Sutton Coldfield International 2021

Men & Women PSA $6k Challengers, 24-28 Nov, England

FINALS : Alicia Mead beats Torrie Malik in five as Sam Todd takes the men’s final in three …

Alicia Mead 3-2 Torrie Malik 
Alicia started really strongly playing some accurate squash and moving very well, with Torrie perhaps contributing a few too many mistakes in the first two games. At 7-2 in the third it seemed we were in for a quick win, Torrie looking down and out. However, the youngster showed some real battling qualities to claw her way back and extend the match.

A change of tactics saw her slow the game down with height and hit some devastating kills off of any loose returns to take a comfortable fourth game. Alicia regrouped and adjusted to pull away from four all in the fifth to take the match and the title.

Sam Todd 3-0 Miles Jenkins
It was always going to be interesting to see how much both players had left after tough matches yesterday, especially Sam. However, the number 2 seed started quickly and never let Miles settle into the match, hitting a number of winners and countering at the front brilliantly, his opponent struggling to read the variations. At 6-4 up in the second it looked like Miles may have got himself a foothold in the match but a few quickfire winners turning things back in Sam’s favour. Full of confidence Sam took control of the third game and never let up.

A huge thank you to all of the players who have made this week such a success along with our amazing tournament team. Also, to the never-ending support of our sponsor, Aston and Fincher.

 

SEMIS : Some thrilling battles as Miles Jenkins, Sam Todd, Torrie Malik and Alicia Mead win through to the finals …

Torrie Malik 3-2 Asia Harris 
There were always going to be slight traffic issues in this match with both ladies being tall, but it definitely turned into a messy affair with far too much contact and too many decisions to be made. Torrie coming through in the end.

Miles Jenkins 3-1 Ben Smith 
A really clean match this one, Ben showing slightly more with the racket to take the first game. Miles managed to get on the front foot and put a bit more work into his opponent which paid dividends in the latter part of the next three games.

Alicia Mead 3-2 Rana Ismail 
Another absolute cracker and a real see saw match to take it into the fifth. A match played at a high pace with fantastic shot quality and great court coverage. Rana holding a couple of points lead in the fifth but Alicia showing the same composure she has all week to sneak a win in the fifth.

Sam Todd 3-2 Joe Lee
Over an hour and a half of ridiculous play, Joe’s ball control immaculate to take a 2-1 lead. Both looked to be tiring slightly in the fourth but every ball kept coming back with interest. Sam finished the game strongly to set up a tense finish. Half an hour for the final game should show just how back and forth it was, Joe holding 4 match balls before Sam eventually closed it out on his second.

QUARTERS :

We had an absolutely packed house for the quarter final matches and certainly weren’t disappointed with some long matches pushing us until a 10pm finish, most of the crowd still here.

In the men’s draw, Miles Jenkins and James Peach started the night off with a really good match, both showing exceptional court coverage, with Miles just sneaking the fourth game to get through.

Elliot Morris extended Sam Todd to four games in another high-quality game whilst Ben Smith again looked on form and showing a great variety of shots to win in straight games.

Stuart Macgregor out in another gutsy effort against Joe Lee, Joe just being that bit in control throughout with some great shot quality.

We had two unbelievably close matches on the women’s side. Asia Harris and Katie Wells treated us to an incredibly close match which really could have gone either way, both demonstrating fantastic racket skills. Torrie Malik always had an edge against Emilia Korhoren and Rana Ismail took out Kiera Marshall in three, despite Kiera having chances in the first two games.

The last match of the day went on well behind schedule but the many people who stayed to watch were witness to probably the match of the night. Saran Nghiem and Alicia Mead showing fantastic athleticism to keep rallies going which seemed long dead.

Saran holding two match balls in the fifth but Alicia staying strong to close it out 12-10, a real shame to have a loser in this one.

Round TWO : A couple of real upsets in the men’s draw today. James Peach continued his good form with a very impressive performance in beating top seed Ben Coleman 3-1. Ben Smith also looked very sharp to take a deserved win over Rory Stewart in straight games. The longest matches of the evening being two real battles,

Temwa Chileshe coming back from 0-2 down to overcome Perry Malik in 5, and Stuart Macgregor holding on to beat Curtis Malik in another 5-game encounter.

We also lost two of our top four seeds in the ladies draw. Local girl Kiera Marshall putting in a great effort to dispatch Kace Bartley in four, whilst Asia Harris got the better of Kaitlyn Watts in a good quality affair.

The last match of the evening was a much-anticipated match up between youngster Kaite Maliff and local pro Alicia Mead, Alicia just about having the edge after a strong start from Katie.

Round ONE

A great first day of squash and it was fantastic to welcome a women’s event to the club for the first time.

Some standout matches in the men’s with Stuart Macgregor against Simon Herbert In a real tussle and Perry Malik overcoming Fergus Richards in 4 close games. Peter Creed took out fellow Welshman Owain Taylor in three games lasting 52 minutes!

Amy Royle and Juliette Permentier served up the only 5 game match in the ladies draw, with young local Mariam Eissa sneaking a game in her match with Asia Harris. The match between Megan vanDongelen and Sofia Aveiro Pita also drawing a good crowd.