June 2013

England are the new Champions of the World!

The final of the Men’s World Team Championships went into the decider as Englands Daryl Selby scored in the 1st match and Egypts Ramy Ashour leveled in the 2nd. The deciding match saw James Willstrop who was able to beat Karim Darwish in 4 games to secure the World Team title for England.

[2] ENGLAND bt [1] EGYPT 2/1
Daryl Selby bt Tarek Momen 11-5, 11-3, 11-7 (52m)
Nick Matthew lost to Ramy Ashour 11-5, 6-11, 9-11, 9-11 (63m)
James Willstrop bt Karim Darwish 11-3, 11-13, 11-3, 11-5 (69m)


France takes bronze medal!

The French team managed to get a good end by taking the bronze medal by beating Australia. After Greg Gaultier secured the victory his team was selebrating on the glass court …

[3] FRANCE bt [4] AUSTRALIA 2/0
Mathieu Castagnet bt Ryan Cuskelly 8-11, 11-8, 7-11, 11-9, 11-6 (123m)
Gregory Gaultier bt Cameron Pilley 11-9, 11-4, 11-4 (52m)
Thierry Lincou v David Palmer not played


England made the final!

England made their way into the final as Nick Matthew and James Willstrop scored magnificent wins against Greg Gaultier and Thierry Lincou.

[2] ENGLAND bt [3] FRANCE 2/0
Nick Matthew bt Gregory Gaultier 5-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-5, 12-10 (138m)
James Willstrop bt Thierry Lincou 11-3, 11-8, 7-11, 13-11 (68m)
Daryl Selby v Mathieu Castagnet not played


Titleholder Egypt is the 1st finalist!

Titleholder Egypt is the 1st finalist of the Men’s Team Championships in Mulhouse as they beat Australia in a very tense match to reach the final for the 3rd time in a row.

[1] EGYPT bt [4] AUSTRALIA 2/1
Karim Darwish lost to Cameron Pilley 10-12, 16-14, 10-12, 9-11 (74m)
Omar Mosaad bt David Palmer 11-13, 11-6, 11-9, 11-9 (80m)
Tarek Momen bt Ryan Cuskelly 3-11, 11-6, 11-5, 7-11, 11-5 (67m)


Top 4 Nations reach World Semis!

Egypt, England, Australia and hosts France will contest the semi-finals of the Men’s World Team Championship for the 4th time in a row after surging through the quarter-finals of the biennial event being staged in France for the first time in its 46-year history.

Favourites Egypt, looking to become the first nation since 1987 to win the title three times in a row, brushed aside eighth seeds India 2/0. Australia, the 4th seeds beat Germany, the No6 seeds, 2/0. 2nd seeds England faced tournament dark horses South Africa, and beat the No7 seeds 3/0. France rounded off the evening by conquering Malaysia 3/0.

Semi-final line-up:
[1] EGYPT v [4] AUSTRALIA
[2] ENGLAND v [3] FRANCE

5th – 8th place play-offs:
[6] GERMANY v [8] INDIA
[5] MALAYSIA v [7] SOUTH AFRICA

9th – 12th place play-offs:
[15] CANADA v [14] PAKISTAN
[11] USA v [16] SCOTLAND

13th – 16th place play-offs:
[10] HONG KONG CHINA v [12] NEW ZEALAND
[9] FINLAND v [13] MEXICO

17th – 20th place play-offs:
[17/20] KUWAIT v [17/20] SWITZERLAND
[17/20] NETHERLANDS v [21/24] ARGENTINA

21st – 24th place play-offs:
[21/24] IRELAND v [25/28] JAPAN
[17/20] COLOMBIA v [21/24] BOTSWANA

25th – 28th place play-offs:
[29/31] RUSSIA v [29/31] KENYA
[25/28] CZECH REPUBLIC v [25/28] POLAND

29th – 32nd place play-offs:
[25/28] VENEZUELA bye
[21/24] AUSTRIA v [29/31] NAMIBIA


South Africa and Germany storm into top 8!

