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Nour El Tayeb (Egy) bt Sharon Wee (Mas)
        11/7, 11/8, 11/8 (27m)

Nour runs into main draw

The run of success for the juniors kept on coming as Nour El Tayeb ousted qualifying second seed Sharon Wee in the first match of the day at Frans Otten.

The 16-year-old Egyptian covered every inch of the court, as she does, performing some amazing retrievals and keeping her opponent guessing about what was coming next for most of the match.

Sharon has a nice line in delicate dropshots which usually prove very effective for her, but Nour can run down pretty much everything, and has her own stable of flicks, boasts and crosscourt drops from the front, and she won a lot of points with those today, and Sharon just couldn't find a way of stopping her.

Nour took good starts in the first two games, and held on to them, but the third was point for point up to 6-all, before she went ahead with a flying volley drop into the nick, going on to take an impressive win over the world #29 and a place in the main draw.

“Beating Sharon is definitely a good win, I know how good a player she is. She has good dropshots, she plays them like an Egyptian, but thankfully I was able to get to them and play my own flicks. It felt as though I was playing well, but you can never tell when you’re on court …

“After the worlds I took a week, 10 days off, then started training for this event. I don’t want to look at the main draw – my target here was to play well, I wasn’t thinking about making the main draw, so anyone I get is a bonus …”



“I’m disappointed to lose, but she played really well, and it’s good to see a new crop of youngsters coming through and taking over.

"She was just doing her stuff at the front, and I didn’t know where she was coming from, she’s got magic hands!”

Donna Urquhart (Aus) bt Low wee Wern (Mas)
        11/5, 11/8, 11/3 (26m)

Donna despatches Wee Wern

Donna Urquhart’s rich vein of for continued as she outpowered Malaysia’s Low Wee Wern to become the second qualifier.

The Australian set out at a fast pace from the very start, hitting the ball hard and crisply, not letting he opponent dwell on the ball. And she kept it up for the best part of three games. Only in the middle of the second did she relent, Wee Wern pulling back a 1-6 deficit to as close as 9-9, but Donna found the two points necessary to close out that game, then resumed the onslaught in the fourth.

“I didn’t do anything too special, but she made quite a few mistakes. I tried to keep the pace and intensity up, she beat me a couple of times in Malaysia so I knew she was comfortable with a slower pace where she can work you around, I didn’t want to get sucked into that type of game.

“It’s hard to keep that up for three games though, I definitely didn’t expect to do that. Taking the second was crucial, it’s a big difference being two up compared to one-all.

“Especially after doing so well last week, I wanted to do well here so that it wouldn’t be a one-off. I haven’t even looked at the draw, looking wouldn’t make any difference to who I get!”

 Joshna Chinappa (Ind) bt Nour El Sherbini (Egy)
         8/11, 11/9, 7/11, 11/8, 11/8 (44m)

Joshna stops Sherbini run

Nour El Sherbini’s bid to become the youngest-ever player in the World Open main draw fell just short as India’s Joshna Chinappa carried out her plan to perfection, becoming India’s first-ever main draw entrant in the process.

It was obvious from the start that Joshna was going for her shots, low hard drives, attacking boasts from the back of the court, trying to keep Sherbini at full stretch and deny her the space and time which she uses so effectively when it’s given to her.

It was a high risk strategy, but effective, and Joshna made surprisingly few errors considering the way she was playing. Sherbini retrieved like a demon, as she does, and managed to take control for spells, but was generally forced to do more defensive work than attacking.

Errors cost Joshna the first, and a slow start cost her the third, but in the three games she won she took the initiative, took an early lead and forced Sherbini to play catchup – which she did willingly, but each time Joshna was able to find the winners necessary to take the game.

"She's a good player, has good shots and she's a great retriever, and she's beaten some good players so I knew I couldn't take anything for granted and that I would have to work hard to win this match.

“I was trying to keep the ball in play, then when I went for a shot I knew it had to be a winner, I couldn’t afford to let her back into the rally.

“I always seem to struggle when I’m 10/6, 10/7 match ball, I just wanted to get it finished and I hit a couple of tins but thankfully got it in the end.

“Last year I was matchball up in the qualifying finals and lost, so it’s great to make the main draw this time, especially if I’m the first Indian to do so.

