19-Jun-03
Parke Powers
to GP title

Men's Final:
Simon Parke bt Peter Nicol  15/12, 15/11, 15/4  (65m)

Women's Final:
Rebecca Macree bt Stephanie Brind  9/6, 9/2, 9/4  (40m)

World no. 12 Simon Parke scored a surprise victory over World no.1 in the Prince Grand Prix Finals at Leamington Tennis & Squash Club. Parke last played at the club 13 years ago and was victorious on that occasion but this win will be all the sweeter with the probable meeting between the pair in the Quarter Finals of next week's Spanish Open.

Both players started quickly and the capacity crowd were treated to some excellent squash in the opening exchanges. Nicol was ahead for much of the game but Parke pegged him back and a tinned volley from the top seed gave Parke the opening game in 30 minutes. Nicol began the stronger in the second but when leading 9-5 he appeared to jar his foot and Parke swept back to 12-9. However, he hit the ball out of court in the next rally and then gifted the next point to apparently let Nicol back in.

Clearly still in some discomfort Nicol went for early winners but instead found the tin and Parke's relentless pressure helped him move ahead 2-0. The third was no contest with Parke, sensing victory, upping the pace and Nicol, sensing defeat, looking increasingly disconsolate.

So after 65 minutes Parke was the new champion, 13 years after he last lifted a trophy on the court.

"I think I might have to come here and train!" quipped a delighted Parke.

World no.7 Rebecca Macree successfully defended her Prince Grand Prix Finals title, beating world no.11 Stephanie Brind in straight games. Earlier this year, Brind displaced Macree at the top of the Prince Grand Prix and the top seed was clearly determined to re-assert her authority.

The first was the tightest of the three with Macree taking an early lead before Brind edged ahead 6-4 making full use of her armoury of boasts and cross-court drops.

Top seed Macree responded by stepping up the court and, as she increased the pressure, Brind's error rate crept up and Macree took the game 9/6.

From there on Macree was always in control and her second successive Prince Finals title was achieved after 40 minutes of play.

   

MEN'S PRINCE GP FINALS 2002
Quarter-Finals
Tue 17 June		 Semi-Finals
Wed 18 June		 FINAL
Thu 19 June
[1] Peter Nicol
15/13, 10/15, 15/5, 15/4 (53m)
Bradley Ball  		Peter Nicol
17/15, 15/4, 15/9  (50m)
Rodney Durbach		 Peter Nicol

5/12, 15/11, 15/4 (65m)

Simon Parke
Rodney Durbach
15/11, 17/15, 15/6  (45m)
[3/4] Nick Matthew
[3/4] Simon Parke
15/11, 15/11, 15/4  (60m)
Peter Genever  		Simon Parke
15/6, 15/8, 10/15, 14/15, 15/8 (100m)
Tim Garner
Tim Garner 
15/12, 15/12, 15/9  (55m)
[2] John White
WOMEN'S PRINCE GP FINALS 2003
Semi-Finals
Wed 18 Jun		 FINAL
Thu 19 Jun
[1] Rebecca Macree
  9/6, 9/6, 9/2  (35m)
Carla Khan		 Rebecca Macree

9/6, 9/2, 9/4 (40m)

Stephanie Brind
Lauren Briggs 
9/5, 9/3, 2/9, 9/5  (43m)
[2] Stephanie Brind
 Hosted by Leamington Spa Squash Club
18-Jun-03
Nicol & Parke
set up GP showdown

World no. 12 Simon Parke put an end to Tim Garner's giant killing run in the semi-finals of the Prince Grand Prix Finals. However, it was a titanic late night battle with Parke eventually triumphing 3-2 after 1 hour & 40 minutes of high calibre squash.

A capacity crowd at Leamington Tennis & Squash Club stayed late in to the night to see Garner claw back a two game deficit, before being edged out in the fifth. It had looked as though it was going to be a comfortable passage for 3/4 seed Parke as he eased to take the first two games with some athletic retrieving and excellent volleys to stop Garner repeating his previous night's heroics. However, buoyed by some enthisiastic support, Garner battled back took the third but despiting some tough exchanges found himself 14-9 match ball down in the fourth.

A straight kill, two clinging drives, followed by similarly tight drops and Garner was back at 14-14. Parke called Set One, a frantic rally ensued, which ended in a let, but the next rally was equally energetic and the crowd thought Parke had won it with a backhand overhead volley, but Parke sportingly acknowledged the ball was down and the match moved into a fifth game. Garner continued to battle bravely but Parke was always ahead and sneaked through to take up his Prince Grand Prix final berth.

His opponent will be World no.1 Peter Nicol who despatched South African no.1 Rodney Durbach in straight games. The first was a real battle with both players vying for the 'T'. There was hardly a point in it until Nicol moved ahead 13-9 but Durbach picked up the next 5 points to lead 14-13. He had a fantastic opportunity to win the game but tinned the forehand volley with Nicol out of position. At 15/15 both players upped the pace and the crowd were treated to an exhilarating rally, that Nicol managed to win. The world's best player rarely needs a second chance and he gratefully closed out the opening game 17/15 in 30 minutes.

Durbach continued to fight hard but Nicol was into his stride by now and was in imperious form as he worked the big South African relentlessly before deftly finishing off the rallies, seemingly at will. His straight games win made up for the game he lost in the previous round and there is no doubt he will relish the chance to take on Parke.

In the women's Prince Grand Prix Finals, the two seeded players eased past less experienced opponents. Top seed Rebecca Macree was always in control against Pakistan no.1 Carla Khan, however, the youngster battled gamely and each time Macree took her foot off the pedal she was made to pay for it. IN particular at the end of the first two games when Khan started to dominate the rallies and started adding to her points tally.

