I Dig Sports
Passan: Why question-filled present for Red Sox mirrors what future could look like
Published in
Baseball
Tuesday, 09 April 2019 20:08
For those in Boston panicking about the Red Sox's sequel to a World Series championship starting with a 3-9 record and the worst run differential in the American League, fear not. That thing in the distance -- it's not the sky falling. It's just a smoke signal from luxury-tax hell to warn that it's coming. Or wait. Maybe it's actually the farm sending a message that the system is barren and needs help.
Pardon the gallows humor. The Red Sox's debacle of a beginning to the 2019 season is bad enough as it is. That Boston has backed itself into a corner in other integral facets of building a sustained contender only makes it worse -- and explains why the capacity to change their current trajectory won't be easy.
This is not to cast the Red Sox to where they resided in their previous incarnation, with three last-place finishes sandwiched around a most unlikely title. Any team with Boston's resources can purchase an end around most issues, with the caveat that it could perhaps compound them to an even greater degree.
Perhaps it's easiest to start there, with the Red Sox showering their largesse at a curious time. Less than a week after the first pitch of the spring he threw clocked in at 89 mph, Chris Sale agreed to a five-year, $145 million contract extension with the Red Sox. Sale has been one of the best pitchers in the major leagues for the better part of a decade. His two seasons in Boston have been beyond phenomenal. He is revered in the clubhouse, the organization, the city.
That said, the reaction around baseball was the awkward marriage of puzzlement at why they did it and giddiness that they actually did. Among the mileage on Sale's arm, the shoulder problems that disabled him twice last year and the fastball velocity going AWOL, the warning signs were lit up like the Citgo sign. And the Red Sox had the perfect hedge: Sale was under contract for the 2019 season. If he looked good, rival executives figured, the Red Sox could extend him following the year. If not, he would hit free agency.
Now, on the heels of his third consecutive troublesome start, with radar guns registering UH-OH instead of a number, the Sale contract is, at least in the short term, a red flag, and not the kind that hangs at Fenway Park celebrating a title. Starting next season, they're on the hook for $29 million a year for Sale -- at least twice what he'd get coming off a substandard 2019 -- plus $32 million a year for David Price and $17 million a season for Nathan Eovaldi, both through 2022. That's $78 million a year for three starting pitchers -- or more than the first-place Tampa Bay Rays, who have only three starting pitchers, are spending on their entire team this season.
Which is not to say the Red Sox shouldn't spend money. They rake it in. Spending it to improve the team is admirable. It also has put the Red Sox in a very interesting position, one that has manifested itself with the continued free agency of their former closer, Craig Kimbrel. The Red Sox could use a good relief pitcher. Kimbrel has been that. Kimbrel could use a job. The Red Sox have one of those. Boston's reticence to sign Kimbrel is for a few reasons -- they don't want to lose a potential draft pick they'd gain if he goes elsewhere, they were concerned with his end-of-season performance -- and includes a concern about money.
Currently, the Red Sox are on the cusp of a second consecutive season flipping the bird at the luxury-tax threshold. Last season, Boston blew past the first, second and third levels of the tax ($197 million, $217 million and $237 million). This year, Boston is somewhere above $240 million, according to sources, and pushing up against that maximum threshold (at $246 million this year). If they exceed it, they'll once again be docked 10 picks in the first round -- Boston's No. 33 overall pick this year got dropped to 43rd -- and pay future overages at a higher rate.
The penalty is, in reality, not severe enough to warrant teams acting as though the luxury-tax threshold is some high-voltage barbed-wire fence. Except that draft-pick docking really does hinder an organization like Boston, whose farm system is teetering somewhere between meh and ugh.
Which wouldn't be so much of a problem if it didn't force the Red Sox into some awfully interesting decisions coming up. Between the extensions for Sale and Xander Bogaerts (at a much more reasonable six years, $120 million for a 26-year-old shortstop) this spring, Boston committed another $50 million or so a year to its payroll for at least the next half-decade. Today, with only Sale, Price, Eovaldi, Bogaerts, Dustin Pedroia and Christian Vazquez, the Red Sox have a luxury-tax number of $114 million next season.
Automatically add benefits, and that takes it to $129 million. Plus an estimated $30 million in 2020 for Mookie Betts, which brings it to the cusp of $160 million. Then $10 million for Jackie Bradley Jr., and about half that for Andrew Benintendi going to arbitration for the first time, and it's at $175 million for nine players. That doesn't include J.D. Martinez, because he may well opt out. Boston will need at least one starting pitcher, a first baseman, a DH and some semblance of a bullpen, and all under the $208 million number that year, so they can avoid staying at the repeat-offender base rate of a 50 percent tax. Maybe their two best prospects, Bobby Dalbec and Michael Chavis, can fill those power-hitting roles and make the potential loss of Martinez an afterthought.
