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Thu 18th, Round One
Qualifying complete, it's on to
the main draws today with eight men's and eight women's
matches. There's plenty of home interest too, with
Laurens Jan Anjema, Piedro Schweertman, Dylan Bennett,
Vanessa Atkinson, Natalie Grinham, Annelize Naudé and Orla
Noom all in action mainly show court.
As they say in these parts ... Let Op Blijf Kijken!
Orla
Noom (Ned) bt [7] Latasha Khan (Usa)
11/6,
8/11, 11/8, 11/7 (41m)
[3] Natalie Grinham (Ned) bt [Q]
Emily Whitlock (Eng)
11/9,
11/3, 12/10 (25m)
[4] Vanessa Atkinson (Ned) bt
Heba El Torky (Egy)
11/5, 11/5, 11/7 (25m)
[5] Sarah Kippax (Eng) bt [Q]
Sina Wall (Ger)
11/4, 7/11, 11/4, 11/5 (36m)
[Q] Steve Finitsis (Aus) bt [8]
Aaron Frankcomb (Aus)
11/6, 11/9, 4/11, 11/9 (80m)
[2] Cameron Pilley (Aus) bt [Q]
Piedro Schweertman (Ned)
12/10, 11/7, 11/5 (40m)
[6] Aisling Blake (Irl) bt Kanzy El
Dafrawy (Egy)
12/10, 12/10, 9/11, 11/3 (50m)
[2] Madeline Perry (Irl) bt [Q]
Nicolette Fernandes (Guy)
11/9, 11/4, 11/5 (29m)
[1] Rachael Grinham (Aus) bt [Q]
Victoria Lust (Eng)
11/8, 11/1, 11/4 (25m)
[8] Manuela Manetta (Ita) bt
Annelize Naudé (Ned)
12/10, 7/11, 6/11, 11/6, 11/9 (60m)
[1] Laurens Jan Anjema (Ned) bt
Mathieu Castagnet (Fra)
11/5, 11/7, 12/10 (55m)
[5] Hisham Ashour (Egy) bt Davide
Bianchetti (Ita)
11/7, 11/4, 7/11, 11/7 (49m)
[4] Stewart Boswell (Aus) bt
Dylan Bennett (Ned)
11/5, 11/8, 11/7 (40m)
[6] Simon Rosner (Ger) bt Chris
Simpson (Eng)
13/11, 11/9, 9/11, 11/7 (67m)
[7] Chris Ryder
(Eng) bt [Q] Jens Schoor (Ger)
11/2, 11/3, 11/7 (29m)
[3] Alister Walker (Eng) bt [Q]
Joel Hinds (Eng)
11/6, 11/0, 12/10 (43m)
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EXTRAS #1:
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[7] Chris
Ryder (Eng) bt [Q] Jens Schoor
(Ger)
11/2, 11/3, 11/7 (29m)
[3] Alister Walker (Eng) bt [Q] Joel Hinds (Eng)
11/6, 11/0, 12/10 (43m)
No joy for Qualifiers in
Round One Openers ...
 After
yesterday's heroics it was a quick return to Earth for
Jens Schoor and Joel Hinds as they both crashed
out 3/0 in the opening matches of the day.
Schoor only really got into a rhythm against seventh seed
Chris Ryder when he was already 8/2 down in the third,
but he couldn't delay the inevitable for long.
"One match too many," he said afterwards. "Yesterday was
tough and if I'd had a day's rest I might have done better,
but Chris was too strong for me today."
 Joel
lost to Alister Walker in a strange scoreline of
11/6, 11/0, 12/10, and he matched the third seed for over
half the match - the first was even up to 6-all, but
Walker then took the next sixteen points to establish a
commanding lead.
"Too many mistakes, and even when I did have opportunities I
messed them up," mused Joel, "just not good enough."
He came back strongly in the third though, and had a game
ball at 10/9 to extend the match, but Walker again denied
him.
[Q] Steve
Finitsis (Aus) bt [8] Aaron
Frankcomb (Aus)
11/6, 11/9, 4/11, 11/9 (80m)
[2] Cameron Pilley (Aus) bt [Q] Piedro Schweertman
(Ned)
12/10, 11/7, 11/5 (40m)
Pilley sets out on '3rd time lucky'
quest,
Finitsis flies on ...
Runner-up for the last two years, Cameron Pilley's
2010 campaign didn't get off to the greatest of starts as
the second seed found himself 10/7 down to Dutch qualifier
Piedro Schweertman in their first game.
 "He
played well in the first, at five or six all he started
going for crosscourt nicks and got most of them," explained
Pilley. "I just had to try to weather the storm, tough out a
few rallies and get back into it."
He did just that, taking the next five points and enjoying a
more comfortable time in the next two games of which he was
always in charge.
"I train with Piedro quite a bit so I know he's a strong ld
and that it was going to take a little while to tire him
out."
