Challenger Events
Cannon Kirk Gillen Markets Irish Squash Open QFs: Harris Beats Malik in Thriller
Asia Harris came out on top in the latest chapter of her rivalry with Torrie Malik, edging a five-game thriller on quarter-finals day at the Cannon Kirk Gillen Markets Irish Squash Open.
Harris and Malik – still only 19 and 20 years of age respectively – have enjoyed a long-standing rivalry throughout the junior ranks of English squash, and were going head-to-head for the fifth time on the PSA Tour here.
Malik had won three of those previous four encounters, but Harris had tasted success in their most recent meeting, at the 2023 Springfield Scottish Squash Open.
Playing here on the unique green court at Dublin’s Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club, it was Malik who made the stronger start, taking game one 11-8 in almost exactly eight minutes.
With coach Nick Matthew in her corner, Harris responded well by racing into a 3-0 lead in the second, and was soon back on level terms, clinching game two 11-8.
The tide swung back and forth over the next two games, as Malik took the third and Harris the fourth, with the referee called upon to make some crucial decisions.
Just as she had done in game two, Harris quickly moved 3-0 up in the decider, but the momentum shifted once again in the rallies that followed, with Malik putting herself back on top at 6-4 up.
But 6-4 soon became 6-6 as tensions rose, and Harris was soon on the brink of victory at 10-8 up.
The first match ball came and went as Malik hit a smart winning boast on the backhand volley, and there was drama on the next rally as the 20-year-old hit the floor after a coming together.
A yes let was the decision keeping the score at 10-9, but Harris would this time clinch the win, with Malik finding the tin on a forehand to end proceedings.
Standing between Harris and a place in the final will now be 2022 runner-up Emily Whitlock, who booked her spot in the last four with a 3-0 win over Germany’s Katerina Tycova, while top seed Nada Abbas also progressed. Abbas – the World No.18 – ended home hopes in the first match of the day, beating Ireland’s Hannah Craig 3-0.
She will now play England’s Kiera Marshall, who reached a 20k semi-final for the first time in her career, putting in an impressive display to sink Poland’s Karina Tyma.
In the men’s draw, top seed Nick Wall went out in unfortunate circumstances, having to withdraw through injury midway through his match with rising star Jonah Bryant.
Wall had taken the first game 11-9 and was 3-2 up in the second, with the potential for a mouthwatering encounter very much on the cards, only for the Sheffield-born lefty to roll his ankle badly.
A lengthy delay followed but Wall was ultimately unable to continue, handing the in-form Bryant a place in the semi-finals, and a 12th straight win on the Challenger Tour.
His opponent will be another player riding a long winning streak at the Challenger Tour level in Declan James.
Like Bryant, James came into this event having won his last two Challenger Tour events, and reached semi-finals of the GillenMarkets London Squash Classic in between.
He’s carried that fine form into this week in Dublin, where he is yet to drop a game, beating fourth seed Lucas Serme 3-0 in today’s quarter-final.
The bottom half of the draw will also pit a rising star of the sport against a more established English name, as Mohamad Zakaria faces off against George Parker.
Parker was celebrating his 28th birthday today, and made sure it would not be a birthday to forget by beating Ivan Perez 3-0 in the day’s final match.
Zakaria had earlier got the better of Pakistan’s Noor Zaman, conqueror of third seed Todd Harrity in round two.
The 16-year-old Egyptian was perhaps not at his best in the opening exchanges of his matchup with Zaman, but quickly found his feet after losing the first game, winning the next three 11-4, 11-7, 11-4.
The semi-finals of the Cannon Kirk Gillen Markets Irish Squash Open kick off at 5pm local time tomorrow, Friday April 26, streaming live on the SQUASHTV Live Streaming YouTube channel.
Results: Women’s Quarter-Finals
[5] Asia Harris (ENG) bt [3] Torrie Malik (ENG) 3-2: 8-11, 11-8, 8-11, 11-6, 11-9 (52m)
[2] Emily Whitlock (WAL) bt Katerina Tycova (GER) 3-0: 11-2, 11-5, 11-7 (30m)
Kiera Marshall (ENG) bt Karina Tyma (POL) 3-0: 12-10, 11-8, 11-7 (32m)
[1] Nada Abbas (EGY) bt Hannah Craig (IRL) 3-0: 11-7, 11-7, 11-4 (26m)
Results: Men’s Quarter-Finals
[2] George Parker (ENG) bt Ivan Perez (ESP) 3-0: 11-7, 11-8, 11-3 (38m)
Jonah Bryant (ENG) bt [1] Nick Wall (ENG) 3-1: 8-11, 2-3 retired (48m)
Mohamad Zakaria (EGY) bt Noor Zaman (PAK) 3-1: 7-11, 11-4, 11-7, 11-4 (46m)
Declan James (ENG) bt [4] Lucas Serme (FRA) 3-0: 11-3, 11-8, 11-6 (53m)