The more reasonable thought, for a team that has money as free agency across the sport has petered out, is: They could afford this. They easily could afford this because they are the Red Sox, and they regularly sell out Fenway and NESN ratings are bonkers and their business side is even sharper than their baseball side, which is saying something. They absolutely could afford to give Betts a deal for $40 million a year if they wanted to ensure he stayed with the Red Sox for the remainder of his career, and just resign themselves to life above the tax. They wouldn't be the first team -- and with as much money as they've already committed going forward (even in 2022 they've still got more than $115 million committed), the possibility of Boston tearing down simply can't and won't happen.
The Red Sox's dealings with Kimbrel don't explicitly speak of tax dodging, because there are enough reasons not to sign him. With Betts, and even with Martinez, there aren't any great reasons. As extension season drew to a close, the Red Sox understood what everyone in baseball saw: The paucity of top players on the market would place an added emphasis on locking up those already in your uniform.
Owners John Henry and Tom Werner and president Dave Dombrowski find themselves confronted with these realities now -- and a much more acute one: Building a winner may be hard, but sustaining it is much, much harder. The Chicago Cubs left the 2016 season with a championship, a soon-to-be-ballooning payroll and a farm system on the downswing. Their Jason Heyward megadeal went sour and was joined by Yu Darvish's and Tyler Chatwood's free-agent contracts. Now the Cubs are over the threshold and without much, if any, payroll flexibility. As the great philosopher Christopher Wallace once said: "Mo Money Mo Problems."
That is not actually true in baseball, of course. Money washes away many ills, and it's at the heart of the Red Sox's plans going forward. Will this start authorize them to spend this year? Or will it reinforce that this isn't a team worth spending another dime on? It's not even 10 percent of the way through the season, so if the line of thinking here feels unreasonable, that's because it is. But management needs to plan for contingencies, too. And thus the questions above.
They'll all be answered in due time, and those answers will be best viewed through the greater prism that governs baseball economics, particularly those of teams like the Red Sox, who are among the game's royalty. Even when the sky is falling, all it takes is a few properly placed stacks of cash to put it back exactly where it's supposed to be.
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Fed Cup: Great Britain name unchanged team for World Group II play-off
Published in
Tennis
Wednesday, 10 April 2019 03:02
Great Britain have named an unchanged team for their Fed Cup World Group II play-off against Kazakhstan, which begins on 20 April.
British number one Johanna Konta is joined by Katie Boulter, Heather Watson, Harriet Dart and Katie Swan.
The British team won all 10 of their rubbers in February's group stages to reach the play-offs.
If they beat Kazakhstan in London, they will return to World Group II for the first time since 1993.
The tie will take place from 20-21 April at the Copper Box Arena.
"There is little to separate the two teams in terms of rankings, but I'm confident the home fans will give all our players an inspirational lift," GB captain Anne Keothavong said.
"It's important to our team to open up our sport to new fans and increase awareness of tennis at different times of the year."
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Nigeria the potent force; final places assured
Published in
Table Tennis
Tuesday, 09 April 2019 17:33
Success but in the under 21 men’s team semi-final, that success was hard earned; a 3-2 margin of victory was the outcome for the trio formed by Emmanuel Augustine, Taiwo Mati and Azeez Solanke in opposition to Egypt’s Marwan Abdelwahhab, Omar Elhamady and Mahmoud Helmy.
Hero of the hour for Nigeria was Taiwo Mati; after Mahmoud Helmy had given Egypt hope by beating Taiwo Mati (11-8, 9-11, 11-6, 11-8) and Azeez Solanke (11-7, 4-11, 11-7, 11-8); in the vital fifth and deciding match of the fixture, Taiwo Mati accounted for Marwam Abdelwahhab by the very narrowest of margin (11-9, 11-9, 7-11, 9-11, 12-10) to seal the victory.
In the final Tunisia awaits; in a less dramatic contest, the trio formed by Aboubaker Bourass, Youssef Ben Attia and Louay Hamrouni recorded a 3-0 win in opposition to Algeria’s Islem Tifoura, Abdelbasset Chaichi and Azzeddine Lazazi.
Hard fought success for Nigeria in the under 21 men’s team penultimate round; in both the junior boys’ team and cadet boys’ team semi-finals, life was less tense. In the former, the combination of Azeez Solanke, Emmanuel Augustine and Abayombi Animasahun recorded a 3-1 win in opposition to Togo’s Kossi Akakpo, Eke Victor Kueviakoe and Sedik Tchagole; in the latter a 3-0 margin of victory was secured by Taiwo Mati and Jamiu Ayanwale when facing Egypt’s Marwan Gamal and Mohamed Sameh.
Success against Egypt, now Egypt awaits in the junior boys’ team final.