The Hague-based Aussie finished off the match in style with
a powerful kill to the front corner, although to be fair it
was about the tenth nick he'd tried for in that rally ...
 Steve
Finistis predicted last night that his match with
fellow-Aussie Aaron Frankcomb would be tough, and so
it proved, 80 minutes for a 4-1 win and the first upset of
the main draw.
"It was more of a length game, the pace wan't ridiculously
high so I don't feel too bad physically," said a delighted
winner.
"At two-nil up I maybe thought I had a bit of a roll on and
relaxed a bit, but he stayed steady to pull one back and we
both fell back into a sort of safe mode in the fourth."
It certainly was a tight finish as the fourth was lecvel all
the way to 9-all, five lets were played then Finitsis won a
stroke as Frankcomb played the ball down the middle of the
court then promptly tinned his service return.
[2]
Madeline Perry (Irl) bt [Q]
Nicolette Fernandes (Guy)
11/9, 11/4, 11/5 (29m)
[6] Aisling Blake (Irl) bt Kanzy El Dafrawy (Egy)
12/10, 12/10, 9/11, 11/3 (50m)
Irish semi-finalist assured
The women's first round kicked off with contrasting wins for
two Irishwomen, guaranteeing that the Irish will be
represented in the semi-finals.
Second seed Madeline Perry was comfortable enough
against qualifier Nicolette Fernandes, the only trick
moment coming when she almost let a 10/4 lead slip in the
first. "I always seem to find a way of making it hard," she
commented.
 What
would Aisling Blake have given for a lead like that -
she struggled for three games to see of the determined young
Egyptian Kanzy El Dafrawy who, despite a few
trademark dives, narrowly lost out in the first and second
games.
The tables were turned in the third as Kanzy edged another
too-close-to-call game, but Aisling finally gained some
measure of control in the fourth, leaving her opponent
sprawled on the floor as she tucked away the winning drive.
"It's the first time I've played a woman who dives," said
the winner, "but she still manages to get back for the next
ball so it obviously works for her!
"It was a good game for me to play, she has a totally
different style so I had to learn how to deal with that and
try different things myself. When I attacked straight she
was under a lot more pressure but it took time.
"It will be nice to play Madeline, we haven't played in a
while, but we both know each other's games very well
so there probably won't be many surprises this time around."
[1] Rachael
Grinham (Aus) bt [Q] Victoria
Lust (Eng)
11/8, 11/1, 11/4 (25m)
[8] Manuela Manetta (Ita) bt Annelize Naudé (Ned)
12/10, 7/11, 6/11, 11/6, 11/9 (60m)
One and eight through in contrasting
fashion
Top seed Rachael Grinham encountered some strong
early resistance from English qualifier Victoria Lust,
but once the her 'pull you here twist you there' style of
play started to take its toll it became easier for the
Australian, and although Lust never stopped fighting there
was only one likely outcome.
 The
outcome of the final match of the day was in the balance
right until the death though, as eighth seed Manuela
Manetta withstood the attacking play of local favourite
Annelize Naudé to win a gruelling five-setter.
"Her shots are so good," said the Italian, who now faces
Grinham in the quarters. "You just have to make sure you get
a good length, anything on the T she can chop it in and
you're in big trouble.
"I tried to keep the pace slower, and I didn't feel any
pressure, I just wanted to enjoy the match. It's not easy to
play her but I thought I played well today, and it's nice to
get a win too!"
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[3]
Natalie Grinham (Ned) bt [Q]
Emily Whitlock (Eng)
11/9,
11/3, 12/10 (25m)
Orla Noom (Ned) bt [7] Latasha Khan (Usa)
11/6,
8/11, 11/8, 11/7 (41m)
Orla and Natalie in double Dutch joy
First on the showcourt for the evening session was
Natalie Grinham, continuing her comeback with
six-month-old Keiran watching as ever. The junior theme was
maintained as her opponent was 16-year-old qualifier
Emily Whitlock, half her opponent's age.
The English girl wouldn't have expected too much against the
former world number two, but she gave an excellent account
of herself. She was in contention for the whole of the first
game, but two or three unforced errors contributed to her
undoing.
It was all Grinham in the second, floating the ball around
and pushing in those soft drops, making her opponent work
hard but still willing to put in the work herself when
needed.
The Dutchwoman continued to hold sway in the third, led 4/1,
7/4 and 10/7 but rather surprisingly didn't finish it off as
Emily came back to force extra points with two lovely
winners.
That was as far as she got though, she was thoroughly worked
out of position on the next point and wrongfooted by
Natalie's drop on the match ball that counted, but she will
be encouraged nonetheless.
 Orla
Noom was surprised to see so many supporters make the
short trip over to court two once Natalie's match had
finished: "I was quite happy not to play on the showcourt,
there were a few people watching and then suddenly the
gallery was packed!"
