Koukal Captures PSA Caboolture Crown by Howard Harding 4 November 2013
- Czech squash star Jan Koukal celebrated his second successive PSA
World Tour title in Australia in a week when he beat Sebastiaan Weenink
in the final of the Caboolture Open, the PSA Challenger 5 event in its
fourth year at Caboolture Squash & Fitness in Caboolture in
Queensland.
The world No74 from
Prague reached the final - the 46th of his career - after only dropping
one game.
A massive
quarter-final breakthrough by Weenink saw the unseeded Dutchman topple
second-seeded New Zealander Evan Williams in five games to reach the
semis - when he again survived a five-game battle to overcame Hong Kong
qualifier Tsz Fung Yip.
It was the
Rotterdam-born 27-year-old's second appearance in a Tour final - and
second in a row against Koukal!
Despite the effects of
the previous two rounds, world No 117 Weenink took Koukal to a
tie-break in the first game - but the top seed took control thereafter,
winning 14-12, 11-4, 11-4 in 50 minutes to net the 26th Tour title of
his career.
The Caboolture success
is the latest milestone in a formidable year for the 12-time Czech
national champion - who has already competed in 22 Tour events in 2013,
reaching the finals on eight occasions and claiming four titles!
RESULTS: PSA
Challenger 5 Caboolture Open, Caboolture, Australia
1st round: [1] Jan Koukal (CZE)
bt Pablo Rawden (ENG) 9-11, 11-5, 11-2, 11-6 (39m) [Q] Hesham Mohamed Aly
(EGY) bt Andrew Fraser (AUS) 11-7, 11-7, 14-12 (46m) Nathan Stevenson (AUS)
bt Rhys Dowling (AUS) 10-12, 11-4, 8-11, 11-2, 11-4 (49m) Addeen Idrakie (MAS)
bt [6] Joshua Larkin (AUS) 9-11, 12-10, 14-12, 11-8 (58m) [8] Sunil Seth (GUY)
bt James Skiffington (NZL) 11-6, 11-8, 11-6 (26m) [Q] Matthew Hopkin
(AUS) bt Shinnosuke Tsukue (JPN) 11-9, 11-9, 11-9 (33m) [Q] Ollie Holland
(ENG) bt Thomas Calvert (AUS) 11-1, 11-5, 11-2 (23m) [4] Cheuk Yan Tang
(HKG) bt Lance James Beddoes (NZL) 11-2, 11-4, 12-10 (28m) [3] Adam Murrills
(ENG) bt [Q] Gurshan Singh (MAS) 12-10, 13-11, 11-3 (31m) Yuta Fukui (JPN) bt
[Q] Abhinav Sinha (IND) 11-4, 11-4, 11-7 (38m) [Q] Tsz Fung Yip (HKG)
bt Kwon Hyeon-Jun (KOR) 11-8, 9-11, 11-2, 11-3 (38m) [7] Ondrej Ertl (CZE)
bt [WC] Courtney West (AUS) 11-5, 11-8, 11-9 (40m) [Q] Chi Him Wong (HKG)
bt [5] Lukas Burkhart (SUI) 8-11, 11-8, 11-13, 11-9, 11-7 (54m) Sebastiaan Weenink
(NED) bt T J Rarere (AUS) 11-6, 11-7, 11-3 (28m) Thoboki Mohohlo (RSA)
bt [Q] Hannan Tarmidi (MAS) 14-12, 11-6, 12-14, 5-11, 11-5 (59m) [2] Evan Williams
(NZL) bt Jonathan Geekie (SCO) 11-7, 11-4, 11-4 (31m)