“I am sure the Egyptians have been watching our game and they are also afraid of us. The fact that we have not been playing in the competition for the last two years has given them hope that they can ride over every team but I must tell you that they are going to meet their waterloo in the final, as we are ready for them. We want to leave Ghana with the giant trophy this weekend.” Azeez Solanke
At the semi-final stage, Egypt represented by Marwan Abdelwahab, Abdelrahman Dendan and Ahmed Elborhamy posted a 3-1 win in opposition to Tunisia’s Youssef Ben Attia, Aboubaker Bourass and Khalil Sta to reserve their place in the final.
“I know that the Nigerian team is very strong despite their absence in the last two editions of the competition. They are very strong but we will try and stop them to retain our title. The match against Tunisia was very difficult because we play same style. I maintained my focus throughout. I believe this was a good preparation for the final.” Marwan Abdelwahab
A semi-final defeat for Tunisia in the junior boys’ team event, not at the same stage of the cadet boys’ team competition; the combination of Khalil Sta and Youssef Abid secured a 3-0 win against Algeria’s Mohammed Bechni and Abderrahmane Azzala.
The team events conclude on Wednesday 10th April.
2019 African Youth, Junior and Cadet Championships: Newsletter No.4 (Tuesday 9th April)
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Amy Wang top seed, faces strong Japanese challenge
Published in
Table Tennis
Tuesday, 09 April 2019 20:29
The names Kaho Akae and Haruna Ojio, both 14 years old, appear on the entry list. Last year Haruna Ojio was a junior girls’ singles semi-finalist in Hong Kong and China, as well as being the cadet girls’ singles runner up in Hungary.
Impressive but Kaho Akae, who last year reached the junior girls’ singles semi-final round in Belgium, is this year the in-form player. In Sweden she won both the junior girls’ singles and cadet girls’ singles titles, having one week earlier in the Czech Republic reached the semi-final stage in the former, whilst winning the latter.
In Metz, Kaho Akae and Haruna Ojio occupy the respective fifth and sixth seeded positions in the junior girls’ singles competition; in the cadet girls’ singles event, Kaho Akae is the second seed behind Romania’s Elena Zaharia, the winner at last year’s European Youth Championships. Haruna Ojio is the no.4 seed being next in line to Croatia’s Hana Arapovic, a semi-finalist in February in the Czech Republic.
Names to note but for local eyes the player in focus will be Prithika Pavade; like Kaho Akae and Haruna Ojio, only 14 years old, she is the fourth seed in the junior girls’ singles event, the seventh seed in the cadet girls’ singles competition. Notably this year she was the junior girls’ singles runner up in both the Czech Republic and Spain.
Ahead of Prithika Pavade on the junior girls’ singles list are the Czech Republic’s Zdena Blaskova and Italy’s Jamila Laurenti; notably this year Zdena Blaskova was a bronze medallist in the Czech Republic.
Play commences with the junior girls’ singles and junior girls’ doubles events.
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Fine start to year, Lev Katsman and Samuel Kulczycki head Metz list
Published in
Table Tennis
Tuesday, 09 April 2019 20:35
Notably, earlier this year, Lev Katsman won in Bahrain, before being a semi-finalist in Italy; similarly Samuel Kulczycki, who last year had succeeded in Slovakia, added to his collection of honours by securing the top prize in the Czech Republic.
Equally, Maksim Grebnev, the no.3 seed in Metz has been in form; he reached the semi-final stage in both the Czech Republic and in Italy. Furthermore, partnering colleague, Lev Katsman, silver medallists at the 2018 World Junior Championships in Bendigo, the duo tops the junior boys’ doubles seeding. They are listed one place ahead of a pair on whom eyes will focus, the host nation’s Lilian Bardet and Vincent Picard.
Similarly, Lilian Bardet features prominently in the junior boys’ singles event as does colleague, Dorian Zheng. A semi-finalist last year in Hungary, beaten by Lev Katsman in February in the Bahrain final, Lilian Bardet is the no.6 seed. He is one place ahead of Dorian Zeng, a quarter-finalist last year in Hungary, a semi-finalist two months ago in Bahrain.
Sandwiched in between Maksim Grebnev and Lilian Bardet, appear the names of Iran’s Amin Ahmadian and Germany’s Kay Stumper. Last year Amin Ahmadian, the no.4 seed, reached the semi-final round in Jordan; the stage to which Kay Stumper, the no.5 seed, advanced in Hong Kong; notably this year Kay Stumper was a quarter-finalist in Italy.
Contenders for honours most certainly but note the name that completes the top eight, Japan’s Takeru Kashiwa, the runner up last year in Slovakia, could well influence matters.
Play commences with the junior boys’ singles and junior boys’ doubles events.
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Born a century ago, the man who set the standard
Published in
Table Tennis
Tuesday, 09 April 2019 21:30
If on Wednesday 25th April in the Hungarian capital city, a significant day, the day of the Swaythling Club Annual General Meeting who present a sportsmanship award in honour of Richard Bergmann, Tomokazu Harimoto is present in the men’s singles quarter-finals and he wins, he will be 15 years and 302 days old. It is his last chance to beat the record set by Richard Bergmann and become the youngest ever to win a World Championships men’s singles medal.
