Nicol David Celebrates Singapore Hat-Trick

World number one Nicol David underlined her dominance in women's squash by defeating Natalie Grinham, the world No3, in straight games in the final of the CIMB Women's Singapore Masters to win the $53,500 WISPA World Squash Tour Gold title at the Kallang Squash Centre in Singapore for the third year in a row.

It was a masterful performance by the 25-year-old from Malaysia in her third successive final against a Grinham - beating Natalie this time and in 2007, and elder sister Rachael Grinham in between.

Game one was cut-and-thrust as both players tried to work each other, with Grinham intent on keeping David at the back of the court with lobs. The Dutch player was able to stay level with the world champion until eight-all, when David was able to stretch ahead and wrap up the game.

Grinham junior came out firing in the second game, mixing up her shots with good effect. From 6-1 in front, the Australian-born 31-year-old stretched the lead to 8-2. And that was when David started clawing back the points, one by one. Playing patiently, the Malaysian won the next nine points to move 2/0 ahead.

Given a sniff of victory, David was not about to let up in the third game. And despite a mid-game blip when she allowed Grinham to close the scores, the Malaysian kept her composure to complete her 11-9, 11-8, 11-9 victory in 40 minutes.

"I thought I did quite well to put pressure on Nicol throughout all three games," explained Grinham later. "The second game was pretty important, but I don't think I did much wrong, rather it was Nicol who fought her way back.

"The past couple of years I've struggled with injury, which hasn't helped, but now it's all coming good and I'm becoming stronger and stronger mentally. So I really wanted to come back and win Singapore," added the runner-up after her 34th final appearance on the WISPA Tour.

As for David, it was sweet to pick up her 39th WISPA title. More than that, she wants to keep her focus to stay ahead of the chasing pack.

"I think it's a matter of working on the little things, making sure I do everything right, instead of worrying about what others are doing. And to make sure I bring my best each time I step onto the court," explained the champion after her fifth successive Tour title triumph this year.

Final:
[1] Nicol David (MAS) bt [3] Natalie Grinham (NED) 11-9, 11-8, 11-9 (40m)