Nash Cup SF: Three Surprise Winners In Four Semi-Finals

Semi-finals day at the Nash Cup in London, Canada was a surprising one, with just one of the higher-ranked players taking victory in their last four contest at the Challenger 20 level competition.

Men’s top seed Nathan Lake was the man to do so, but even the Englishman had to fight his way through his semi-final against Spaniard Edmon Lopez, coming back from behind to win in five. Lake was 2-1 down, and then survived match balls before taking it 14-12. That gave him the momentum, and he came through to win the fifth 11-2, to advance to the final on Saturday evening.

He will face compatriot Curtis Malik in that final, after the tournament’s No.8 seed overcame Hong Kong’s No.2 seed Henry Leung, also in five games. The Englishman led after the first game, but then saw Leung take the next two to hold a 2-1. Like his fellow countryman, Malik saved match balls in a fourth game tie-break, one he took 15-13, before going on to drop just three points in the deciding fifth game to make it through to the final.

Unseeded Egyptian Zeina Zein continued her knockout run going, following wins over two seeded players, as she downed No.3 seed Lucy Beecroft to make another final. The 17-year-old took the opening two games of their emo-final match, before seeing the Englishwoman fight back to level the contest at two games apiece. It could have gone either way in the fifth, but Zein was able to come out on top, winning it 11-7 to advance to the final.

She will now face Scotland’s Georgia Adderley in that final, after the No.4 seed got the better of No.2 seed Haley Mendez in the only match not to go the distance on Friday evening. The Scot dropped just 15 points en route to a straight games victory in 26 minutes, reaching her second final of 2022.

The finals of the Nash Cup will take place on Saturday, September 17, with the final four aiming to take home the Challenger 20 level titles. All the action from the London Squash Club will be streamed live on the PSA Challenger Tour YouTube channel. If you’re unable to watch, you can keep up to date with live scores from the event here.

Men’s Semi-Final Results: Nash Cup
[1] Nathan Lake (ENG) bt Edmon Lopez (ESP) 3-2: 10-12, 11-2, 7-11, 14-12, 11-2 (56m)
[8] Curtis Malik (ENG) bt [2] Henry Leung (HKG) 3-2: 11-5, 11-13, 3-11, 15-13, 11-3 (70m)

Men’s Final Draw: To Be Played Saturday, September 17
[1] Nathan Lake (ENG) v [8] Curtis Malik (ENG)

Women’s Semi-Final Results: Nash Cup
Zeina Zein (EGY) bt [3] Lucy Beecroft (ENG) 3-2: 11-8, 11-5, 6-11, 10-12, 11-7 (52m)
[4] Georgia Adderley (SCO) bt [2] Haley Mendez (USA) 3-0: 11-6, 11-7, 11-2 (26m)

Women’s Final Draw: To Be Played Saturday, September 17
Zeina Zein (EGY) v [4] Georgia Adderley (SCO)