Local Star Kemp Claims Semi-Final Slot In Wolverhampton

England's Jonathan Kemp celebrated the return to the city of his birth in fine style when he beat New Zealand's Campbell Grayson in four games in the Wolverhampton Open to claim an unexpected semi-final berth in the $20,000 PSA Tour squash event in its fourth year at Wolverhampton Lawn Tennis & Squash Club in Wolverhampton, England.

Campbell Grayson, who despatched No3 seed Amir Atlas Khan in the opening round, was unable to progress past sixth seed Kemp, who won 11-4, 6-11, 11-7, 11-6 to make the semis for the first time in his third appearance in the event.

Kemp, the world No28 now based in Halifax in Yorkshire, will face top seed Laurens Jan Anjema. The Dutchman won the opening two games against Englishman Joey Barrington in convincing style before a courageous fight back from the fifth seed saw Barrington take the third and fourth games. But the Dutch champion regained the advantage to win 11-5, 11-4, 7-11, 7-11, 11-6 in a physical 84-minute battle.

Second seed Alister Walker, one of the UK's rising squash stars, scored an impressive 11-5, 11-4, 11-1 win over Italian seventh seed Davide Bianchetti.

Walker, who defeated Irish qualifier John Rooney in his opening match, outplayed his Italian opponent with a combination of high tempo length, subtle changes of pace and attacking angles and drop shots to reach his second semi-final in two years at Wolverhampton.

"I felt really strong today," said the Botswana-born world No12 after his 32-minute victory. "I was really pleased to win against an opponent who has so much experience. Hopefully, I can keep the momentum going against Beng Hee tomorrow in the semis."

The final match of the evening saw Malaysia's Ong Beng Hee, the fourth seed, clinch the remaining semi-final place after defeating England's eighth seed Chris Ryder 11-6, 12-10, 11-8 in a high quality competitive and entertaining 47-minute encounter.

Quarter-finals:
[1] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) bt [5] Joey Barrington (ENG) 11-5, 11-4, 7-11, 7-11, 11-6 (84m)
[6] Jonathan Kemp (ENG) bt [Q] Campbell Grayson (NZL) 11-4, 6-11, 11-7, 11-6 (38m)
[4] Ong Beng Hee (MAS) bt [8] Chris Ryder (ENG) 11-6, 12-10, 11-8 (47m)
[2] Alister Walker (ENG) bt [7] Davide Bianchetti (ITA) 11-5, 11-4, 11-1 (32m)