In the other half, second seed Steph Brind dropped the third game against Lauren Briggs. Brind was in total control early on leading 8-0 in the first but there was an indication of what was to come as Briggs recovered to 5-8 before losing the game. Brind cruised to the second but it was all change in the third as Briggs took over and romped home to pull one game back. World no. 11 Brind gathered her thoughts in the interval and came out firing in the fourth, using combinations of boasts and angles to wrong foot her opponent. The tactic worked and Brind progressed to the final and a meeting with long time rival Macree.

17-Jun-03
Garner in Grand
Prix Finals Shock
World no.3 John White crashed out of this year's Prince Grand Prix Finals at the first hurdle to Sussex's Tim Garner. On a hot, bouncy court at Leamington Tennis & Squash Club, Garner hung in against his more illustrious opponent. He started brightly with two forehand straight kills that are normally White's trademark but was made to work hard for his straight games victory.

Garner won this year's Prince Grand Prix and was clearly keen to follow up that success with a good performance in the end of season Finals event. He was able to squeeze the errors from an out of sorts White, in particular at the end of the second game when it looked as though the balance of power might change as it reached 12-12. However, he held his nerve and eventually secured one of the best wins of his career by a 15-12, 15-11, 5-9 scoreline.

"It's great to play a player like John, as when he is hot it is a pleasure to be that close to some of the incredible shots he plays, but if he is not, then you always feel you have an outside chance of sneaking a win" commented Garner.

Garner now meets World no.12 Simon Parke, who beat his Sussex team-mate Peter Genever 3-0 after an hour of athletic retrieving. The first two games were closely fought, with Parke just having the edge at the end of each. Parke is off to Seville next week for the Spanish Open and is clearly still in the form that has seen him rise back up to a top 16 ranking and eyeing a return to the World's top 10. He was definitely pleased to have got the tough competitor Genever off in straight games and will be confident of beating Garner, having beaten him 3-0 at the end of March in the Millfield Partnership Esporta Open.

Newly crowned South African Champion, Rodney Durbach kicked the evening's matches off, also with a straight games win, over Yorkshire's Nick Matthew. World no.24 Matthew dominated many of the early exchanges but could not convert it in to points. A tie break in the second game may have given him a boost had he won it, but once Durbach had closed out the game 17/15 Matthew's challenge seemed to run out of steam.

In fact, the only player to drop a game on the night was World no.1 Peter Nicol, who allowed Suffolk's Bradley Ball the second before easing to a four game win. Nicol edged the first 15/13, but Ball battled back and a series of explosive winners in the second helped him to tie it at one apiece. However, Nicol was clearly not pleased to be forced into playing the extra game and rattled off the remaining two in impressive style. Ball battled to the end but a period out of the game with a knee injury started to take effect by the end as Nicol worked him into all the corners of the court.

A capacity crowd left the arena in high spirits having witnessed the first professional squash at Leamington Squash Club for over a decade and there promises to be more excitement tomorrow as the women join the fray.

 
08-Jun-03
Charman out of GP Finals
Linda Charman has withdrawn from next week's Prince Grand Prix Finals in Leamington Spa suffering from exhaustion. After a long and gruelling season a disappointing loss to Vanessa Atkinson in Hurghada convinced Charman that it was time to hang up the racket for the season.

"It has been a long, tough season and all that I can now think of is having a few weeks away from the squash court before starting training for next season. It is obviously disappointing to have to pull out of the Prince Finals but I know that I will do myself some serious damage if I tried to play." commented Charman on her return from Egypt.

The beneficiary of Charman's withdrawal is Essex's Lauren Briggs who comes into face Stephanie Brind. If the event now goes according to rankings it will be Brind, who faces new top seed and defending champion Rebecca Macree in the final.



Linda denies that her
withdrawal is due to PHCSS
(Post-Hurghada
Crab-Shock Syndrome)

 Photo by Rachael Grinham

 
26-May-03  
BSPA Prince Grand Prix Finals 2003
17-19 June, Leamington Spa

The BSPA is delighted to announce that the Prince Grand Prix Finals will once again complete what has been another successful British season.

This year the finals will take place between 17-19th June and will be hosted by Leamington Spa Tennis & Squash Club in Warwickshire.

During the late 80s & early 90s Leamington Spa was the scene of a regular tournament on the British circuit. BSPA tour director, Tim Garner said "It is great to be able to take the Prince Finals to a club that has been dormant on the tournament scene for a number of years. They already have number of nationally ranked and capped juniors and hopefully, a successful event will see them return to hosting top quality squash on an annual basis."

As in previous years, a star studded line-up will battle for the title. Topping the men's seeds World no.1 Peter Nicol will be looking to avenge last weeks loss to PSA Masters Champion John White. The Yorkshire duo of Simon Parke & Nick Matthew will be seeded to meet them in the semis, but first all four will have to battle past an opponent from Rodney Durbach, Peter Genever, Bradley Ball & Tim Garner.

Meanwhile in the Women's event, there is an anticipated final clash between old adversaries Linda Charman & Rebecca Macree, however, Steph Brind & Carla Khan will have something to say about that.

For further information, contact info@bspasquash.com

2003 Finals
Line-up

Peter Nicol
John White
Simon Parke
Nick Matthew
Rodney Durbach
Peter Genever
Bradley Ball
Tim Garner

Linda Charman
Rebecca Macree
Stephanie Brind
Carla Khan
Lauren Briggs

Leamington Spa
Squash Club

 

2002 Finals

2001 Finals