Canary Wharf Squash Classic 2006

The match was evenly poised until Ricketts wilted in the fifth game at the conclusion of his fourth consecutive marathon match. Going into the match, Ricketts had been on court for 258 minutes of play compared to 112 by No.2 seed Lincou.

However, the Reading-based Australian was still happy to prolong the rallies in a 28-minute opening game which Lincou pinched 11-9.

Ricketts hit back strongly to take the second but the pattern continued as Lincou won the third and the robust Ricketts responded yet again, drawing on his phenomenal reserves of energy to take the match to a fifth game. The full house crowd at the spectacular East Wintergarden venue willed him to make one final effort but Lincou played tight, stylish and inventive squash to dominate the game.

At 6-1 down Ricketts mounted a mini recovery but Lincou was too solid to let it continue and he swiftly regained control to clinch victory. A delighted Lincou hugged Ricketts, punched the air with joy and walked slowly around the court to savour the moment of victory.

He said: "I have waited a long time to win a tournament, since Pakistan last summer, and I need that to get back up to the top of the rankings.

"Anthony has had a lot of hard matches this week and has played 20 games in total. I guess that showed tonight, but I am very happy to win such an important tournament in a wonderful venue like this with a big, passionate crowd."

Ricketts admitted: "You could say that was one game too many at the end there, but Thierry is a class act and he played superb squash tonight. He is always one of the hardest guys to beat."

Next week Ricketts flies to New York to defend his Tournament of Champions title on the glass court at Grand Central Station and then heads home to Australia aiming for a gold medal in the Commonwealth Games.

ISS CANARY WHARF SQUASH CLASSIC, FINAL (East Wintergarden, Canary Wharf):

(2) Thierry Lincou (Fra) bt (1) Anthony Ricketts (Aus) 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, 7-11, 11-3.

Friday's FINALISTS - watch the final live on PSAlive TV squash

THURSDAY RESULTS
(1) Anthony Ricketts (Aus) bt (7) Karim Darwish (Egy) 9-11, 11-4, 11-5, 1-11, 11-6.

(2) Thierry Lincou (Fra)  bt  (4) Peter Nicol (Eng) 11-8, 11-10 ( 3-1), 11-9
 

SQUASH:
THURDAY NIGHT REPORT

Marathon man Ricketts meets Lincou in ISS Canary Wharf Final

Marathon man Anthony Ricketts once again demonstrated his awesome powers of resilience to beat Egypt's Karim Darwish to reach the final of the ISS
Canary Wharf Squash Classic.

The Australian top seed will face French ace Thierry Lincou, who knocked out London's crowd favourite Peter Nicol in straight games.

The two matches were hugely contrasting in terms of style and duration.

For the third time in this tournament, the Reading-based Ricketts was forced to endure a five-game battle, this time winning 9-11, 11-4, 11-5,
1-11, 11-6 in 78 minutes.

He had been on court for exactly three hours in his two previous encounters at the packed East Wintergarden venue at Canary Wharf.

After losing a tight opening game against Darwish he looked to be in a hurry to finish matters as he powered through the second and third games.
He admitted that he lost concentration in the fourth and quickly surrendered it 11-1, but came out all guns blazing to open up a solid lead
in the fifth before an enforced break for treatment to a cut knee.

After a long delay to stop the bleeding, world No.4 Ricketts was straight back into the groove to clinch a place in the final for a second year
running.

He said: "That was another tough battle and Karim has some of the best racket skills, if not the very best, on the world tour. So any victory
against him is a good win."

Lincou beat Nicol 11-8, 11-10 (2-0) 11-9 to destroy co-promoter Nicol's hopes of winning his own tournament. With a career head-to-head record of
10-1 in Nicol's favour before this match, the London crowd were hoping for a home victory, but Lincou's controlled, stylish performance silenced
their cheers.

Nicol fought back from 5-2 down to lead 8-7 in the opening game, but a succession of loose rallies from the left-hander allowed Lincou to finish
emphaticallty.

Nicol seemed to have settled in the second game and after leading 9-6 he weathered a revival by the Frenchman to hold game ball at 10-9 and11-10.
But once again his loose shots were punished ruthlessly by his opponent, who won the tiebreak 2-0.

