The Star Online: Sports
The Star Online: Sports |
- Nicol claims her record sixth world title in emphatic style
- Malaysia let down by poor finishing in draw with New Zealand
- Nelson-Teo bury chokers’ tag with perfect show
| Nicol claims her record sixth world title in emphatic style Posted: 06 Nov 2011 06:31 PM PST ROTTERDAM: Nicol David created history by winning her sixth world title in emphatic fashion at the Luxor Theatre here yesterday with the promise of more to come. The undisputed queen of world squash was in devastating form as she pulverised long-time rival and world No. 2 Jenny Duncalf of England 11-2, 11-5, 11-0 in just 29 minutes in the final of the World Open. It was a perfect six for Nicol – six wins from six finals at the world meet, making her the most successful woman player in the history of the game. She had earlier shared the honour, five titles apiece, with her mentor Sarah FitzGerald of Australia. The triumph is the latest narrative in the storied life of Malaysia's greatest sports star. The 28-year-old Nicol, who turned pro in 2000, won her other world titles in Hong Kong (2005), Belfast, Northern Ireland (2006), Manchester (2008), Amsterdam (2009) and Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, last year. The world crown yesterday was also Nicol's 56th Wispa title and ninth of the year. It was her 27th win over Duncalf in 29 meetings. Nicol received US$21,188 while Duncalf pocketed US$13,656. Nicol, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame on Saturday for her outstanding accomplishments, got off to a flying start in the first set winning 11-2 in just nine minutes. Duncalf, featuring in her first final, was out of sorts and completely outplayed in every aspect of the game. In the second set, Nicol playing in her 10th world meet, took a comfortable 8-3 lead before dropping just two points to seal victory. A deflated Duncalf just melted under Nicol's relentless attack and meekly surrendered the third 11-0. An elated Nicol said she didn't quite know how to describe her joy in winning her record sixth world title. "Winning the crown is a huge thing for Malaysia as we don't have many world champions in sports," said Nicol, whose parents Desmond and Mary Ann were in Rotterdam to watch their daughter make history. "I'm really happy to repay my fellow Malaysians for all their support by winning the world title for them. "My only wish now is to play in the Olympics. I would happily trade my six world titles for the sport to be included in the Olympic Games," said Nicol, adding that she wasn't done winning titles yet - not by a long shot. A disheartened Duncalf said that she had been totally outclassed by Nicol. "I was hoping to win the final as an early birthday present but it was not to be," said Duncalf, who turns 29 on Thursday. In the men's competition, world No. 1 Nick Matthew of England retained the world title after coming back from a set down to beat sixth seed Gregory Gaultier of France 6-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 in the final. Matthew received US$26,220 for his efforts while Gaultier took home US$16,388. Results Men Semi-finals: Nick Matthew (Eng) bt Karim Darwish (Egy) 11-9,11-9, 11-1; Gregory Gaultier (Fra) bt James Willstrop (Eng) 11-6, 11-8, 11-4. Final: Nick Matthew (Eng) bt Gregory Gaultier (Fra) 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 Women Semi-finals: Nicol David (Mas) bt Natalie Grinham (Hol) 11-9, 11-4, 11-6; Jenny Duncalf (Eng) bt Samantha Teran (Mex) 11-9, 11-4, 11-7. Final: Nicol David (Mas) bt Jenny Duncalf (Eng) 11-2, 11-5,11-0. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Malaysia let down by poor finishing in draw with New Zealand Posted: 06 Nov 2011 06:40 PM PST JOHOR BARU: Malaysia and New Zealand shared points in a scrappy 1-1 draw at the Sultan of Johor Cup junior hockey tournament at the Taman Daya Hockey Stadium here yesterday. Once again, Malaysia had plenty of chances to get the goals but were let down by some poor finishing. They will need to buck up seriously to have a shot at making the final. They play South Korea next in a match they have to win if they are to avoid the classification playoffs. The Malaysians started well but it was the Kiwis who took the lead from their second penalty corner attempt in the ninth minute. Russell Kane found the net easily beating goalkeeper Mohamed Hafizuddin Othman. The Malaysians pushed hard for the equaliser and came close a couple of times. They earned their first penalty corner in the 24th minute but were denied by poor stopping. The Malaysians had more possession in the second half but made