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Tested
Teran Takes LA Title
Howard Harding reports |
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RESULTS: Women's Epstein Becker & Green Los Angeles Open, Los Angeles,
USA
Final:
[1] Samantha Teran (MEX) bt [3] Louise Crome (NZL) 9-3, 9-4, 5-9, 9-2 (70m)
 Despite
enduring a 99-minute semi-final in the Women's Epstein Becker & Green Los
Angeles Open, top-seeded Mexican Samantha Teran survived a
70-minute final to win the $20,000 WISPA World Tour squash event in its
second year at Los Angeles Athletic Club in Los Angeles.
Opponent Louise Crome, the third seed from New Zealand, tried to mix it
up during the match - but Teran maintained her characteristic hard-driving
game-plan, putting the Kiwi under relentless pressure.
Teran got off to an excellent start, quickly going 8-1 up. But Crome battled
to stay in the game, and only after 12 game balls did the 27-year-old from
Mexico City take the lead.
The favourite again took a quick lead in the second before taking the game -
but Crome achieved the same in the third to reduce the deficit. Teran
survived several brutal rallies in the fourth before eventually celebrating
her 9-3, 9-4, 5-9, 9-2 victory - the 11th Tour title of her career and the
fourth this year.
"Louise is difficult to play, she has very good technique and hits the ball
hard so I had to really work to win that one," Teran told
www.squashsite.co.uk
afterwards. "I think I played better than I did yesterday, I had to think
more, otherwise it would have been even longer.
"This is my favourite event - it's not too far from home and there's lots of
Mexicans here to support me. We even went out for some Mexican food last
night!"
Crome conceded that Teran played well: "I knew that Samantha would be driving
the ball hard and low, that's her game, so I changed my game plan for today
and I was trying to slow it down and control it, but it's so hot on there and
it was hard not to get drawn into that game."
The triumph seals Teran's status as the top twenty player with the best win
average on the WISPA World Tour: With only two losses in her 13 final
appearances, the world No20 boasts an 85% success rate - ahead of Malaysia's
world No1 Nicol David at 67%; Dutch star Vanessa Atkinson (61%);
Australian Rachael Grinham (59%); USA's Natalie Grainger (50%)
and world No2 Natalie Grinham (41%).
Teran and Crome now head to Pachuca for the Women's Harrow Mexican
Open which gets underway on Thursday (3 July). Aucklander Louise Crome,
the third seed, and top seed Teran could again meet in the final. |
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Teran
Takes Tara In LA Opener
Howard Harding reports |
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RESULTS: Women's Epstein
Becker & Green
Los Angeles Open,
Los Angeles, USA
1st round:
[1] Samantha Teran (MEX) bt Tara Mullins (CAN) 9-2, 9-4, 9-0 (28m)
[6] Donna Urquhart (AUS) bt [Q] Stephanie Edmison (CAN) 9-1, 9-1, 9-1 (20m)
[4] Manuela Manetta (ITA) bt [Q] Thaisa Serafini (BRA) 10-8, 9-5, 9-2 (34m)
[7] Suzie Pierrepont (ENG) bt [Q] Tina Rix (ENG) 9-4, 9-0, 9-4 (24m)
[8] Alana Miller (CAN) bt Nour
El Tayeb (EGY) 9-2, 5-9, 9-1, 9-2 (43m)
[3] Louise Crome (NZL) bt [Q]
Eman El Amir (EGY) 9-0, 9-5, 9-6 (36m)
[5] Aisling Blake (IRL) bt Karina Herrera Zuniga (MEX) 9-3, 9-1, 9-4 (26m)
[2] Latasha Khan (USA) bt Deon Saffery (WAL) 9-2, 9-1, 9-1 (26m)
On course to win her fourth
WISPA World Tour
squash title in the
USA this year, top seed Samantha Teran beat Canadian Tara Mullins
in the first round of the Women's Epstein Becker & Green Los Angeles
Open to claim a place in the last eight of the $20,000 event in its second
year at Los Angeles Athletic Club in Los Angeles.
The world No20 from Mexico
took just 28 minutes to overcome Mullins 9-2, 9-4, 9-0 and will now face
Australian Donna Urquhart, the No6 seed, for a place in the
semi-finals.
"It's very hard to finish the ball off on there and she likes to run - so that
made it a hard game," Teran told
www.squashsite.co.uk.
"We've played each other so many times - whenever we're in a tournament
together we always seem to be playing, but thankfully I usually win!"
US hopes are being led by
second seed Latasha Khan. The seven-time US National champion from
Seattle beat Welsh opponent Deon Saffery 9-2, 9-1, 9-1 - and now faces
a quarter-final clash with Ireland's fifth seed Aisling Blake.
Quarter-final line-up:
[1] Samantha Teran (MEX) v [6] Donna Urquhart (AUS)
[4] Manuela Manetta (ITA) v [7] Suzie Pierrepont (ENG)
[3] Louise Crome (NZL) v [8] Alana Miller (CAN)
[2] Latasha Khan (USA) v [5] Aisling Blake (IRL)
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