They enjoyed the spectacle too as Orla fought out a tough
battle with Latasha Khan. A good strart for the
Dutchwoman was cancelled out by the many-time US champion,
but Orla managed to keep her nose in front for the next two
games to cement a win which she was delighted with.
"That was fun," she said. "Well, it was really hard
actually, especially the third. I thought I was dying in
that one so it's a good job I snuck it otherwise I'd have
been in big trouble.
"We play a lot in training and I can count on one hand the
games I've taken off her, so to actually win in this
tournament is great - I don't usually play well in Holland
so I was just hoping I didn't freeze or mess it up, and
thankfully I didn't!
"It will be fun playing Nat, I play her a lot in training
too and he's getting better and better every week, so
nothing to lose I'll just give it a good go ..."
[4] Vanessa
Atkinson (Ned) bt Heba El Torky
(Egy)
11/5, 11/5, 11/7 (25m)
[5] Sarah Kippax (Eng) bt [Q] Sina Wall (Ger)
11/4, 7/11, 11/4, 11/5 (36m)
Vanessa starts final campaign
"It's a strange feeling knowing you're playing your last
WISPA tournament in Holland," said twelve-time Dutch
Champion Vanessa Atkinson after her opening match,
"it could go two ways, a great way to finish or an absolute
disaster - let's hope it's the latter!"
 She
made a good enough start, wining in straight games against
the all-action young Egyptian Heba El Torky, who
confessed to be nervous at the prospect of playing a player
with such a record.
"She's such a great player," said Heba. "I would put in a
good dropshot, she'd get there and at the last minute play a
lob and I'd have to start the rally again!"
For her part, Vanessa knew she had to be on her guard:
"She's very bouncy, and I knew she could be very dangerous
so I was prepared for it being difficult, but I felt pretty
sharp, especially for a first round.
 Sharp
she was, consolidating an early lead in the first and
dominating the second as she moved ahead 9/1.
Heba's nerves were showing as she made a few errors and
berated herself for them, but she settled, got a few ppints
back before losing the second and held her own in the third,
getting as close as 8/7 before Vanessa stepped on the
accelerator to finish it off.
"This is the club I play league for, so it's nice to be on
familiar ground," added Vanessa, "I know a lot of people
here which always helps."
Atkinson now meets Sarah Kippax, who beat German
qualifier Sina Wall in four games.
[1] Laurens
Jan Anjema (Ned) bt Mathieu
Castagnet (Fra)
11/5, 11/7, 12/10 (55m)
[5] Hisham Ashour (Egy) bt Davide Bianchetti (Ita)
11/7, 11/4, 7/11, 11/7 (49m)
LJ at the double
 "He
was so fast in the first two games," said Mathieu
Castagnet after losing out to top seed and local
favourite LJ Anjema.
"He was pretty fast too," countered LJ, "and the thing with
Mathieu is that his level never changes, he's the same
throughout the whole match, so in the first you think 'this
is not too bad', but by the time you get to the third you
think 'this is getting hard now' ..."
And that's exactly what happened. It was never easy, the
rallies were tough, the hitting ferocious and the retrieving
at times breathtaking, but LJ held the upper hand in the
first two games.
Far from staying at the same level, it seemed that Castagnet
upped his game in the third, moved faster, hit harder, led
5/1, 6/4 and 8/6, but LJ picked his own game up for one
final effort, levelled at 9-all and, much to his own relief,
took the match on his second match ball.
 LJ,
the only player in the men's draw to compete in every
edition of the Dutch Open since 2002, was happy to be
through in three games: "The first two games were very tough
physically, the third was tough scorewise, I just had to
keep my focus there, it was more of a mental game, that
one."
Mathieu was disappointed not to take at least a game: "I was
playing well, I played some good volleys and drops, but a
couple of decisions went against me at the end which I
thought were unfair - not to say I would have won if I'd
taken that game, but you never know.
"So frustrated, but happy with how I played," concluded the
Frenchman.
Next up for Anjema is Egypt's Hisham Ashour, older
brother of, who came through a noisy encounter with Davide
Bianchetti. "I enjoyed it, but there was too much talking,"
claimed Hisham, who it has to be said is normally the
instigator of such things.
[4] Stewart
Boswell (Aus) bt Dylan Bennett
(Ned)
11/5, 11/8, 11/7 (40m)
[6] Simon Rosner (Ger) bt Chris Simpson (Eng)
13/11, 11/9, 9/11, 11/7 (67m)
Boswell dents Dutch hopes
 The
final pair of men's matches saw home hopes left to rest on
LJ's ample shoulders as Stewart Boswell joined fellow
Australians Pilley and Finitsis in the quarters at the
expense of Dylan Bennett.
He will meet Simon Rosner whose hour plus win over
Chris Simpson left the English with just two players in
the last eight. |
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