Nicol & Natalie To Contest Apawamis Final

The world's top two squash players will renew their rivalry for the first time in the New Year when Malaysian Nicol David and Australia's Natalie Grinham face up in the final of the Women's Marsh Apawamis Open, the first WISPA World Tour Gold event of the year at the Apawamis Club in Rye in the US state of New York.

David, the world number one from Penang who was runner-up in Rye two years ago, despatched US star Natalie Grainger, the No4 seed from Washington DC, 9-7, 9-4, 9-5 in 35 minutes.

In the other semi-final, defending champion Natalie Grinham - the world number two from Queensland looking for her third title since 2003 - avenged the earlier shock defeat of older sister Rachael Grinham by beating surprise Egyptian opponent Omneya Abdel Kawy 9-5, 9-4, 9-2 in just 26 minutes.

The final will be the illustrious pair's 17th meeting since November 2003 - six of which were in 2007 - with the head-to-head count standing at 10-6 to the Malaysian.

Semi-finals:
[1] Nicol David (MAS) bt [4] Natalie Grainger (USA) 9-7, 9-4, 9-5 (35m)
[2] Natalie Grinham (AUS) bt Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY) 9-5, 9-4, 9-2 (26m)