[1] Tesni Murphy (WAL) 3-0 [4] Grace Gear (ENG) 11-8, 11-9, 11-4 (37m)
Very pleasant match to watch indeed. Both girls are a great joy to watch and they didn’t disappoint tonight.
A strong start for the English, 6/3, but a quick response from the Welsh, back level, 6/6, 7/7, 8/8. Two winners from Tesni and an unforced error from Grace, 11/8. Quick 8m.
The Welsh seem to go on the second game with momentum, 6/0. But Grace plays excellent squash to claw back to 5/6, then 8/8, 9/9. A great kill from Tesni, game ball, 10/9. A great rally, Grace seems to be in control, but clips the right forehand corner, and it’s a stroke for Tes, 11/9. 12m game.
Grace needed one of the two games, I feel. She came back on court a bit down mentally, and Tesni is too experienced to let that one pass, even if the English fought till the last shot, 7/3, 11/4 in 12m.
Grace : You can’t let a player like Tes to go 2/0 up. She is too good of a player, you need to get your foot on the scoreboard.
I feel like the second game, I had the most chances, even if I went 6/0 down, but at the end, she just played the points better than me. It would have been nice to take one of the first two.
I guess I could have lifted a little more to get the ball behind her, lifting it across a little bit more.
When Tes has time in the front, she’s always has a good hold, so you don’t know where the ball’s going…
Tesni : “I was having so much fun on court today.
I know Grace really well and we’ve had two matches in the last year which have been really, really close. So I wanted to come out here today and try and put on a really good performance here on the glass court. I think I did that, so I enjoyed it. It was fun.
“I think I’m at a cool phase of life where I love my squash, but it’s not everything anymore. I love it and I want to win, but if I don’t, it doesn’t change anything when I go home.
“I just try to think, if I only have a couple more years left on tour, then I just want to enjoy it. That has freed my body up a little bit.”