An immediate goal for Tomokazu Harimoto but if he or any player of the modern era is to match Richard Bergmann, then they have some distance to go; if anyone succeeds they will become immortal not only in table tennis but in the world of sport.
After reaching the semi-final in 1936, Richard Bergmann won in Baden the following year; he prevailed again in Cairo in 1939, before once more succeeding in 1948 in London and 1950 in Budapest. Overall, taking into account the full gambit of World Championship events, he won seven gold, six silver and nine bronze medals.
Comparing eras is always fraught with inconsistencies; nowadays, the World Championships and the World Team Championships alternate on an annual basis; in the era of Richard Bergmann they were combined and organised each year. However, balance that fact with following Cairo in 1939 until Paris in 1947, owing to World War Two, no World Championships were staged.
Born in Vienna, his mother Italian, his father Polish, he started to play table tennis in 1931; five years later in Prague he made his World Championships debut and experienced the strangest ever men’s team final.
Facing Romania, the Austrians recorded a 5-4 win; the contest took 12 hours and lasted three days! Scores level at 2-2, it was 2.00 am in the morning, the police stormed into the hall and stopped the contest; they continued the next evening, eventually concluding proceeding after the singles events had finished!
Equally, in that tournament, his men’s singles semi-final defeat at the hands of Poland’s Aloizy Ehrlich was unusual (16-21, 21-16, 21-18, 21-10). They started at 7.00 pm; after playing for almost one hour Aloizy Ehrich led 2-1 in games but dinner in the Lucerna Hall closed at 8.00 pm. They agreed to stop playing; they went for dinner and then returned to complete the match!
It was the tournament that ignited a remarkable career, relating titles won and the stories of Richard Bergmann would fill many megabytes of a modern day blog; it was life totally different to that of Tomokazu Harimoto who seeks to break his record of the youngest ever. Smartly dressed, well presented, great attention to detail; they are common factors with the Japanese teenager but that is where the likeness ends.
Richard Bergmann didn’t smoke but always carried a smart cigarette case should a female smoker acquaint his company; he spoke seven languages fluently and made his own rackets, always covered with just a layer of pimpled rubber, for Richard Bergmann, the sponge innovation was the number one enemy.
He lived in time of political upheaval, in 1939 as a result of Hitler’s annexation of Austria, Richard Bergmann moved to England; when he won that year in Cairo, theoretically he was stateless. He was totally single minded, restless, a maverick; in 1951 he played exhibition matches in South Africa, contrary to the request of the English Table Tennis Association. He was suspended, the sadness being that he was denied the chance to play in the World Championships staged that year in his home city of Vienna.
A controversial figure, he challenged the authorities but by doing so he played in front of what is surely the biggest crowd ever to watch a table tennis match. Competing against Japan’s Norikazu Fujii in Sofia, as the crowd awaited the Harlem Globetrotters to behold the mesmeric basketball skills of the clown prince Meadowlark Lemon; to the strains of Sweet Georgia Brown the duo played in front of a crowd of some 45,000 spectators in an open air stadium.
Exhibition matches became his forte; it was to be where his career finished. In late 1969 he was taken ill when playing at the Pontin’s Holiday Camp in Southport on the west coast of England. In hospital in nearby Liverpool he was diagnosed to have a brain tumor. He died in London on Sunday 5th April 1970.
Four days later his body was cremated in New York where his sister lived, a human irony; the man who had thousands of friends all over the world, was a world champion, he had no home of his own.
A full feature tribute to Richard Bergmann will appear in the October 2019 issue if the Swaythling Club magazine, available on line and a hard copy.
Swaythling Club Magazine: Issue No.106 – March 2019
Swaythling Club Magazine: Issue No.105 – October 2018
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Standing out from the crowd: Joseph Amissah
Published in
Table Tennis
Wednesday, 10 April 2019 08:31
The 19 year old is a left handed pen-hold grip player. Moreover, he proved a most worthy competitor; it was only against the major powers that he experienced defeats.
Facing Egypt in the group stage of play, he was beaten by Ahmed Elborhamy (11-8, 11-8, 11-7), later in the quarter-final contest against Tunisia, he lost to Aboubaker Bourass (12-10, 11-9, 11-8).
However, those were his only defeats in the whole event; facing Congo Democratic in a 3-1 group stage success, he accounted for Josue Olenga (11-4, 11-8, 14-12), before in a 3-2 defeat at hands of Togo in the contest for fifth position, he overcame Atarou Assou (12-10, 11-8, 6-11, 11-7).
“When I started table tennis 13 years ago, my coach then was a pen-holder so I had to take after him. It was not a difficult style for me when I started because I saw myself playing like every other player. Even some of my mates most times ask me whether the style is convenient for me. I love it and I see myself as unique player.” Joseph Amissah
Understandably he has a role, the best modern day pen-holder of them all.
