Linda Elriani played the best squash of recent years in beating the world number one and top seed Rachael Grinham in four well-planned games. Having beaten the younger Grinham yesterday, Elriani achieved a double that no other player has managed - beating the two sisters in one tournament. That's the equivalent of beating Jahangir and Jansher on successive days.

THE LINDA LOB

What is more she achieved that double using exactly the same strategy: the high lob. And my! how that Elriani woman can use the height of the court. You really do expect it come down covered in ice. Natalie told me this morning that she kept losing the ball in the lights so when she practised with big sis today she spent a lot of time hoisting high lobs into the stratosphere so Rachael would get used to them.

It didn't help. Elriani was totally in control and was masterful (sorry about the sexism, but mistressful doesn't have the same ring) all over the court. Grinham's front court game is dangerous so Elriani kept the ball soaring to the back and when Grinham took the ball short Elriani was on to it like a bulldog to counterdrop or send it to the back of the court again. Any loose ball from Grinham down the left side was volleyed with a deft backhand crosscourt into the nick. There was simply nothing that the lithe small Australian could do and she left the court with just one point.

Elriani came back for the second with more of the same and playing with the confidence that her newly acquired fitness has given her. She was rarely caught out at the front of the court and Grinham knew that Elriani had the answer to every one of her gambits. The second game took only nine minutes but it was Elriani's 9-6 for a 2/0 lead and the suggestion of a great upset.

BLACK TO WHITE

In the intermission Fiona Geaves, her long-time England team-mate, told her in no uncertain terms to go back to lobbing the ball and get back on the winning track which is exactly what she did.

It was harder fought, this fourth game with thirteen rallies played and the score was still only 3-1 in Elriani's favour. But she had the lead and despite Grinham's best efforts she made very little progress on the scoreboard. Elriani was focused, accurate and consistent. No signs of fatigue and she was still getting to almost all of Grinham's short shots.

She hit a very high cross court lob to get the serve back at 7-3 - so good that it died in the back corner. She finished the next rally with a beautifully cut backhand drop to get to match ball and then, just to rub the message in, another perfect cross court lob which Grinham could not return. Elriani smiled broadly and shook hands, and walked off the court into the arms of a delighted British contingent.

"Same game plan as yesterday," she replied when asked about her tactics. "I thought I might feel tired after yesterday but I felt good right to the end. It makes up for Amsterdam, taking both the Grinham sisters out." She referred to the world team championships last October when the Grinham sisters beat Cassie Jackman and Elriani to win the world title.

"I haven't seen Linda play that well for years," said Fiona Geaves who was in Elriani's corner between games. "She played so brilliantly. Rachael didn't know what to do."

LINCOU FINDS A SOLUTION

He looked comfortable enough to win that first game but was put off by a couple of decisions by Mike Riley, who was trying to make the players hit the ball rather than call lets. They were fair calls, but the problem is that Lincou was used to other referees, not using the minimum interference guideline, giving strokes in similar situations.

Lincou can still let a call he disagrees with affect his game and from a 7-6 lead he allowed Palmer to overtake him and win the first 14 minute game.

Palmer had been strangely passive in his play, happy to react to Lincou's initiative and in the second game he paid for this lack of courage as Lincou produced beautiful winners all over the court to steam away to an 11-3 win in just six minutes, which must have seriously worried the tall Australian.

The third game was hard fought with Palmer now putting in the odd short shot and playing more positively. At 2-2 there was collision that left Palmer on the floor clutching his leg but he recovered to get a stroke on the next rally to lead 3-2 and then notched up another point when the referee refused Lincou a let. Palmer then experienced his first period of domination since the first game to lead 7-3. Lincou patiently worked his way back into the game to tie the game and lead 8-7 after a long rally. Palmer tossed his racket in the air in frustration and was warned for racket abuse. He actually failed to catch the racket when it came down and he should have been warned for clumsy juggling.

Lincou kept up his game plan and with a delicate drop got to game point and earned the next point with a stroke after 21 incident-filled minutes.

Palmer played some of his best squash in the fourth game and lead 8-4. Lincou now plays with enormous confidence, the sort of confidence that knows he can save any situation with his accuracy and movement. He once more climbed all the way back to 8-9 and was gifted the next point when Palmer drove an easy shot into the tin to tie the score 9-9. A tie-break looked inevitable but Palmer let the side down: a boast hit the top of the tin to put Lincou at match ball and then Palmer completed his hat-trick of errors with a backhand volley drop into the tin.

It was a good win for the French champion who admitted that he always had problems playing the tall Palmer.
"But now I think I have found the solution and I knew I had to play positively and not let him play his game," he said.

SHABANA AND RICKETTS CLOSER TO FARCE THAN SQUASH.

They played a little harder in the third game, but it was bitty squash with the occasional serious rally. At 10-9 Shabana's shot clearly hit the top of the tin. Everybody saw it except the marker and the referee. Ricketts looked at Shabana looking for confirmation that his ball was down. Shabana stared Sphinx-like: Ricketts threw the ball towards the front of the court in disgust at being denied the game point, an act that brought on a huge round of booing from the packed Vanderbilt Hall. Shabana looked sheepish and lofted a ball as a weak serve
admitting that his ball was down and the two players walked off the court as the marker revised the decision. Shabana should have admitted his error immediately, but it was just another incident that made this match so unsavoury.

The fourth game saw six careless errors from Shabana and Ricketts won 11-6 after 45 minutes of a game that could be called squash, I suppose, but only barely.

2005 TOC SEMI-FINAL RESULTS

Women
[5] Linda Elriani (ENG) bt [1] Rachael Grinham (AUS) 9-1, 9-6, 1-9, 9-3 (50 mins)
[2] Vanessa Atkinson (NED bt Vicky Botwright (ENG) 9-6, 9-1, 9-6 (39 mins)