39-Year-Old Latasha Khan Advances To $11K WSA Toronto Granite Club Final
reported by Sam Cornett
March 28, 2012
Latasha Khan def Misaki Kobayashi 3-1
The first game, Latasha came on strong, it must have been because of her pre-game trampolining! Latasha took the first with great drops and great volleys. The second game, however, was a lot closer and it was back and forth all the way up to 13-11. Latasha stayed in control, and just barely pulled out the second game. Misaki played really great in the third, with some beautiful drops and great dying length, and some holds! She pulled that one out, and then raced ahead to 6-2 in the fourth. Latasha made a few mistakes, Misaki made some unbelievable gets and shots, but then once she got up she made a few mistakes. Misaki was up 9-6, and then a few mistakes again put the score to 9-9. Error, 10-9 Latasha. Error, 10-10. Error, 11-10 Latasha. Great gets by Misaki in the last rally, but Latasha finished the match in style with a fabulous cross kill. 11-4, 12-10, 6-11, 12-10.
Alison Waters def Siyoli Waters 3-0
The battle of the Waters’! This match started off with Alison, former world number 3, hitting superb length and a few nicks. In the second, Siyoli gave her a harder time with some beautiful drops, a nice hold, and some great dying length, but it wasn’t enough to test Alison too much, as she still took the game with confidence. The third involved some great rallies, lots of ooos and ahhhs from the crowd, but in each one Alison stretched Siyoli over and over again, putting her off balance. We are honoured here at the Granite to have such an amazing player come to our event! 11-5, 11-4, 11-4
Also today was the ProAm, where the pros each played with a sponsor! As everyone got more comfortable with the hardball game, the rallies got better and better! I must admit, the so-called “amateurs” had a lot of the cheeky doubles shots that us girls had trouble anticipating! Lots of fun today.
The finals tomorrow show first seed Khan vs former world number 3 Waters. The crowd will enjoy free beer, refreshments, and snacks as they watch this high-quality match. There will be lots of kids around to learn from the best after their Thursday night training!
DRAW