“I take my time to watch Xu Xin a lot because we play same style as left-hand players. I like to stand out and this style stands me out even in Ghana. I love the style and I think I can also become the first pen-holder to become African champion.” Jospeh Amissah
We wish him well, a pen-hold grip African champion from Ghana; now that would be a major boost for the whole continent.
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James Willstrop (left) in action against Cameron Pilley in Eindhoven
Willstrop fights back to post victory against Pilley
By ELLIE MAWSON
James Willstrop, Declan James, Joel Makin, Chris Simpson, Daryl Selby and Millie Tomlinson all delivered for Britain on the opening day of action at the 2019 DPD Open Squash in Eindhoven.
As packages whizzed past at the DPD Parcels HQ, Dutch No.1 Milou van der Heijden was unable to post a home win as she slipped to defeat against England’s Tomlinson in round one.
World No.31 van der Heijden fell in front of her home crowd on day one of the PSA World Tour Gold tournament as she succumbed to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of World No.22 Tomlinson inside the brand new DPD headquarters in Eindhoven.
The Englishwoman started strongly and never let up to take the first two-games. A good spell from van der Heijden in the third saw the Dutch player rattle off a flurry of points to pull a game back, however, it was not enough to prevent Tomlinson from booking her place in the second round, where she will now face Egypt’s World No.1 Raneem El Welily.
“I’m relieved,” said 26-year-old Tomlinson following her victory. “Milou had a good win against me in San Francisco a few months ago, so it was good to come out here and get my revenge.
“I tried to increase the pace a bit tonight, she caught me out a lot with her boast last time, so I was prepared for that today.”
Millie Tomlinson (right) powers past Milou van der Heijden
Van der Heijden’s compatriot in the women’s draw Tessa ter Sluis was also unable to make it a day to remember for the home crowd as she was defeated in straight-games by Egypt’s Yathreb Adel, who will now face France’s World No.4 Camille Serme in the next round.
Meanwhile, there was joy for eight-time World Champion Nicol David, who resides in Amsterdam, after she overcame Egypt’s World Junior Champion Rowan Elaraby in four games to set up a mouthwatering second-round tie against reigning World Champion Nour El Sherbini.
“I knew coming in here I had to be solid and in the second game when I let my guard down, she took it,” said former World No.1 David following her win. “I knew what I had to do in the third and fourth and I was very pleased with my focus. I’m very pleased to be playing in front of a Dutch crown and back in Holland again.”
Elsewhere in the women’s draw, former World No.1 Rachael Grinham rolled back the years as she prevailed against America’s Olivia Blatchford Clyne in a five-game thriller on the sidecourts at Squash Time in Eindhoven.
The 42-year-old took a two-game lead, before Blatchford Clyne battled back to draw level. However, it was the Australian who was able to close out the victory to complete an 11-8, 11-9, 7-11, 8-11, 11-6 win in 45 minutes and will now face England’s No.1 Sarah-Jane Perry in the next round.
“Nowadays, I just try to enjoy my squash as much as I can, because the more I’m relaxed, the more I play well,” said former World Champion Grinham.
“I always try and tell myself not to go for too much, but in the fifth, I told myself that I had to make her work hard for it and win the points instead of me giving them away.”
She will be joined in the second round by Canada’s Hollie Naughton after she upset higher seeded opponent Emily Whitlock to advance at the tournament.
The Canadian enjoyed a five-game battle with the Englishwoman to secure a second-round berth where she will face England’s former World No.1 Laura Massaro.
Joel Makin jumps on the ball in Eindhoven
In the men’s draw, Wales’ Joel Makin ended Dutch hopes as he put wildcard Roshan Bharos to the sword in straight-games.
The Welshman was comfortable on court to dispatch the Dutch hopeful by an 11-3, 11-4, 11-5 scoreline and will now face Egypt’s Marwan ElShorbagy for a place in the quarter-finals.
“Me and Roshan played a bit of juniors together,” said the 24-year-old Welshman. “I know Roshan because he trains in Bristol, which isn’t too far away from me. I know he’s working hard there and trying to improve his game.
“He’s got some nice skills, so hopefully those will give him the points to go up a little bit more now.”
Meanwhile, England’s former World No.1 James Willstrop battled back from the brink of defeat against Australia’s Cameron Pilley to book his place in the second round.
The experienced duo had faced each other seven times in the past on the PSA Tour, with Willstrop claiming all of those wins, however, it looked as though Pilley was finally going to break that run when he went 2-1 up. Willstrop dug in deep though and showed his resilience to produce a masterclass in the fifth game and take a 6-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-9, 11-5 victory.
Willstrop will now face World No.1 and reigning World Champion Ali Farag in the next round.
“It was very hard against Cameron,” said the Commonwealth Games Gold medallist. “I never know where he is going to put the ball, there is so much hold and deception. He’s really hard to play against and we have been playing each other for years.
