World Masters Finals Report: Record High Fives For Davenport, Murphy & Van Der Wath by Howard Harding July 11, 2014
- While Australia swept the board with 17 medals - seven of them gold -
on today's final day of action in the WSF World Masters Squash
Championships in Hong Kong, it was South African Craig van der Wath,
England's Averil Murphy and Australian Geoffrey Davenport who stole the
headlines after winning record fifth titles.
More than 750 players
from all corners of the globe have been competing in 18 World Masters
events - from Men's and Women's Over-35 through to Men's Over-80
categories - with action split between the Hong Kong Squash Centre and
Hong Kong Football Club.
Van der Wath, a
48-year-old former world No31 who won his first World Masters title in
2001, successfully defended his Over-45 crown by beating fellow
countryman Michael Tootill, the No2 seed, 13-11, 11-4, 11-5 in the
32-minutes final.
Davenport began his
successful Masters run in 2003, winning the first of two Over-45
titles. Over seven round of the Over-55 championship, the 56-year-old
from Sydney dropped just a single game before brushing aside compatriot
Kelvin Smith 11-1, 11-5, 11-9 in 21 minutes in today's final.
But it was back in
1989 that Averil Murphy started stocking her trophy cabinet with World
Masters gold medals after winning the Women's Over-40 title. 25 years
on and the 66-year-old from Essex still has what it takes.
Murphy justified her
top billing by dismissing France's 3/4 seed Claire Bryars 11-8, 11-9,
11-1 in just 15 minutes to win her fifth title in a fourth age category.
Mother and daughter
Grainger pulled off their anticipated family double when World Masters'
debutante Natalie Grainger clinched the Women's Over-35 title and true
event veteran Jean Grainger, the distinguished 71-year-old South
African, picked up her fourth World title with victory in the Women's
Over-70 championship.
But while 37-year-old
'youngster' Natalie, representing the USA, grabbed her title after just
a single game when second-seeded Australian Melissa Martin was forced
to retire through injury, Jean was taken the full distance in her final
before prevailing 13-11, 9-11, 11-9, 7-11, 11-5 over compatriot Sheena
Worwood.
Five-time World Open
champion Sarah Fitz-Gerald came out on top in the Women's Over-45
event, beating fellow Australian Sarah Nelson 11-9, 11-2, 11-1 in 17
minutes. The Bronze medal went to unseeded Susan Davis in the only
event in which one country claimed a clean sweep of the medals.
After Melissa's misery
in the Women's Over-35 final, there was further disappointment for the
Martin family when husband Brett Martin, top seed in the Men's Over-50
event, went down to second seed Willie Hosey, the defending champion
from Ireland, 11-9, 11-6, 13-11.
The biggest surprise
of the day came in the Women's Over-50 final when Australia's 5/8 seed
Sue Hillier became the lowest seed to claim gold when she upset South
African top seed Leora Greenwood 11-2, 11-4, 11-3.
Australia also
benefited from a significant upset in the Women's Over-55 final where
3/4 seed Mary Sceney defeated top-seeded compatriot Anne Richards 5-11,
11-8, 11-6, 11-3 to win her first World Masters title since Over-40
success in 2001.
RESULTS: WSF World Masters Squash Championships, Hong Kong China
Over-45: [1] Craig van der Wath (RSA) bt [2] Michael Tootill (RSA) 13-11, 11-4, 11-5 (32m) Bronze medal play-off: [3/4] Jean-Jacques Pineau (FRA) bt [5/8] Predi Fritsche (GER) 11-9, 11-8, 11-9 (28m)
Over-50: [2] Willie Hosey (IRL) bt [1] Brett Martin (AUS) 11-9, 11-6, 13-11 (24m) Bronze medal play-off: [3/4] Peter Hill (HKG) bt [5/8] Jonathan Clark (ENG) w/o
Over-55: [1] Geoffrey Davenport (AUS) bt [5/8] Kelvin Smith (AUS) 11-1, 11-5, 11-9 (21m) Bronze medal play-off: [2] Zainal Abidin (SIN) bt Dave Fuller (AUS) 11-5, 11-3, 11-8 (18m)
Over-60: [1] John Macrury (CAY) bt [3/4] Johnny Orsmond (RSA) 11-7, 9-11, 11-5, 5-11, 11-7 (38m) Bronze medal play-off: [3/4] Stuart Hardy (ENG) bt [2] Peter Alexander (ENG) w/o
Over-45: [1] Sarah Fitz-Gerald (AUS) bt [2] Sarah Nelson (AUS) 11-9, 11-2, 11-1 (17m) Bronze medal play-off: Susan Davis (AUS) bt [3/4] Diana Parums (ENG) 11-6, 11-4, 11-5 (16m)
Over-50: [5/8] Sue Hillier (AUS) bt [1] Leora Greenwood (RSA) 11-2, 11-4, 11-3 (13m) Bronze medal play-off: [3/4] Susan Williams (AUS) bt [3/4] Kathryn McKay (NZL) 11-5, 11-5, 12-10 (21m)
Over-55: [3/4] Mary Sceney (AUS) bt [1] Anne Richards (AUS) 5-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-3 (25m) Bronze medal play-off: [2] Lisa O'Grady (RSA) bt [3/4] Karen Hume (ENG) 9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-6 (27m)
Over-60: [2] Pauline Douglas (SCO) bt [1] Sue Volkze (AUS) 11-9, 11-3, 11-2 (23m) Bronze medal play-off: [3/4] Gaye Mitchell (AUS) bt [3/4] Freda Walker (NZL) 11-2, 11-5, 11-8 (10m)
