Australia & England Win
Oct 1, 2004, Martin Bronstein; SquashTalk Independent News Service © 2004;

MARTIN BRONSTEIN REPORTING FROM THE FRANS OTTEN STADION IN THE SUBURBS OF AMSTERDAM      [pools draw]    [pools detailed results]

Friday Semi finals    [Medal rounds draw/results ]

Natalie Grinham beat Engy Kheirallah photo © 2004 Fritz Borchert

OMNEYA PLIES HER MAGIC BUT AUSTRALIA WIN 3/0
Egypt were never going to beat Australia this year, but there was a chance of an upset somewhere down the order. As it so happened Amelia Pittock , the Australian number three, seemed to get better as the tournament progressed and while I thought she may not be able to match the Egyptian magic, she played good percentage squash to squeak through 10-8, 10-8, 9-4.

The number ones were on next and this matched Omneya Abdel Kawy against world number one Rachael Grinham and the expectations for a real fight were not high. Well, wrong again, as the Egyptian produced a sparkling performance that put the result in doubt for three games. In fact the two players produced an engrossing match full of guile and skill. Rachael has always marched to the tune of a different contra-bassoonist and her sister Natalie once said that her opponents never know what she is going to do because Rachael herself doesn?t know. So this was as far from slam-bang squash as you can get and the number of elongated leftwall duels could be counted on the fingers of one hand.

Kawy was quick to go for winners, led 2-0 and then trailed 4-6 as Grinham got into her stride. It was at that point that Kawy hit a streak and took five points in a row with her drops, surprise cross courts and solid volley drops. No-one really expected Egypt to lead 1-0 but then Kawy has that ability to produce the unexpected.

In the second game Grinham was up to all her opponent?s tricks and worked hard to reduce her opportunities. It was clever squash from the Australian and she was rewarded with 9-5 game to even the match.

When Grinham took a solid 5-0 lead in the third we could be excused for expecting a collapse from Kawy, but she pulled off yet another surprise, her incredible racket skills taking the next eight points to serve for the game at 8-5. This was an unbelievable turnaround against the world number one and suggested that there could be a real upset in the making. She missed game point by the merest fraction of an inch on a drop shot to lose service and Grinham showed yet again her wonderful temperament to work her way back to 8-all and then take the next two points to win the game 10-8. It was another of those "what if" situations and what might have been if Kawy had closed out the game to lead 2-1.

They continued this exhibition of thinking-persons' squash with Grinham taking the fourth game 9-5 to finish the 59 minute match and secure Australia's place in the final — their llth in a row.

Afterwards Rachael told me that she was a bit tired and explained her performance on not being focused. The fact that Australia has played the same three players every day meant that none of the players have had a rest and while I said that neither of the Grinham sisters have been seriously tested, they have played six games in five days.

"Maybe I've just had too much squash. Even on my day off I came down to watch the squash. Right now I'm going to have something to eat and go back to the hotel and rest," she said wearily.

Cassie Jackman dispatched Shelley Kitchen as England advanced to the finals photo © 2004 Fritz Borchert

She'll have less than 24 hours to get back up to speed for Australia's final against England their llth meeting in this competition with Australia leading 6-4. England had to beat New Zealand in the other semi-final and this was accomplished with the Old Girls Team of Cassie Jackman, Linda Elriani and Fiona Geaves.

Greaves had little trouble in dispatching Louise Crome in straight games, while Cassie Jackman made up for yesterday's performance by beating Shelley Kitchen in three. It was by no means a walkover as Kitchen put up a good fight over the three games, but is just a little short of experience — and stamina — to really challenge the top players. But I am fairly certain this will come in the next year. Jackman was still far short of her optimum form and still goes for silly shots instead of hanging in. I cannot see her beating Rachael Grinham in the final, but it would certainly be nice if she broke the run of three victories which the Australian has notched up over their last meetings.

ROUND UP OF THE OTHER MATCHES
Scotland stopped the rot with a 2/1 victory over the reduced power of France, which means that Scotland could still finish as high as 13, which would still be a disappointment as they were seeded eight before Pamela Nimmo had to drop out with illness.

Netherlands are also fighting to save face and are on course to finish fifth, two below their seeding. They played USA who are one of the few teams who are bound to finish higher than their seeding. The worst that they can finish is eighth, two above their seeding and they could finish seventh. Netherlands won, 3/0 which is a disappointment, because I thought that Louisa Hall would beat Karen Kronemeyer. As it turned out, she was too sporting because the referee told me later that he has never seen a player play through so many stroke situations.

"Kronemeyer was crowding Hall all the time and all Hall had to do was ask for the let and she would have got the stroke," he said, his voice full of wonder at such a fair-minded player.