“The energy levels will need to be topped up after the first two days. It’s a great venue, great new tournament and the atmosphere is good tonight and I’m looking forward to playing Ali [Farag] and hopefully it will be another good atmosphere.”
Willstrop’s compatriot Declan James also enjoyed a strong performance in round one, overcoming Egyptian World Junior Champion Mostafa Asal in a comfortable straight-games victory.
The tall Englishman played with maturity to avenge his defeat to the teenager at December’s Black Ball Open and will now face Egypt’s Mohamed Abouelghar for a place in the quarter-finals.
“I tried to leave emotions out of it,” said James following his victory. “I had a very professional attitude and I’m happy with the level of squash I played.
“I’m playing Abouelghar tomorrow and I can’t wait. The last time we played it was a hard 3-2 in Chicago. I can’t wait to be back on the glass court having a huge battle because I feel that’s where I belong now.”
He will be joined by Daryl Selby in round two after he overcame France’s Lucas Serme in a gruelling 80-minute encounter, while George Parker was unable to make it a clean sweep for the English after he fell to defeat at the hands of Germany’s Raphael Kandra.
Mazen Hesham celebrates victory over Mathieu Castagnet
Meanwhile, Egypt’s Mazen Hesham also claimed an important victory, overcaming experienced Frenchman Mathieu Castagnet, to set up a second-round clash against Germany’s World No.5 Simon Rösner.
The talented Egyptian dominated on court in the opening exchanges against Castagnet to take a 2-0 lead, before the Frenchman began to battle back in the third to reduce the deficit. However, Hesham was able to remain mentally strong to close out the victory by an 11-8, 11-7, 4-11, 11-8 scoreline.
“I think playing Castagnet you can never give him an inch to get back into the match because he will just keep on fighting and fighting,” said the Egyptian following his round one win.
“If you have watched me recently then I am playing so much better than the last few months. I’m getting back better and better slowly and hopefully I can keep going up.”
The second round takes place on Wednesday April 10 at 12 noon local time (UTC+2) and the action will be broadcast live on SQUASHTV (rest of world), Eurosport Player (Europe only) and the official Facebook page of the PSA World Tour (excluding Europe and Japan).
DPD Open Squash, Eindhoven, Netherlands.
Men’s Round One:
James Willstrop (ENG) bt Cameron Pilley (AUS) 3-2: 6-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-9, 11-5 (65m)
Daryl Selby (ENG) bt Lucas Serme (FRA) 3-2: 4-11, 11-4, 11-8, 9-11, 11-5 (80m)
Declan James (ENG) bt Mostafa Asal (EGY) 3-0: 11-5, 11-3, 11-9 (38m)
Mazen Hesham (EGY) bt Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) 3-1: 11-8, 11-7, 4-11, 11-8 (57m)
Gregoire Marche (FRA) bt Borja Golan (ESP) 3-2: 9-11, 11-7, 6-11, 11-9, 11-5 (78m)
Raphael Kandra (GER) bt George Parker (ENG) 3-0: 11-7, 13-11, 11-3 (40m)
Joel Makin (WAL) bt [WC] Roshan Bharos (NED) 3-0: 11-3, 11-4, 11-5 (42m)
Chris Simpson (ENG) bt Tom Richards (ENG) 3-1: 14-12, 15-13, 7-11, 11-7 (70m)
Women’s Round One:
Millie Tomlinson (ENG) bt Milou van der Heijden (NED) 3-1: 11-7, 11-6, 9-11, 11-6 (46m)
Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt Danielle Letourneau (CAN) 3-1: 12-10, 6-11, 11-7, 11-8 (33m)
Rachael Grinham (AUS) bt Olivia Blatchford Clyne (USA) 3-2: 11-8, 11-9, 7-11, 8-11, 11-6 (45m)
Nele Gilis (BEL) bt Julianne Courtice (ENG) 3-1: 7-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-7 (54m)
Yathreb Adel (EGY) bt [WC] Tessa ter Sluis (NED) 3-0: 11-3, 11-9, 11-4 (17m)
Hollie Naughton (CAN) bt Emily Whitlock (ENG) 3-2: 13-11, 7-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-9 (56m)
Mariam Metwally (EGY) bt Coline Aumard (FRA) 3-1: 12-10, 9-11, 11-7, 11-6 (45m)
Nicol David (MAS) bt Rowan Elaraby (EGY) 3-1: 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 11-7 (37m)
Men’s Round Two (Top half) April 10:
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) v James Willstrop (ENG)
Daryl Selby (ENG) v [5] Miguel Rodriguez (COL)
[7] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) v Declan James (ENG)
Mazen Hesham (EGY) v [4] Simon Rösner (GER)
Men’s Round Two (Bottom half) April 11:
[3] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) v Gregoire Marche (FRA)
Raphael Kandra (GER) v [6] Paul Coll (NZL)
[8] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) v Joel Makin (WAL)
Chris Simpson (ENG) v [2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY)
Women’s Round Two (Top half) April 10:
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v Millie Tomlinson (ENG)
Amanda Sobhy (USA) v [7] Alison Waters (ENG)
[5] Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG) v Rachael Grinham (AUS)
Nele Gilis (BEL) v [3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Women’s Round Two (Bottom half) April 11:
[4] Camille Serme (FRA) v Yathreb Adel (EGY)
Hollie Naughton (CAN) v [6] Laura Massaro (ENG)
[8] Tesni Evans (WAL) v Mariam Metwally (EGY)
Nicol David (MAS) v [2] Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Pictures courtesy of PSA
Posted on April 9, 2019
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Declan James to lead England in European Team Champs
Published in
Squash
Wednesday, 10 April 2019 03:25
Declan James in action against Mohamed ElShorbagy at Canary Wharf
England name strong squad for Edgbaston Priory in May
By DONNA HELMER
England National Coach David Campion has named his nine-strong squad which will head to the European Men’s and Women’s Team Squash Championships at Edgbaston Priory Club, Birmingham from 1-4 May.
