ORANGE COUNTY OPEN (7TH – 11TH SEPTEMBER 2011)
California is a beautiful place. We were situated in Irvine, which has been voted to be the safest area in the state. The sports clubs are massive, cars are huge, and not too far from here is an area with the highest ownership of Ferrari’s per capita. I had a great host family, with a tremendous hospitality gift and big hearts, and really made me feel at home.
I visited Disneyland for the first time ever with a few squash players. I went to the Laguna Beach with my hostess, Donnella, and we got to see a movie being filmed on the beach – Savages. Apparently the main actors are John Travolta, Salma Hayek, Urma Thurman, amongst others. It will be out September 2012. One of the current biggest basketball stars (the next big thing after Michael Jordan), Kobe Bryant, used the gym we were playing at as his personal training ground. We managed to catch a glimpse of him too!
The squash was always going to be tough, with a strong draw of competitors. A 15year old Egyptian girl made it to the finals, by beating a player 23years her senior in the semi-finals. That’s great for the future of squash. Now to my results…
Orange County Open
1st Round:
Opponent: Diana Elise Garcia
Nationality: Mexico
World Ranking: 235
Tournament Seed: Qualifier
Result: Won 3-1; 11/8 11/7 8/11 11/6 (40 min)
I felt like I was in control of the match, but lost concentration in the third game.
Quater Finals:
Opponent: Dipika Pallikal
Nationality: India
World Ranking: 24
Tournament Seed: 1
Result: Lost 3-0; 11/5 11/6 11/8 (40 mins)
I started quite slowly in this match, but my opponent was not giving me any chances, and putting away every loose shot i gave her. In the second game, I got into a better rhythm, but was still going short too early and making a few unforced errors. The third game was close from the start, played longer rallies which i seemed to win. Dipika is an attacking player, and it really amazes me how well she keeps attacking even when you think she couldn’t possibly pull off a certain shot. Watching her play in the semi-finals made me even more aware that she is playing some great squash at the moment. That’s when you give her a round of applause for this win, and hope you play to your best the next time you meet.
SIYOLI WATERS 