Pre-tournament favourites Anthony Ricketts and Rachael Grinham have won their respective national titles at the Australian Open Squash Championships in Melbourne with the announcement of the Commonwealth Games Squash team just one week away.
A world number three, Mr Ricketts came away with a three sets to nil victory over the world number four ranked David Palmer at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatics Centre (MSAC), the venue for Squash at the Games, on 7 January.
“I’m happy with the way that I’ve started the year and am pretty happy to get through three nil,” Mr Ricketts told News Limited.
This is the second time Mr Ricketts has won the Australian Open after victory in 2000 and has capped off a memorable season, winning the prestigious British Open championship in 2005.
Mr Ricketts hopes to continue his career-best form into Commonwealth Games in March.
“I have three more tournaments before the Games so, hopefully, we can come back to Melbourne in top form.”
World number two Ms Grinham also came away with a straight sets victory over Victoria’s Amelia Pittock to reinstate her favouritism for Commonwealth Games gold a few hours before the men’s title was decided.
“It’s really exciting to win the national championship for the first time,” Ms Grinham told The Age.
“I think Amelia played quite well today in the conditions, I think her game is more suited to a colder court and it was pretty bouncy today and I think that was on my side.”
It was nearly not as easy a victory for the Toowoomba-born Ms Grinham, who came back with seven straight points in the second game to win it 9 – 7.
Mr Ricketts and Ms Grinham will also compete in this week’s world doubles championships to be held at MSAC.
Mr Ricketts will pair with world number 20 and fellow Australian Stuart Boswell, whilst Ms Grinham will compete in both the women’s and mixed competitions.
The Commonwealth Games Squash competition begins on Thursday 16 March and concludes on Sunday 26 March.
Review: Australian Open Championships Quarter Finals
The stars of Australian squash are fighting it out at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatics Centre (MSAC) for the Australian Open Championships, which started on Tuesday 3 January.
The strongest ever field for an Australian championships has gathered at the Championships, including two male players from NSW ranked in the world top ten: world number three and British Open champion Anthony Ricketts and world number four and former World Champion David Palmer.
Both Mr Ricketts and Mr Palmer have advanced to the semi-finals, which promise to be of a world-class standard.
Queenslander and former world number one, Rachael Grinham, favourite to take out the women’s title, will meet fourth-ranked South Australian Melissa Martin in the semi-finals after breezing through her preliminary matches in straight sets.
Competitors in the championships are not only vying for the chance to be crowned Australian champion, but to also be eligible to compete for their country at the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.
Defending Commonwealth Games gold medallist and perennial Australian squash champion Sarah Fitz-Gerald, who is not competing in the championships says that this week is a good opportunity to get familiar with Games conditions.
“All the players are using this event as part of their commitment to the Games, but it is a trial run of the facilities, as well as getting positions in the team and it is the Australia Open title,” Ms Fitz-Gerald told the Age.
The MSAC venue has been completely refitted with new floors and surfaces and a new all-glass centre court. It will play host to the Commonwealth Games Squash competition in March, and the World Doubles tournament next week.
Ms Fitz-Gerald predicts that Australia is a chance to figure in all five gold medal calculations at the Games.
“There is a totally different expectation and pressure, the good thing is most of the top players have experienced that before because they have been in the Commonwealth Games before,” said Ms Fitz-Gerald.
Below is a summary of results from the Quarter finals:
Women:
Rachael Grinham defeated Jan Miller 9/3, 9/2, 9/3.
Melissa Martin defeated Karen Kronemeyer (NED) 9/2, 9/7, 4/9, 9/5.
Kasey Brown defeated Shannon McNamara 9/5, 9/1, 9/3.
Amelia Pittock defeated Peta Hughes 9/5, 9/5, 9/5.
Men:
Anthony Ricketts defeated Craig Roland 11/8, 11/4, 11/6.
Stewart Boswell defeated Cameron Pilley 11/7, 11/8, 11/4.
Dan Jenson defeated Joseph Kneipp 11/4, 6/11, 11/4, 11/6.
David Palmer defeated Tim Manning 11/8, 11/7, 11/7.
The Commonwealth Games Squash competition begins on Thursday 16 March and concludes on Sunday 26 March.
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