The squad has pedigree aplenty with 16 Commonwealth medals between them, with all but one competing in last year’s European Team Championships which saw England’s men and women claim silver and gold respectively.
England’s Men: Declan James, James Willstrop, Tom Richards, Daryl Selby and Adrian Waller.
England’s Women: Sarah-Jane Perry, Laura Massaro, Alison Waters and Victoria Lust.
Headlined by England No.1 Declan James, and featuring James Willstrop, who will be appearing in his 16th championships, England’s men will be bidding to claim the title they have won 40 out of 46 times since the tournament’s inception in 1973.
National Coach David Campion said: “Our men’s team is strong in all positions which makes us a very difficult team to get past. France and Germany are the obvious threats, however I’m confident the boys will be able to reach for that little bit extra as they always do when they pull on the England shirt.
“It’s an honour for Declan to lead out the team for the first time at these championships as England’s No.1 player.”
Boasting four female players inside the world top 15, and headlined by Commonwealth Games Silver medallist Sarah-Jane Perry, England’s women, 40-time European champions, will be striving to clinch their ninth consecutive title.
England women celebrate winning last time round
Commenting on the women’s team, Campion said: “England’s women are a formidable force in Europe, and are strong favourites once again to retain the title.
“Sarah-Jane has equalled her highest ever ranking of six, despite a recent setback following elbow surgery, and Victoria has showed great form to equal her highest ever ranking of 13 to complete the team alongside England legends Laura Massaro and Alison Waters.”
Tickets for the championships are available to purchase via eventbrite
Pictures courtesy of England Squash and PSA
Posted on April 10, 2019
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Women seeds safely through in Macau while a trio of men upset on opening day
Published in
Squash
Wednesday, 10 April 2019 09:02
Headline
By ALEX WAN – Squash Mad Asian Bureau Editor
The Macau Squash Open 2019 opened today with a trio of upsets in the men’s event, while the seeds in the women’s all through to the next round. There was also no luck for both the wildcards in the men’s and women’s events, but it was not without any drama.
In the opening match of the afternoon, New Zealand’s Amanda Landers-Murphy survived a tough opener against wild card Chan Sin Yuk of Hong Kong. While her opponent was more than 200 places above her in the world ranking, Chan definitely did not show any nerves. The 2019 British Junior Open runner-up took a commanding two-game lead thanks to strong finishes in both games before Landers-Murphy settled to level at two-a piece.
Amanda Landers-Murphy had to dig deep after falling behind 0-2 against Hong Kong teenager Chan Sin Yuk
The decider was a cracker with both players trading turns to take the lead and it was the younger Chan who got to match ball at 10-8 after a stroke was given in her favour. But the Kiwi fought back gallantly to take the next four points to deny the youngster perhaps the biggest win of her career.
“I’m very happy to get the win today. It was a tough match and going down 2-0, I had to dig very deep to sort of come back. She’s a great player, so I’m just happy to get through it,” said the left handed Landers-Murphy.
Macau’s wild card Liu Kwai Chi did not quite have the same luck as she was outplayed by Japanese Satomi Watanabe in straight games in the quickest game of the day.
Local wildcard Liu Kwai Chi found the pace too fast against Japanese youngster Satomi Watanabe.
Hong Kong quartet Vanessa Chu, Tong Tsz-Wing, Ho Tze-Lok and Liu Tsz-Ling all booked their places into the next round in similar fashion, winning in straight games around the half hour mark. Chu beat Indian teenager Sunayna Kuruvilla, Tong beat Egyptian Salma Youssef, Ho took out Aussie Jessica Turnbull, while Liu won the all-Hong Kong battle against Lee Ka Yi.