“I haven’t looked to see who I might get, they’re all good at this level. Making the main draw is great, but I’m not satisfied yet …”

 Amanda Sobhy (Usa) bt  Kylie Lindsay (Nzl)
         11/9, 12/10, 5/11, 11/9 (34m)

Amanda edges past Kylie

Amanda Sobhy, easily the lowest-ranked of all today’s competitors at world #84, made it two 16-year-olds in the main draw as she got the better of a tough, close encounter with Kylie Lindsay.

There was nothing to choose between them for three of the four games, both but it was the American youngster who came from behind to sneak the first two games before the Kiwi pulled one back with comparative ease.

There was plenty of determined play out there, both sensing a great opportunity , but once again it was Amanda who finished the fourth better, taking it with a volley kill at 9-all to set up match ball, and gratefully accepting the stroke as Kylie hit the ball back at herself with a frustrated ’aarrrgghh’.

“That could have gone either way, you just have to be a little bit off in matches like that and it’s gone.

“My hand wasn’t sharp at all today, I had to work really hard, so I’m glad I had my fitness to rely on. I’ve been working on speed and agility with a new fitness trainer, Jeff Telbi, for a couple of weeks and it’s paying dividends.

“I still haven’t told my teachers at school I’m here, I have to try to manage it so that I don’t get enough absences to fail, but I did bring all my books !”

“Fortunately it went my way today, and this has to be up there in my top one or two. It’s good to be one of few Americans to make the world open main draw, and hopefully in a few years me and my sister Sabrina [she’s 12] can be the new Grinham sisters!”

Aisling Blake (Irl) bt Victoria Lust (Eng)
          16/18, 8/11, 11/9, 12/10, 11/8 (82m)

Blake bags one for the 'old brigade'
 
For two and a half games Victoria Lust looked for all the world as though she was going to notch up another win for the youngsters. Not that it was easy for the 20-year-old Englishwoman to get two games up on Aisling Blake, 28, far from it.

The first two games were hard fought, evenly matched, and very tough. Victoria led the first, just, all the way but struggled to finish it. The first time Aisling led was at 13-12, but eventually Victoria took it 18-16 on her sixth game ball.

She carried the momentum into the second, which she led throughout , this time closing it out. Aisling regrouped and the third was close – 1-all through to 6-all, but Victoria eked out a lead, 8-6 and 9-7. She couldn’t close it out this time though, Aisling came back again to reach 10-9, then took it 12-10 as she served into the nick, much to Victoria’s disgust.

Until now it had been a very clean match, few interruptions and an easy night for the refs. If those three games had taken longer than many five-setters so far in the event, it was down to the length of the rallies.

But in the fourth and fifth the intensity increased and they went at it hammer and tong, and towards the end of the fifth many points were being played several times over as both players asked for lets. Aisling was in dig-in mode by now, and Victoria was getting desperate to finish it.

Victoria saved game ball in the fourth with a serve into the nick to return the favour from the third, but it wasn’t enough to stop Aisling levelling. The Irishwoman took the early lead in the decider, 6-2, battled her way to 10-6 before finally closing it out 11-8 after 82 minutes, and the schedule was destroyed.

“I knew she’d taken out a couple of higher ranked players in the last two days so I wasn’t taking anything for granted, but she’s improved so much since we played a few months ago, she’s really come on.

“Anything around the middle she was just killing with low drives, it took me a long time to work out how to counteract that. I took the pace down a bit, tried to penetrate the back corners, and basically just hung in there.

“I expected a tough match, but not one that long. It’s nice to win a five-setter though, I have a habit of losing those.

“I haven’t even looked who I might get, it doesn’t make any difference, playing anyone from the top sixteen is always a good experience. Looking at the draw there’s so many youngsters going through, so I think I managed to get one back for the Over 25 brigade today!”

Sarah Kippax (Eng) bt Dipika Pallikal (Ind)
           11/5, 2/11, 11/8, 10/12, 12/10 (51m)

What a way to win

It seemed to be the day of the juniors, and ok it seems strange to be casting Sarah Kippax as one of the ‘old brigade’, but when she took on 18-years-and one-day Dipika Pallikal, that’s how it seemed.

