WORLD SQUASH NEWS

RESULTS: Women's Squashworks Open, Salt Lake City, USA

Semi-finals:
[5] Jenny Tranfield (ENG) bt [1] Fiona Geaves (ENG) 9-6, 6-9, 9-7, 9-2 (42m)
[4] Stephanie Brind (ENG) bt [6] Tania Bailey (ENG) 4-9, 0-9, 9-0, 9-5, 9-5

Tranfield Topples Geaves To Reach Salt Lake City Final

Jenny Tranfield upset top seed Fiona Geaves in the semi-finals of the Women's Squashworks Open in Salt Lake City, USA, to set up an all-English final against fourth seed Stephanie Brind.

Tranfield, the world No17 from Milton Keynes, completed her second upset of the tournament with her four-game victory over Geaves, the world No7.  After splitting the first two games, Tranfield took control in the third with beautifully executed drops from many different court positions.  She also benefited from Geaves' errors, including five 'tins' in the third game.

The favourite, whose game was clearly being disrupted by a sore Achilles tendon, was not moving as aggressively to the front and therefore could not reach Tranfield's precise drops.  The fifth seed's tenacity had been the difference in her two upsets and Tranfield had won the admiration of the Salt Lake squash fans.

Geaves tried gamely to come back from down 2-8 in the third game.  Using steady and effective depth along with beautifully placed drops, she climbed back to 7-8.  But, Tranfield finished the game with a backhand drop to the nick and then a forehand drop for a winner.  Tranfield sensed her advantage in the fourth and cruised to the final by winning the last five rallies and the match 9-6 6-9 9-7 9-2 in 42 minutes.

In the other semi-final, Brind fought back from 0/2 down to overcome compatriot Tania Bailey, the former world No4 who took out the second seed Omneya Abdel Kawy in a five-game quarter-final marathon.

Like her quarter-final match against Welsh champion Tegwen Malik, Brind started the match slowly, losing the first two games to Bailey - the second in a whitewash. 

Brind returned the favour in the third game and beat Bailey 9-0 without dropping her serve!  Bailey tried desperately to regain her form in the fourth game, but the former world junior champion's movement was visibly slower in the latter stages of the game which allowed Brind to win the next seven points and the game.

Though Bailey led 5-3 in the fifth game, Brind maintained her focus and romped to a 4-9 0-9 9-0 9-5 9-5 victory to reach her first WISPA World Tour final since November 2001.