English Qualifiers Excel In Wolverhampton Open

English qualifiers excelled in the first rounds of both the men's and women's events in the inaugural Wolverhampton Open - already ensuring domestic presence in both finals of the UK's biggest club-based squash championships at Wolverhampton LT&SC in the West Midlands city.

Essex's Lee Drew claimed the biggest scalp in the men's event, taking out local star Jonathon Kemp, the No2 seed who was born in Wolverhampton and regularly trains at Wolverhampton's premier tennis and squash club. Qualifier Drew, from Colchester, defeated the world No26 11-8, 9-11, 2-11, 11-8, 11-8 to claim an unexpected quarter-final berth.

The 30-year-old will face fellow qualifier and compatriot Jonathan Harford, a 23-year-old making a belated start to his professional career having recently finished studies at nearby Birmingham University. Harford, now based in Leeds, defeated India's fifth seed Ritwik Bhattacharya 11-2, 11-6, 11-8.

Former British champion Simon Parke, who is making his last competitive appearance in the UK before retiring from the international circuit, produced a typically dogged performance to outlast Guernsey's British Junior Champion Chris Simpson 10-11 (1-3), 11-4, 11-7, 11-9.

Simpson, who had reached the first round via an arduous qualifying competition, attacked his experienced opponent with forceful drives and volleys to capture the opening game. Fourth seed Parke countered with breathtaking retrieval to force a 2/1 lead, but found himself trailing 4-7 in the fourth game before he was again able to slow the pace and run-down his opponent's attempted front court winners to record a deserved 90-minute victory.

Parke, 34, from Leeds, will now go on to face England's Stacey Ross for a place in the semi-finals. Ross, the No7 seed from Surrey, enjoyed a straightforward 11-8, 11-9, 11-5 win over Gloucestershire's Alex Stait.

Simon Rosner, from Germany, who also claimed his place in the main draw via the qualification competition, failed to progress to the quarter-finals after losing 8-11, 11-10 (2-0), 11-8, 8-11, 11-4 to eighth seed Saurav Ghosal of India.

The Wolverhampton club's resident professional Chris Ryder, the championship's wild card, was unable to break down the solid consistency of third seed Borja Golan - the Spaniard eventually winning 11-10 (2-0), 9-11, 11-4, 11-10 (2-0).

Unseeded Englishman Scott Handley caused a notable upset in the top half of the draw, beating Egypt's sixth seed Amr Mansi 6-11, 11-8, 11-10 (2-0), 11-6. The 31-year-old from Oxfordshire will now face top seed Alex Gough of Wales, who defeated stylish New Zealander Kashif Shuja 6-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-9.

Local star Emma Beddoes was one of two qualifiers to cause upsets in the women's event. The 21-year-old former British Junior champion from nearby Warwick beat Orla Noom, the No8 seed from the Netherlands, 10-8, 9-1, 9-3.

Beddoes goes on to face third seed Shelley Kitchen, of New Zealand, who overcame sporadic resistance from Italy's Manuela Manetta during her 10-8, 9-0, 9-5 victory.

Derbyshire qualifier Laura Hill, a part-time squash player and full-time fire-fighter from Duffield, showed off her fighting qualities on the Wolverhampton courts with a 9-6, 9-5, 9-0 victory over England's fourth seed Dominique Lloyd-Walter, the world No18 from Harrow.

Hill now takes on England's Rebecca Botwright, the sixth seed from Manchester who beat Denmark's Line Hansen 9-6, 9-4, 6-9, 9-5.

Botwright is one match away from a possible first-time Tour clash on home soil with older sister Vicky Botwright. Vicky, the event favourite and England's highest-ranked woman, secured her place in the quarter-finals with a confident performance over Jenna Gates, leading 9-1, 6-0 when her young opponent retired with a back injury.

The top seed from Manchester, who has enjoyed her most successful year on the Women's World Tour, culminating in her reaching a career-high No5 world ranking, is competing in the Wolverhampton Open as part of her final preparations for the World Open Championships in Belfast next week.

The 29-year-old will now face Sarah Kippax, recent winner of the Pepsi Enschede Open in the Netherlands, who defeated qualifier Lauren Siddall 5-9, 9-2, 9-6, 9-7.

Second seed Laura Lengthorn, from Preston, was equally impressive during her 9-1, 9-3, 9-2 win over Birmingham qualifier Vicky Hynes.

In a disappointing final appearance before appearing in next week's World Open in her home country, Ireland's Aisling Blake failed to make it to the last eight. The 25-year-old from Sligo - who has been drawn to meet compatriot Madeline Perry in the first round in Belfast - lost out to New Zealand's No5 seed Jaclyn Hawkes 9-1, 9-4, 9-6.

Men's 1st round:
[1] Alex Gough (WAL) bt Kashif Shuja (NZL) 6-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-9
Scott Handley (ENG) bt [6] Amr Mansi (EGY) 6-11, 11-8, 11-10 (2-0), 11-6
[3] Borja Golan (ESP) bt Chris Ryder (ENG) 11-10 (2-0), 9-11, 11-4, 11-10 (2-0)
[8] Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt [Q] Simon Rosner (GER) 8-11, 11-10 (2-0), 11-8, 8-11, 11-4
[7] Stacey Ross (ENG) bt Alex Stait (ENG) 11-8, 11-9, 11-5
[4] Simon Parke (ENG) bt [Q] Chris Simpson (ENG) 10-11 (1-3), 11-4, 11-7, 11-9
[Q] Jonathan Harford (ENG) bt [5] Ritwik Bhattacharya (IND) 11-2, 11-6, 11-8
[Q] Lee Drew (ENG) bt [2] Jonathan Kemp (ENG) 11-8, 9-11, 2-11, 11-8, 11-8

Women's 1st round:
[1] Vicky Botwright (ENG) bt Jenna Gates (ENG) 9-1, 6-0 ret.
[7] Sarah Kippax (ENG) bt [Q] Lauren Siddall (ENG) 5-9, 9-2, 9-6, 9-7
[Q] Laura Hill (ENG) bt [4] Dominique Lloyd-Walter (ENG) 9-6, 9-5, 9-0
[6] Rebecca Botwright (ENG) bt Line Hansen (DEN) 9-6, 9-4, 6-9, 9-5
[Q] Emma Beddoes (ENG) bt [8] Orla Noom (NED) 10-8, 9-1, 9-3
[3] Shelley Kitchen (NZL) bt Manuela Manetta (ITA) 10-8, 9-0, 9-5
[5] Jaclyn Hawkes (NZL) bt Aisling Blake (IRL) 9-1, 9-4, 9-6
[2] Laura-Jane Lengthorn (ENG) bt [Q] Vicky Hynes (ENG) 9-1, 9-3, 9-2