Craig Captures Australia Day Crown
26 Jan 2015
New Zealand's Megan Craig beat home hope Lakeesha Rarere in the final of the Women's Australia Day Challenge to win the WSA Challenger 5 squash event at Ipswich PCYC Squash Centre in Ipswich in the Australian state of Queensland without dropping a game.
While the top-seeded Kiwi reached the final after brushing aside Malaysia's Aika Azman in just 18 minutes, 17-year-old Rarere - the third seed - pulled off a notable upset in the other semi when she outlasted higher-ranked compatriot Lisa Camilleri, the No.2 seed, 11-7, 11-8, 4-11, 11-13, 11-9 in 47 minutes.
"It's great to get an early win, it gives me a bit of confidence going into a bit of a break," said 22-year-old Craig after her 11-7, 11-4, 11-4 title triumph in 23 minutes.
"It was pretty hot out there, I didn't want to be out there too long.
"It's a great tournament," added the 2011 runner-up from Blenheim who crashed out at the quarter-final stage last year. "I'm glad I came back now."
1st round:
[5] Jasmine Chan (AUS) bt Susan Williams (AUS) 11-9, 11-6, 11-2 (23m)
[6] Samantha Calvert (AUS) bt Kirsty Freeme (AUS) 11-9, 11-8, 11-6 (20m)
[7] Natalie Newton (AUS) bt Taylor Jones (AUS) 11-6, 11-3, 11-4 (25m)
Aimee Slatter (AUS) bt [8] Jordan Russell (AUS) 11-4, 11-2, 11-5 (28m)
Quarter-finals:
[1] Megan Craig (NZL) bt [5] Jasmine Chan (AUS) 11-2, 11-3, 12-10 (22m)
[4] Aika Azman (MAS) bt [6] Samantha Calvert (AUS) 11-4, 12-10, 11-7 (22m)
[3] Lakeesha Rarere (AUS) bt [7] Natalie Newton (AUS) 11-7, 11-5, 11-4 (22m)
[2] Lisa Camilleri (AUS) bt Aimee Slatter (AUS) 11-4, 11-5, 11-5 (20m)
Semi-finals:
[1] Megan Craig (NZL) bt [4] Aika Azman (MAS) 11-1, 11-3, 11-5 (18m)
[3] Lakeesha Rarere (AUS) bt [2] Lisa Camilleri (AUS) 11-7, 11-8, 4-11, 11-13, 11-9 (47m)
Final:
[1] Megan Craig (NZL) bt [3] Lakeesha Rarere (AUS) 11-7, 11-4, 11-4 (23m)
