Moverley Moves Through In Lisbon Opener

13 Oct 2007

England's unseeded Fiona Moverley caused the only upset in the first round of the Women's Colombo Open in Lisbon when she beat seventh-seeded compatriot Lauren Selby in the first WISPA World Tour squash event to be held in Portugal.

In a setting befitting a major championship, the WISPA players took to the glass court in this new event - the second in the WISPA Premiere Series which encourage new events in new countries. The ASB court, complete with glass floor, was sited in the Central Plaza of the Centro Colombo, immediately surrounded by seating stands and more than 400 stores.

Moverley, 20, from Hull, despatched Selby 9-2, 9-7, 9-5 in 32 minutes and will now face Milou van der Heijden, the third seed from the Netherlands who beat England's Irena Critchley 9-0, 9-4, 9-5.

Austrian champion Birgit Coufal, the fourth seed, defeated France's Coline Aumard 9-5, 9-5, 9-1 and will now play sixth seed Karen Kronemeyer, from the Netherlands, in the quarter-finals.

Aumard, an 18-year-old from Paris, summed up the reaction of several of the players after she exited the see-through court. "The floor was an especially new thing for me, as I was unused to the grip. But it was really nice to play in a big arena for the first time and I had great fun."

1st round:
[1] Tricia Chuah (MAS) bt Kira Petersen (DEN) 9-0, 9-1, 9-1 (21m)
[8] Lucie Fialova (CZE) bt Maud Duplomb (FRA) 9-4, 7-9, 9-6, 9-5 (45m)
[3] Milou van der Heijden (NED) bt Irena Critchley (ENG) 9-0, 9-4, 9-5 (24m)
Fiona Moverley (ENG) bt [7] Lauren Selby (ENG) 9-2, 9-7, 9-5 (32m)
[6] Karen Kronemeyer (NED) bt Linda Hruzikova (SVK) 9-4, 9-2, 9-0 (29m)
[4] Birgit Coufal (AUT) bt Coline Aumard (FRA) 9-5, 9-5, 9-1 (26m)
[5] Daniela Schumann (GER) bt Claire Kidd (SCO) 9-6, 9-1, 9-5 (30m)
[2] Emma Beddoes (ENG) bt Emma Chorley (ENG) 9-2, 9-0, 9-1 (27m)