Droesbeke and Saxby Claim South Australian Open Crowns from PSA Media
photo PSA
July 18, 2016
- French qualifier Vincent Droesbeke and home player Tamika Saxby
captured the South Australian Open, PSA M5 & W5 titles,
respectively after triumphing in their final fixtures at the
Campbelltown Leisure Centre in Adelaide.
Droesbeke, 24, followed up his victories in the qualification stage
with a fine run of form that saw him secure three consecutive 3-0 wins
to reach the final, while his opponent there, South Korea’s Ko Youngjo,
was appearing in his third straight Tour final after beating Australian
veteran Mike Corren in the last four.
It was Youngjo who took the early initiative after a consistent display
from the World No.186 enabled him to go a game to the good by a narrow
two-point margin.
Droesbeke responded well and soon restored parity to proceedings thanks
to a comfortable second-game victory, only to find himself on the
back-foot again shortly afterwards when Youngjo restored his lead,
coming out on top of a fiercely-fought tie-break.
But Droesbeke refused to go down and the World No.232 steadied the ship
with a magnificent 11-2 win in the fourth, before dominating the
deciding game to seal his maiden PSA World Tour title.
Saxby, meanwhile, was unseeded coming into the event, but boasted three
successive title wins over the past two months as she locked horns with
Hong Kong’s Tong Tsz-Wing in the Women’s final.
Tsz-Wing had won her last two tournaments, with the most recent of
those triumphs coming in Australia at the Tasmanian Open, and the
imperious form of both players saw them clash in a dramatic four-game
fixture, with both players claiming a game each on the tie-break in the
early stages.
Saxby then came out on top of a crucial third game to take the lead and
she held off the attentions of Tsz-Wing in a tight fourth game to wrap
up a 12-10, 10-12, 11-7, 12-10 victory.
Result – Final: Men’s South Australian Open 2016
[Q] Vincent Droesbeke (FRA) bt [2] Ko Youngjo (KOR) 3-2: 9-11, 11-6, 10-12, 11-2, 11-4 (53m)
Result – Final: Women’s South Australian Open 2016
Tamika Saxby (AUS) bt [2] Tong Tsz-Wing (HKG) 3-1: 12-10, 10-12, 11-7, 12-10 (45m)
