1st Round Evening Edition
Martin Bronstein, Squashtalk reporter on the scene at Grand Central Terminal

by Martin Bronstein, Live at Grand Central Terminal, New York, 19 Feb 2005
All content © 2005 Squashtalk, photos: © 2005 Debra Tessier

[view the main draw/results]   [view the qualifying draw/results]  

DAN'S THE MAN

In a thrilling, scintillating, hold-your-breath start to the evening session, Dan Jenson upset the form book with a 3/1 victory over John White, the Australian Scot who is soon to become a yank.
The pace of this battle between two six foot Aussies made anything played in the afternoon session look like slow motion. When White is on court every shot breaks the sound barrier, and if his opponent is less than lightning fast they haven't a hope of winning. Jenson was up to everything that White could fire at him and produced his share of fine winners.

Whereas most matches see rallies up and down the wall interrupted with the odd short shot, these two produced a match that was mostly short stuff with occasional rallies up and down the wall.

White lead the first game to 9-6 at which point Jenson seemed to have warmed up and put together a string of well played rallies that White had no answer to. In a fine run of six unanswered points Jenson took the game 11-9 after 19 hard minutes.

Those spectators who had been in Boston last September were not surprised - Jenson had knocked White out of the US Open. With his confidence brimming over Jenson took charge in the second game and moved like a rabbit as White used his entire arsenal of shots to distribute the ball around the court. For two very tall men, they both moved very well and retrieved at the front corners with speed and accuracy. This was squash of a very high order and I got the impression that White was losing confidence as the game wore on, unable to find a chink in Jenson's armour. The game ended with a White error , 11-8 to Jenson to give him a 2/0 lead - and well deserved.

In the third White ran to a 5-1 lead suggesting that Jenson could be tiring but once more Jenson settled down and pulled all the way back to 8-all looking good enough to take a straight games victory. But then a forehand boast hit the tin to break his own run and then White managed to produce two outright winners to take the game 11-8.

I was delighted - it meant at least one more game from these two inventive players - I was beginning to wish the match was best of nine. The best was yet to come and in the fourth game the tension mounted as Jenson led 4-0 only for White to pull back and fight point for point until 8-8. Whitge was denied a let on the next point and then came the battle as the intensity mounted resulting in five lets in a row as they fought for the 18th point. Finally after a breathtaking rally White hit forehand volley into the nick to tie the game at 9-9. My hopes for a fifth game were dashed as Jenson won the next point to get to match ball and then emerge victorious when awarded a stroke to end the 75 minutes of glorious squash.
I asked Dan why he won. He smiled at the question and then said:
"John's the hardest guy to play. I knew I had to control him and I think I did that - I stopped him playing the shots. I thought I was moving ok today and if I am moving well I can play well. I made sure we had some long rallies to start with just get into the game."
I mention his injuries that kept him out of the game for a couple of years.

"I really don't want to talk about them. My back's Ok now and I do yoga to keep me supple," said the 29 years old who has taken three years to get back into the top twenty.

Jonathon Power must have been pleased with that result as he was due to meet White in the next round. Not that Jenson will be a push over for the Canadian, but White always presents problems to Power.

The Canadian was next up and he and Rodney Durbach produced a bitty match which featured the referee as much as the players. There were claims, counterclaims, constant requests for lets, objections to almost every decision and conduct warnings to both players, Durbach for abusing the ball (don't ask!) and Power for dissent.

For the first two games Durbach was badly off his game, probably still suffering from his five game match in the qualifying yesterday. The third game improved as the Durbach got into some rhythm and even led 5-4 and then recovered from 5-8 to 8-all but he was never going to handle Power's deception and range of shots and so, after 42 minutes Power took the match in straight games. Power now has a 48 hour respite before he faces Jenson.

KNEIPP ROBBED BY REFEREE

Joe Kneipp can claim with great justification that he was robbed by a referee who simply doesn't understand - or failed to see - when a player is blocking another player. In a five game match that last 88 minutes - the longest of the tournament so far, Kneipp was denied lets when he should have been awarded strokes. Wael el Hindi has a wonderful touch with the ball, taking the speed off and dropping it gently into the front left corner. He then walks into the path of the incoming striker rather than arcing away. Time and time again Kneipp was denied a direct path to the ball and every time the referee failed to call the correct decision. Had he called them early in the first game, Kneipp would have won in four, but as it was he lost in five, totally cheesed off and disgusted that any referee could fail to see what was happening. He tried to explain but the referee failed to understand what he was saying and so El Hindi continued with his movement. Maybe he doesn't understand that what he is doing is wrong: some firm decisions from the referee would have helped to educate him.

TOC 2005 1st Round Results:
Dan Jenson (AUS) bt John White (SCO) 11-9, 11-8, 8-11, 11-9 (75mins)
[6] Jonathon Power (CAN) bt Rodney Durbach (RSA) 11-3, 11-4, 11-8. (42mins)
[4]David Palmer (AUS) bt Mark Chaloner (ENG) 10-12, 11-10, 11-6, 11-8 (69mins)
Wael el Hindi (EGY) bt Joseph Kneipp (AUS) 11-8, 11-10 (2-1), 7-11, 9-11, 11-10 (3-1) (88mins)

[1] Thierry Lincou (FRA) bt Renan Lavigne (FRA) 11-2, 11-8, 11-4
Mohammed Abbas (EGY) bt Simon Parke (ENG) 11-8, 11-6, 11-5 (37mins)
]7] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt Hisham Ashour (EGY) 11-4, 11-5, 11-7 (28mins)
Alex Gough (WAL) bt Adrian Grant (ENG) 8-11, 11-4, 11-10 (2-0) 6-11, 11-6 (72mins)

1st Round underway in Grand Central (photo: © 2005 Debra Tessier)