But on this one the junior didn’t succeed, but failed in heartbreaking fashion.

Sarah is a solid, steady player in the English mould, few flashy winners but hard to break down and hard to beat. Dipika has a reputation of going for winners come what may, win or bust, or something like that …

But that’s not the Dipika we saw today. Her reunion with Malcolm Willstrop seems to have turned her into a different player from the one that turned up for the world juniors in hometown Chennai just a few weeks ago. Yes, the winners are still there, put in a loose serve at your peril, but the application is there too, and tonight she matched Sarah in that department, Malcolm would have been proud.

To the match. The first two games were shared, fairly comfortably, didn’t see much of those. Dipika got a good start in the third but Sarah stuck in, profited from some tins from Dipika at the end of the game to take the lead.

The fourth was tough. Dipika worked hard to pull away from 7-all, nearly wasted it with three quick tins to bring on extra points, but found two more winners to level the match.

The decider couldn’t have been much closer, and very tense. Dipika moved out to 7-3, Sarah levelled. Errors from Dipika at the end of long rallies saw Sarah reach 10-8, two lovely winners brought it level again.

10-all in the fifth then. A long rally, Dipika glues one to the forehand side wall, Sarah scrapes it off for an ungettable winner. 11-10. Dipika drills the ball into the forehand back corner, Sarah hits the wall, the ball, and sends it spinning for another outrageous winner.

It was a really good match, it didn’t deserve to be finished like that, but sometimes that’s how it goes …

“I’d never played her before, never even seen her play, but I’d heard she goes for her winners, I wasn’t expecting her to stick in like she did, she played really well.

“I couldn’t seem to settle through the whole match, she likes to get onto the ball quickly and I just couldn’t get comfortable.

“That’s the worst way I’ve ever finished a game though, I don’t think I really deserved it at the end. Still, it’s good to get through when you don’t feel you’re playing at your best, and it’s good to get some work into the legs too.

“It’s great to qualify for a second time. There was a bit of pressure on me last time with the Ambassador thing, although I did enjoy it. I haven’t even glanced at the draw to see who I might get though, let’s just see what happens …”

Latasha Khan (Usa) bt Emma Beddoes (Eng)
           8/11, 11/5, 11/9, 11/8 (50m)

Ten and counting for Latasha

Tough match. Neither likely to give anything away, ever. She may be the oldest player in the competition, playing in her tenth World Open, but Latasha Khan loves running, and so does Emma Beddoes. You get the idea.

It was the American who made the running after a slow-ish start, and when she went 10-4 ahead in the fourth it looked all over.

Emma decided to go into "you've got to win this" mode, forced long rally after long rally, pulled four points back, but finally, finally, Latasha found a dropshot that was just too tight.

"It's always a battle with Emma, even at 10-4 I knew I was going to have to do a lot of work to finish it, she just never gives up, but I had enough points in hand, I knew I'd be able to find a lucky shot or a winner from somewhere.

"I'm feeling pretty fit and I just like playing. I don't put pressure on myself to win or to get points, I just try to enjoy it. The standard of this qualifying event is the best I've ever seen, we need more tournaments and more prize money to support the players.

"I just love playing this event, and with it being in Amsterdam this year, I'm good friends with Tommy and Natalie so I'm really happy to be part of it. Tommy's put so much effort into it, and it's turning out to be a great event."

 

Joey Chan (Hkg) bt Annelize Naudé (Ned)
           6/11, 11/7, 11/5, 11/9 (33m)

Joey dents Dutch hopes

The last match of the day saw the last chance for the hosts to gain extra representation in the main draw. Annelize Naudé made a sound enough start, but slowly but surely the pace and sheer persistence of Hong Kong’s Joey Chan ground her down.

Annelize was given no time as Joey buzzed around the court, keeping the pace high. Annelize came close to forcing a decider, coming from 6-1 down in the fourth, but Joey was not to be denied.

“I haven’t played Annelize for a few years, she used to train in Hong Kong but I never beat her there. She has good disguise and flick shots, it took me a while to pick them up, but in the second I got used to her game and tried to up the pace, keeping her at the back.

“I know the crowd were on her side, I just ignored that and concentrated on the match.

“It feels very good, to make the main draw of the World Open for the first time!”