Nicol was chasing for most of the third game, and the crowd were willing him to extend the match, but despite closing a three-point deficit three
times to 4-5, 6-7, and then 9-10, he could not prevent Lincou's accurate placement from clinching a berth in the Canary Wharf final for a second
time.

After the way he dealt with Nicol's attack and subdued a partisan home crowd, Lincou will be hoping to continue his excellent form against an
opponent who could well be in line for another extended stay on the glass court.

ISS Canary Wharf Squash Classic, East Wintergarden, Canary Wharf. Semi Final Results:

(1) Anthony Ricketts (Aus) bt (7) Karim Darwish (Egy) 9-11, 11-4, 11-5,
1-11, 11-6.

(2) Thierry Lincou (Fra)  bt  (4) Peter Nicol (Eng) 11-8, 11-10 ( 3-1), 11-9

From Alan Thatcher

Latest News from Wednesday Night Matches:

WILLSTROP WILTS AT CANARY WHARF

England's James Willstrop disappointed a full-house crowd when he was knocked out of the quarter-finals of the ISS Canary Wharf Squash Classic by Egypt's Karim Darwish. England star Willstrop, from Pontefract, lost 11-6, 4-11, 10-11 (0-2), 11-7, 11-5 in 77 minutes of exciting, attacking squash between two former world junior champions.

World No.6 Willstrop, 22 years old and 6ft 5in tall, began sluggishly and allowed the more accurate Egyptian to win the opening game comfortably. But once Willstrop settled into his stride, he used his astonishing reach to attack at every opportunity.

He levelled matters with a near-perfect second game and withstood fierce resistance from Darwish to sneak the third on a tiebreak. But Willstrop wilted in the fourth as Darwish hit back and the Egyptian took complete control in the fifth to reach the semi-finals .

Willstrop's Pontefract and England team-mate Lee Beachill followed him out of the tournament when he lost in straight games to Peter Nicol. Nicol won 11-7, 11-7, 11-4 in 44 minutes of punishing, top-quality squash. Beachill reached the National Championship final in Manchester last week just a fortnight after a leg operation and was clearly feeling the effects as Nicol attacked in ruthless fashion.

Co-promoter Nicol said: "That was a tough match and the tournament schedule makes a brutal sport even more brutal. Full marks to Lee for his efforts. I enjoyed the match and just love this court. It allows you to attack you reap the dividends when you can achive a good length."

Beachill had no complaints and admitted: "I had to work extremely hard last week and it was obvious that I was still feeling the effects of those
efforts. Peter was playing some excellent squash and he is looking in very good shape at the moment." Both players were able to find a dying length on the glass court but Nicol's precision play was superior on the night. When Beachill's returns were loose, Nicol then switched the attack to the front corners with devastating effect.

TOP SEED RICKETTS GIVEN ROUGH RIDE BY FRENCH ACE GAULTIER

TOP seed Anthony Ricketts of Australia was made to battle all the way by rising French star Gregory Gaultier to reach the semi-finals of the ISS Canary Wharf Squash Classic.

Ricketts, who is based most of the year in Reading, won 11-8, 4-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-10 (4-2) in 105 minutes of absorbing and punishing squash.

Gaultier bounced back after losing the opening game to win the second and third but visibly tired in the fourth as Ricketts tightened up.

In the fifth, Gaultier began firing in audacious winners from the back of the court to lead 4-1, but a solid recovery from Ricketts took him to 7-4, 9-6 and match ball at 10-7, but Gaultier hit back again to force the decider to a tiebreak.

Incredibly, both players made mistakes on match ball before Ricketts won the tiebreak 4-2 to clinch a semi-final match against Egyptian Karim
Darwish, the No.7 seed.

No.2 seed Thierry Lincou faces Nicol in the semi-finals after beating Welsh outsider Alex Gough 11-8, 11-7, 11-2 in 31 minutes.

