Nele Gilis reaches first first Gold event final after brutal clash

Belgium’s Nele Gilis has reached her first PSA World Tour Gold event semi-final at the VITAGEN Singapore Squash Open after downing No.2 seed and England No.1 Georgina Kennedy in a brutal five-game clash.

As expected, the match started in attritional style with both players not playing too much to the front of the court and opting to find their line and length in the back corners before taking the ball in. Both players are renowned for their athleticism and physical abilities and showcased this all match as they gave each other no quarter in the clash. The opening game entered a tiebreak and it was Gilis who converted.

The second game was played in similar style as both players looked to stay strong around the middle and find ways to break down the movement. Kennedy was the more positive of the two in the second and third games and she utilised the softening ball to take the ball short, using the boast more and more to drag Gilis into the front corners. The Englishwoman capitalised to take a 2-1 lead, winning 11-8, 11-7.

Gilis opted for a new ball for the start of the fourth game, which proved to be a crucial turning point in the match. The Belgian seemed to be invigorated by the up in pace and started to find her targets again in the back corners to force outright length winners and force errors from Kennedy. Gilis was in complete control in the fourth and fifth games and confidently took them 11-4, 11-3 to earn a spot in her first Gold event final.

“It was very very very tough. That’s all I think about right now.”said Nele Gilis after her win.

“Gina is such a tough competitor, it was always going be a battle. I’m very proud that I dug deep and could get the win.

“She is so strong physically so I tried to take that away from her. I tried to stop/start her, it’s very difficult and I think I did that better in the last two games. I would love to play my sister in the final tomorrow, I’ll be watching from my bed but I just hope it’s a good match and secretly I’m hoping for an all-sister final.”

Result:
[3] Nele Gilis (BEL) bt [2] Georgina Kennedy (ENG) 3-2: 12-10, 8-11, 7-11, 11-4, 11-3 (74m)