South Africa and Germany reclaimed their status as World top 8 nations after storming through the last 16 round of the Men’s World Team Squash Championship in Mulhouse.

Seventh seeds South Africa, who finished in an all-time low 13th position in the previous championship in 2011, despatched Finland, the ninth seeds and one-time bronze medallists, 2/0. “It means so much for us to get into the top eight,” said South Africa coach Richard Castle.

Buoyed by local support in the 2011 event in Paderborn, Germany emphatically exceeded their 16th seeding by finishing in ninth place – then moved up to eighth when Italy nation was disqualified. Two years on, the focussed 6th seeds today defeated New Zealand 2/1. World No12 Simon Rosner led the assault, beating Campbell Grayson 13-11, 2-0 (ret.) – and team-mate Jens Schoor clinched victory by outplaying 23-year-old Kiwi Evan Williams 11-5, 11-5, 11-5. “It’s unbelievable,” said German manager Oliver Pettke of his team’s success. “I cannot find words to express my feelings.

Quarter-final line-up:
[1] EGYPT v [8] INDIA
[4] AUSTRALIA v [6] GERMANY
[3] FRANCE v [5] MALAYSIA
[2] ENGLAND v [7] SOUTH AFRICA

All results at the official event website: http://worldmensquash-mulhouse2013.fr/


Canada won crucial clash!

A crucial match in final qualifying rounds of the Men’s World Team Squash Championship in France – the outcome of which would either have put one nation into the world top 16 for the 1st time ever or another out of the elite group for the 1st time in 21 appearances – saw Canada edge past Colombia 2/1 to maintain top 16 status since 1971.

The glass-court clash for second place in Pool B, behind former champions England, got underway when squad number three Andrew Schnell put 15th seed Canada ahead with an 11-4, 5-11, 11-9, 11-4 victory over Andres Vargas. Colombia’s new world No19 Miguel Angel Rodriguez took on Shawn Delierre and beat the experienced Canadian in straight games to level the tie. The decider saw 28-year-old Dane Sharp, the world No82 from Toronto, beating Bernardo Samper, a 31-year-old New York-based Colombian 13-11, 11-3, 11-6 after 44 minutes.
Last sixteen round draw:
[1] EGYPT v [15] CANADA
[8] INDIA v [10] HONG KONG CHINA
[4] AUSTRALIA v [14] PAKISTAN
[6] GERMANY v [12] NEW ZEALAND
[5] MALAYSIA v [11] USA
[3] FRANCE v [13] MEXICO
[7] SOUTH AFRICA v [9] FINLAND
[2] ENGLAND v [16] SCOTLAND

All results at the official event website: http://worldmensquash-mulhouse2013.fr/


Botswana boast breakthrough!

“Our first championship – and our first win,” exclaimed the exuberant Botswana No1 Alister Walker as he stepped off the court after winning the decider against Poland on the 2nd day of qualifying in the WSF Men’s World Team Squash Championship in France.

Both Poland and Botswana are making their debuts in the 24th edition of the biennial event which is being held in France for the first time. Lekgotla Mosope put Botswana ahead with an 11-1, 11-4, 12-10 victory over Marcin Karwowski, but Pole Lukasz Stachowski fought back, beating Koketso Ntshebe in 4 games to level proceedings. It then took just 22 minutes for Walker, the US-based world No15, to despatch Poland’s top-ranked Wojtek Nowisz 11-7, 11-2, 11-5 to clinch victory.

“It will definitely be good for squash in Botswana and will help us get recognition from the relevant bodies,” said Botswana Squash President TK Rabasha afterwards. “It will give them an appreciation of what squash can do for the country. And hopefully it will help us attract sponsors.

The top 3 seeds Egypt, England and France posted 3/0 wins. Defending champions Egypt beat Scotland, while second seeds England defeated 15th seeds Canada and host France overcame Pakistan.

All results at the official event website: http://worldmensquash-mulhouse2013.fr