It was also a good day in the office for the Malaysian camp as both their women were through to the last sixteen. Former world number 5 Low Wee Wern, who is competing here for the first time, was tested extensively in the first two games of the match against Australia’s Sarah Cardwell. After splitting the first two games, Low went into overdrive and powered through the next two games to secure her place against second seed Salma Hany.
Low’s compatriot, Rachel Arnold, meanwhile, gave a no nonsense display as the mercilessly took out England’s Rachael Chadwick for the loss of just 5 points in under 20 minutes.
In the men’s event, the opening match was cut short after 2017 semi-finalist and joint-ninth seed Omar Abdel Meguid retired while trailing 1-2 and 3-6 in the fourth game against Pakistan’s sole representative Shahjahan Khan. The win earned the US-based Khan a crack against defending champion Yip Tsz Fung tomorrow.
In a battle of the youngsters, 2016 World Junior champion Ng Eain Yow overcame a tough customer in France’s Victor Crouin, the 2017 World Junior runner-up. While he may not have played his best squash today, the higher ranked Malaysian won the bigger points and was able to pull through in four competitive games.
Victor Crouin (r) becomes the first French victim of Ng Eain Yow after the latter won in four.
“I was a little rushed in the third game and I made many mistakes. Mentally, I’ve also never beaten a French player, so I was definitely a little nervous on court today. But I felt that I got that out of my system in the fourth. It’s always tough to get past the first round and yes, I will be more comfortable going tomorrow,” a relieved Ng said after.
Fellow Malaysia Ivan Yuen also advanced into the next round after winning easily against local wild card Manuel Gassmann in just over 20 minutes. Yuen will next face fellow Malaysian Nafiizwan Adnan, who was a semi-finalist here in 2016.
France also had two men advance today after Auguste Dussourd upset the seeding to take out Welsh veteran Peter Creed in the longest match of the day. He twice had to come back from a game down before winning in 75 minutes. Baptista Masotti then made it 2-for-2 for France after taking out Hong Kong’s Henry Leung 3-1.
The other upset of the day was from Swiss Dimitri Steinmann, who beat Egyptian Mazen Gamal in a see saw match. After taking the first two games, the Swiss allowed Gamal to make a comeback to draw level on the tie break in the fourth. However, Steinmann wasn’t about to let Gamal spoil his party as he squeezes through the fifth to book his place against Omar Mosaad.
Dimitri Steinmann stopped the comeback of Mazen Gamal of Egypt to upset the seeding.
In the top and bottom ends of the draw, Spanish players had contrasting fortunes. At the top, Edmon Lopez was victorious but was made to sweat by wild card Lau Tsz Kwan of Hong Kong for nearly an hour. Lau, winner of the PSA5 HK Challenge Cup last month, battled hard in the first three games, but was a spent force in the fourth.
At the bottom, India’s Mahesh Magaonkar booked his place against fellow-countryman Saurav Ghosal after a hard fought win over another Spanish, Bernat Jaume.
FIRST ROUND
Satomi Watanabe (JPN) bt Liu Kwai Chi (MAC) 11-4, 11-1, 11-4 (14m)
Vanessa Chu (HKG) bt Sunayna Kuruvilla (IND) 11-9, 11-9, 11-6 (25m)
Liu Tsz-Ling (HKG) bt Lee Ka Yi (HKG) 11-6, 11-3, 11-3 (24m)
Amanda Landers-Murphy (NZL) bt Chan Sin Yuk (HKG) 8-11, 7-11, 11-7, 11-7, 12-10 (46m)
Tong Tsz-Wing (HKG) bt Salma Youssef (EGY) 11-8, 11-6, 11-7 (EGY)
Rachel Arnold (MAS) bt Rachael Chadwick (ENG) 11-3, 11-1, 11-1 (17m)
Ho Tze-Lok (HKG) bt Jessica Turnbull (AUS) 11-5, 11-9, 13-11 (30m)
Low Wee Wern (MAS) bt Sarah Cardwell (AUS) 12-10, 7-11, 11-2, 11-6 (38m)
Edmon Lopez (ESP) bt Lau Tsz Kwan (HKG) 11-9, 13-11, 11-13, 11-4 (58m)
Ivan Yuen (MAS) bt Manuel Gassmann (MAC) 11-2, 11-3, 11-4 (21m)
Auguste Dussourd (FRA) bt Peter Creed (WAL) 8-11, 11-1, 10-12, 11-5, 11-7 (75m)
Shahjahan Khan (PAK) bt Omar Abdel Meguid (EGY) 11-7, 11-5, 10-12, 6-3 rtd (41m)
Ng Eain Yow (MAS) bt Victor Crouin (FRA) 11-7, 11-9, 11-13, 11-7 (49m)
Baptista Masotti (FRA) bt Henry Leung (HKG) 11-7, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8 (47m)
Mahesh Magaonkar (IND) bt Bernat Jaume (ESP) 11-9, 9-11, 11-8, 11-8 (65m)
Pictures courtesy of Macau Squash Association
Posted on April 10, 2019
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