Koukal Gets Revenge In PSA Dourados by Howard Harding
4 June 2012
- Just a week after losing to the Brazilian in the final of the
Paraguay Open, Czech squash star Jan Koukal gained his revenge by
beating home hero Rafael Alarcon in four games in the final of the
Cerdil Open, the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 event in its third year
at the Shopping Avenida Center in Dourados, Brazil.
Both had survived
tough semi-finals - top seed Koukal ending the impressive run of
unseeded New Zealander Evan Williams in four games to reach his third
successive Cerdil final, but third seed Alarcon battling for more than
an hour to upset second-seeded Egyptian Andrew Wagih Shoukry 3-11,
12-10, 10-12, 11-5, 11-9.
It was Alarcon, the world No79 from Sao Paulo, who took the early lead in the final, however.
But Koukal, who went
down to the top-ranked Brazilian in straight games in the Paraguayan
capital Asuncion, reclaimed the advantage to close out the match 9-11,
11-6, 11-9, 11-9 after 50 minutes.
The win marks the 28-year-old from Prague's 21st PSA World Tour title. RESULTS: PSA Challenger 10 Cerdil Open, Dourados, Brazil
Semi-finals: [1] Jan Koukal (CZE) bt Evan Williams (NZL) 11-13, 11-8, 11-9, 11-5 (58m) [3] Rafael Alarcon (BRA) bt [2] Andrew Wagih Shoukry (EGY) 3-11, 12-10, 10-12, 11-5, 11-9 (65m) Final: [1] Jan Koukal (CZE) bt [3] Rafael Alarcon (BRA) 9-11, 11-6, 11-9, 11-9 (50m)