several unforced errors in their eagerness to get the elusive goal. Passes were sent straight to their opponents and there was too much holding onto the ball. The finishing, when they got the ball into the D was also way off the mark. Their penalty corner set pieces were also atrocious. They had six attempts which were either saved or thwarted by poor stopping of the ball. The tide changed in the 63rd minute when senior team player Amir Farid collected the ball in the D and beat goalkeeper George Enersen with a deflection. That effort was enough to earn a point for the Malaysians. Earlier, South Korea won their second match when they defeated Pakistan 2-1 to top the table with maximum points. It was yet another mixed showing from the Koreans who played well in the first half, unlike their match against India on Saturday where they came back from a four-goal deficit to win 6-4 with a strong second half performance. This time, the Koreans took a two-goal lead at half-time. They then defended like mad in the second half to restrict the Pakistanis to just one goal to clinch the three points. Korean skipper Yang Ji-hun scored his fourth goal of the tournament in the 20th minute while Lee Jung-jun added the second two minutes later. Pakistan replied through Mohamed Adnan in the 53rd minute. It was their second defeat having lost to New Zealand on Saturday. Australia kept up their winning ways with a 3-2 win over India. There was an improvement in the Indian game but they still failed to find the net when it mattered. The Australians led throughout and came under tremendous pressure in the later stages of the match. But the Indian fightback came too late to save the match. The Australians scored through Daniel Beal, Josh Walters and Cameron Joyce in the seventh, 29th and 50th minutes respectively. Ramandeep Singh scored both India's goals. Indian coach Mukesh Kumar acknowledged that they had allowed the early pressure to get to them. "We played much better today but lacked the mental strength to overcome the early advantage the Aussies had. This is a good lesson and we have to learn from it," he said. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| Nelson-Teo bury chokers’ tag with perfect show Posted: 06 Nov 2011 06:43 PM PST PETALING JAYA: For Nelson Heg Wei Keat-Teo Ee Yi, the thought of being dubbed as chokers was unbearable. And driven to make a point, the duo gave a spotless performance to upstage top seed and Asian junior champions Huang Po-jui-Lin Chia-yu of Taiwan 21-17, 21-17 in the boys' doubles final of the World Junior Championships in Taiwan yesterday. Besides the Asian junior meet in India this year, they had also crashed out in the final of last year's world junior meet. Wei Keat was happy that they were able to bid farewell to their junior careers in style. "We were determined not to make the mistakes of the past. At the Asian junior meet, we were over-confident and lacked focus. It saw us going down to the Taiwanese. Today, we were ready for them," said an elated Wei Keat in a telephone interview yesterday. "We proved that we can win in major tournaments and that means a lot to us. "I missed my mother Yeoh Suh Nei's birthday on Nov 4 and this title is my belated birthday gift for her." Ee Yi said that he was choked with emotion after breaking the jinx of losing in the finals and hoped that they could continue with their rise in the senior rank. The duo will be under the charge of South Korean coach Yoo Yong-sung now that their junior days are over. "This is really satisfying. We can now leave the junior ranks with a lot of confidence," said Ee Yi. "We will be promoted to the back-up squad now. "It will not be easy in the senior ranks but we aim to become the country's top pair like Koo Kien Keat-Tan Boon Heong in two years," he added. Bukit Jalil Sports School (BJSS) doubles chief coach Yap Kim Hock was a proud man yesterday. It was his third world junior title with winning pairs after Ow Yao Han-Chooi Kah Ming (2009) and Yao Han-Yew Hong Kheng (2010). "Our boys deserve a big pat on their backs. They worked hard and now, they reap their reward," said Kim Hock. "I just hope that this pair will be given time to prove their worth in the senior team. Hopefully, no swapping of partners will take place. "They have proved themselves in the junior ranks. It is only fair to give them a chance to come good in the senior ranks." In the past, many of Malaysia's world junior champion pairs sank into oblivion because of the heavy mix and match exercises. Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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