championships at the Harvard Club.
After splitting the first two meetings (Power won in 1997, Parke won last year), Power claimed the series lead with a 3-1 win (15-3, 11-15, 15-12, 15-11). Power received approximately $10,000 in prize money; Parke took home approximately $6,000.
The world's second-ranked player, Power was in charge most of the match. ''I was disappointed with last year's loss to [Parke],'' Power said. ''But I felt I could turn it around this year. It was great.'' In the fourth set, Power made the ball go deeper on the court, forcing Parke, who prefers to hit short returns off the wall, to abandon his game plan.
The crowd was often amused by Power's antics, which included playing to the fans and jawing with the referees, seemingly breaking the concentration of the more methodical Parke. Jumping out to a 6-1 start in the first set, Power fended off Parke as the two battled with a series of powerful forehands. Power, however, finished off the set, as Parke continually came up short at the end of rallies.
Turning around his fortunes in the second set, Parke took full advantage as Power became rattled by several of the referees' calls. After dueling to 5-5, Parke used his defensive prowess, frustrating Power and tying the match, 1-1. Battling to 8-8 in the third set, both players ran ferociously around the court.
At one point, Power dived in front of Parke for a backhand, which was ruled a let for interference. But Power was able to pull away at the end. ''Going into the match, I wanted to take full control and establish the tempo,'' Power said. ''I thought I could wear him down during the match. And he was tired at the end of each set.''
This story ran on page G09 of the Boston Globe on 11/4/2000. © Copyright 2000 Globe Newspaper Company.
(photos ©2000, SquashTalk, Ron Beck)