Further information from Alan Thatcher
07971 639 829  Email: alan@squashuk.com  www.canarywharfsquash.com
 

THE world's leading squash stars are returning to London's Docklands to show off their dazzling skills in the 2006 ISS Canary Wharf Squash Classic. Squash Player Highlights

The Ticket Hotline is 0870 534 4444. Tickets can be booked online via the Ticketmaster website 

www.ticketmaster.co.uk
Tournament Dates: Qualifying: February 11-12. Main draw: February 13-17, 
    2006

Venue: The East Wintergarden, Bank Street, Canary Wharf

Directions from Hertfordshire

There’s going to be some top squash at Canary Wharf from 13th to 17th February which may not be too far for Hertfordshire people to travel. It’s an easy journey too. Thameslink from Radlett to West Hampstead then Jubilee Line direct to Canary Wharf station. It could hardly be simpler. The qualifying competition will be at Wimbledon Racquets Club on the 11th and 12th (again an easy trip on Thameslink with a bit of a walk at the other end). According to BT, the club’s phone number is 020 8947 5806.

ISS CANARY WHARF CLASSIC PLAYING SCHEDULE:
Saturday and Sunday, Feb 11-12:
Qualifying at Wimbledon Racquets Club.

Monday 13th Feb: 4 x last 16 from 5.30pm
Tuesday 14th Feb: 4 x last 16 from 5.30pm
Wednesday 15th Feb: 4 x quarter-finals from 5.30pm
Thursday 16th Feb: 2 x semi-finals from 6pm
Friday 17th Feb: Grand Final from 6pm

Booking Tickets

The Ticket Hotline is 0870 534 4444. Tickets can be booked online via the Ticketmaster website .

Visit http://www.squashplayer.co.uk/cwc/
 

ISS CANARY WHARF SQUASH CLASSIC:
Media Release for immediate distribution

January 11, 2006.

I PLAY ON, VOWS NICOL

Peter Nicol , the most successful British squash player of all time, is putting his retirement plans on hold. Nicol, 32, is keen to dispel speculation that he will quit the world tour after the Commonwealth Games in Australia in March.

He says he is as fit and hungry as ever after his mid-winter break and will continue to appear as long as he is able to compete at the highest level.

The London-based left-hander is looking forward to his third appearance in the Games as he bids for a third gold medal. In the short-term, however, his attention is focused on the ISS Canary Wharf Classic from February 13-17. A co-promoter of this PSA Five Star event, Nicol is keen to get a good performance under his belt at the superb East Wintergarden venue in London’s Docklands.

He said: “I will definitely continue playing after the Commonwealth Games. I am committed to playing in the Bermuda Open, the European Team Championships for England, and then it will be my 12^th consecutive appearance in the PSA Super Series Finals in London in May.”

Nicol enjoyed a long and deserved rest during the Christmas and New Year period after a brutal playing schedule at the end of 2005, during which he helped England to their first World Team Championship title in Pakistan.

In an interview published on www.canarywharfsquash.com he said: “I had a fabulous rest with my family back home in Scotland. I ate well and slept well and managed to recharge my batteries in time to start training last week. I am feeling good about my fitness and am gearing up for a successful event at Canary Wharf and then the Commonwealth Games.”

He is refreshingly candid about his future in the sport and admitted: “I will carry on playing as long as I can compete. This season I know that when I have been fully focused and the body has been in good shape then I have been able to turn in some quality performances in major tournaments.”

Nicol knows that he has a successful future ahead with his steadily developing  Eventis Sports Marketing company, who are co-promoting the ISS Canary Wharf Classic with Squash UK, but he is clearly keen to delay the moment when he decides it is time to hang up his famous Prince racket.

Media outlets can download the full interview at www.canarywharfsquash.com

ISS CANARY WHARF CLASSIC PLAYING SCHEDULE:
Saturday and Sunday, Feb 11-12: Qualifying at Wimbledon RC.

Monday 13th Feb: 4 x last 16 from 5.30pm
Tuesday 14th Feb: 4 x last 16 from 5.30pm
Wednesday 15th Feb: 4 x quarter-finals from 5.30pm
Thursday 16th Feb: 2 x semi-finals from 6pm
Friday 17th Feb: Grand Final from 6pm

The Ticket Hotline is 0870 534 4444. Tickets can be booked online via the Ticketmaster website 

www.ticketmaster.co.uk
Tournament Dates: Qualifying: February 11-12. Main draw: February 13-17, 
    2006

Venue: The East Wintergarden, Bank Street, Canary Wharf

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