Vanessa was too sharp for USA's Latasha Khan as Holland advanced. photo © 2004 Fritz Borchert

Hall won the first game 10-8 and then lost the next three after a 54 minute fight.

Latahsa Khan was never threaten the on-song Vanessa Atkinson and lostg in 33 minutes while Meredith Quick lost the dead rubber 9-6, 10-8.

USA will now meet Ireland for seventh place tomorrow and if Demer Holleran can motivate her crew, they could win. Ireland lost to Malaysia, but Madeline Perry, the Irish number one, who has had a good — but hard — tournament — almost beat Nicole David in the match of the day. It was a terrific ding-dong match which went right to 8-8 in the fifth, at which point Perry took the next point to serve for the match. Nicol David saved that point but lost the next point giving Perry another chance to serve for the match. Again the terrier-like David made an unbelievable retrievable to save the match and then went on to win the next two points and the game 10-9. Perry was exhausted ? she has had hard matches every day (remember she beat Omneya Abdel Kay from 1-6 down in the fifth) but she told me that she really enjoyed the match. She will certainly leave Amsterdam with an enhanced reputation.

Canada seeded eighth, were one of Ireland's victims in the pools which put them out of the top eight but they kept on course to finish ninth when they took a comfortable 3/0 win over Belgium. They should secure that ninth spot by beating South Africa because of their strength in depth.

RESULTS: Women's World Team Squash Championships, Frans Otten Stadion, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Semi-finals:
[1] AUSTRALIA bt [4] EGYPT 3-0 (Rachael Grinham bt Omneya Abdel Kawy 6-9, 9-5, 10-8, 9-5 (59m); Natalie Grinham bt Engy Kheirallah 9-2, 9-0 (13m); Amelia Pittock bt Eman El Amir 10-8, 10-8, 9-4 (41m))
[2] ENGLAND bt [6] NEW ZEALAND 3-0 (Cassie Jackman bt Shelley Kitchen 9-4, 9-5, 9-4 (42m); Linda Elriani bt Tamsyn Leevey 9-6, 9-6 (28m); Fiona Geaves bt Louise Crome 9-4, 9-4, 9-1 (29m))
5th - 8th place play-offs:
[5] MALAYSIA bt [9] IRELAND 3-0 (Nicol David bt Madeline Perry 3-9, 9-3, 9-2, 4-9, 10-9 (58m); Sharon Wee bt Anna McGeever 7-9, 9-1, 10-8 (34m); Tricia Chuah bt Laura Mylotte 10-8, 9-2, 9-2 (33m))
[3] NETHERLANDS bt [10] USA 3-0 (Vanessa Atkinson bt Latasha Khan 9-3, 9-4, 9-7 (33m); Annelize Naude bt Meredeth Quick 9-6, 10-8 (23m); Karen Kronemeyer bt Louisa Hall 8-10, 9-7, 9-7, 9-5 (54m))
9th - 12th place play-offs:
[8] CANADA bt [11] BELGIUM 3-0 (Runa Reta bt Kim Hannes-Teunen 9-6, 9-3, 9-1 (29m); Melanie Jans Burke bt Katline Cauwels 4-9, 9-5, 9-5 (28m); Alana Miller bt Charlie de Rycke 6-9, 9-3, 9-4, 9-4 (46m))
[13] SOUTH AFRICA bt [15] HONG KONG 2-1 (Claire Nitch lost to Rebecca Chiu 3-9, 6-9, 9-4, 5-9 (47m); Farrah Sterne bt Annie Au 9-2, 9-4, 9-4 (34m); Tenille Swartz bt Joey Chan 4-9, 9-2, 9-5, 7-9, 9-5 (59m))
13th - 16th place play-offs:
[7] SCOTLAND bt [12] FRANCE 2-1 (Wendy Maitland bt Maud Duplomb 9-1, 9-6, 9-5; Frania Gillen-Buchert bt Celia Allamargot 9-1, 9-2, 9-3; Louise Philip lost to Soraya Renai 7-9, 3-9, 1-9)
[14] DENMARK bt [17] SWITZERLAND 2-1 (Ellen Petersen bt Gaby Schmohl 9-2, 9-1, 9-5 (29m); Line Hansen bt Olivia Hauser 9-5, 9-4, 9-4 (28m); Ditte Nielsen lost to Gabi Hegi 9-7, 9-2, 7-9, 7-9, 7-9 (46m))
17th - 19th place play-offs:
[19] AUSTRIA bt [18] JAPAN 2-1 (Pamela Pancis bt Chinatsu Matsui 9-4, 6-9, 9-4, 9-7 (52m); Birgit Coufal bt Kozue Onizawa 9-7, 9-4, 5-9, 2-9, 10-8 (61m); Ines Gradnitzer lost to Sachiko Shinta 4-9, 6-9, 1-9 (36m))

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