Illingworth Over Coppinger To Advance In $35K Berkshire Open
by Zafi Levy
April 12, 2012 - Tonight’s play can only be described as a squash fan’s heaven: contrasting styles, clean-as-a-whistle ball strikers, effortless movers, close matches, electric rallies, wonderful sportsmanship—nothing but truly great entertainment. And, with each of the four matches averaging one hour each, there was no shortage of exposure (or ticket value) either!
Watching Chris Gordon battle one of the most dynamic and electric players on tour, Miguel Rodriguez, it was hard to believe that his world ranking is only #81. While the 3-0 game scores suggests otherwise, the length of the match at 44 minutes tells the true story. He contested with unqualified hustle, solid shot selection and total responsibility to his talent, playing within himself and affecting total commitment to . But, in Rodriguez he faced a whirlwind of energy and racquet work; his quickness, strength over the ball and shot-selection creativity makes him a force to be reckoned with: 11-7, 12-10, 11-7 in 44 minutes.
Julian Illingworth continues to show improvement, and his control of the court and the points evidences the professionalism of his dedication to his craft. No longer the talented US kid who is giving a run at the game after an Ivy education, Julian is now a hardened pro with serious world-class credentials and a steadily improving ranking to go with them. While his four gamer over Steve Coppinger, the tourney’s #4 seed, was an upset on paper, Julian’s level of play was a touch higher than Steve’s in every category, although if Steve had converted one of his game-ball opportunities at 10-7 in the second (or later that same game at 11-10) to secure a 2-0 lead, the outcome might have been different. Always a rangy mover with the elasticity of Spider Man, Julian’s improved ball striking—cleaner, more consistently weighted hits—now allows him to control his position and build his points rather than just chase down every ball (although he still does that too!)
The evening’s second match paired another human dynamo, Arturo Salazar, against a tall, lanky, smooth striker in a battle of shot-making extraordinaire. Both players were finding the nick, making for short points and runs of points that determined the outcome of games—five points from 9-6 down in the first for Arturo; five straight to start the second for Yasir; four straight for Arturo to close out the third from 9-7 down; a throwaway for Yasir in the fourth. Finally, the match itself turned on point-play streaks, when in the fifth Yasir went from 2-6 down to 10-6 up, before holding on while Arturo made his own run to 9-10 down before tinning out on an exceedingly high-risk cross-court cut shot on his second swing of the last point.
The last match of the night kept the aficionados in their seats until well past 9:30pm as Siddharth Suchde and Tom Richards (last year’s finalist) battled to as close to a draw as you can come and still have a winner in four games (extra points to finish). Siddharth tireless work-ethic and serious wingspan made for one amazing retrieval after another, forcing the more precision-oriented Richards to maintain his positional composure and restart points which he had seemingly already one. Tom seemed surprising unconcerned after dropping the first game in relatively uninspiring fashion, and it seemed to some that he might be underestimating the obvious ambition and rising ranking of this former Harvard #1 whose present world ranking of #45 (his high-water mark to date) does not yet reflect his top 20 (top 10?) potential. However, Tom quickly gained control of the match with his solid control of the “T” and kept patiently pushing the ball to the corners until openings became available. Then, just when it seemed that Tom had effectively ended the Siddharth challenge, the fourth game went tooth-and-nail into extra points, and if Siddharth had forced a fifth with one of his four game balls, it would have been tempting to predict that the match would have been his.
And, tomorrow night’s match card promises more great squash, with each pairing offering contrasting styles and temperaments. See you there!
Top Half Of First Round
Play in the eighth running of the Berkshire Open kicked off this evening on the newly-floored glass tour court installed for the fourth year running on the Chandler Gymnasium at Williams College, tucked away in hotbed of junior squash in the northwest corner of Massachusetts.
Results for the four matches in the top half of the draw went according to form, with one major exception, although top seed, Alister Martin struggled more than expected in downing world ranked #38 Chris Simpson 3-1 in 74 minutes: 13-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-5. Simpson had two game balls in the first, stayed even in the second then won the third before finally running out of gas in the fourth. Third seed, Borja Golan was considerably more efficient in dispatching qualifier, Charles Sharpes, in a very routine three: 11-5, 11-1, 11-4 in 27 minutes.
Oliver Pett survived two rounds of qualifying and then upset world-ranked #34, Nafizwan Adnan, whose beautiful movement but emotionally passive play allowed a more determined Pett to out-work and out-position Adnan in a lengthy three-gamer: 11-7, 11-9, 12-10 in 50 minutes.
The most entertaining match of the evening paired Shawn Delierre against qualifier, Scott Arnold, and as usual when Shawn plays, there were lots of lets and lots of litigating. Shawn’s opponents tend to take his on-court behavior personally, which is understandable, but the truth is that he just happens to bring his own personality on court just like everyone else. The truth is that he has a great racquet and wonderful anticipation, and if you leave loose balls for him to work with, he is remarkably efficient in out maneuvering his opponents as he did tonight: 11-6, 11-6, 11-13, 11-9 in 82 minutes.
Berkshire Open: First Round Results, Bottom Half
Illingworth def Coppinger: 8-11, 13-11, 11-6, 11-6 (70 minutes)
Butt def Salazar: 9-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-3, 11-9 (56 minutes)
Rodriguez def Gordon: 11-7, 12-10, 11-7 (44 minutes)
Richards def Suchde: 7-11, 11-4, 11-8, 12-10 (65 minutes)
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