Pittsburgh Open: England’s Parker & Coleman Come Through Five-Game Clashes

The English duo of Ben Coleman and George Parker both survived scares in their first round matches at the Pittsburgh Open, with the pair coming through to win in five games in their respective matches.

Ben Coleman came up with the big upset of the day, as he got the better of 2018 Pittsburgh Open champion Max Lee, beating the Hongkonger in 78 minutes, having come from two games down to win.

Lee, a former World No.12, took the first two games 11-9 and 11-7, and looked in control but the Englishman was able to fight his way back into the match, by winning the third game 11-8.

He then went on to win both the fourth and fifth games 11-9 to secure his spot in the second round, where he will face former World No.3 Omar Mosaad for a place in the last eight in Pittsburgh.

Meanwhile, Parker faced off against compatriot Patrick Rooney in the opening match of the tournament, one that lasted over an hour and a half between the two Englishman. It would be the World No.56 that took the victory, as he won the fifth-game on a tie-break, taking it 14-12.

Parker will now meet the tournament’s No.1 seed, Fares Dessouky, in the second round, while Richie Fallows and Nathan Lake also booked their places in the second round, making it four wins for England on the opening day of the tournament in Pittsburgh.

Fallows got the better of Karim El Hammamy in the other major surprise on day one, while Lake was on court for just 12 minutes, as his opponent, India’s Ramit Tandon, was forced to retire through injury. The English duo will now face New Zealand’s Campbell Grayson and India’s Saurav Ghosal, respectively, on day two of the tournament.

Elsewhere, there were wins for home favourite Todd Harrity, Mexico’s Arturo Salazar, Egypt’s Mohamed ElSherbini and Qatari No.1 Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi, with the four all advancing through to the last 16.

The action continues on Thursday evening, with the seeded players entering the draw for the first time. Defending champion Gregoire Marche will play Salazar in the last 16, while the Mexican’s twin brother, Cesar, is also one of those who will play their first match on the second day.
You can keep up with the live scores from the event here.

Results – First Round: Pittsburgh Open
George Parker (ENG) bt Patrick Rooney (ENG) 3-2: 11-5, 7-11, 11-8, 9-11, 14-12 (92m)
Richie Fallows (ENG) bt Karim El Hammamy (EGY) 3-0: 11-7, 11-1, 11-8 (33m)
Todd Harrity (USA) bt Mazen Gamal (EGY) 3-1: 11-13, 11-5, 11-4, 11-6 (46m)
Arturo Salazar (MEX) bt [WC] Alister Walker (BOT) 3-0: 11-7, 11-8, 13-11 (32m)
Mohamed ElSherbini (EGY) bt Shahjahan Khan (USA) 3-0: 11-2, 11-5, 11-6 (46m)
Ben Coleman (ENG) bt Max Lee (HKG) 3-2: 9-11, 7-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-9 (78m)
Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi (QAT) bt [WC] Abdul Malik Khan (PAK) 3-0: 11-9, 11-4, 2-1 rtd. (21m)
Nathan Lake (ENG) bt Ramit Tandon (IND) 3-0: 11-3, 6-1 rtd. (12m)

Draw – Second Round: Pittsburgh Open
[1] Fares Dessouky (EGY) v George Parker (ENG)
Richie Fallows (ENG) v [7] Campbell Grayson (NZL)
[8] Raphael Kandra (GER) v Todd Harrity (USA)
Arturo Salazar (MEX) v [4] Gregoire Marche (FRA)
[3] Zahed Salem (EGY) v Mohamed ElSherbini (EGY)
Ben Coleman (ENG) v [5] Omar Mosaad (EGY)
[6] Cesar Salazar (MEX) v Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi (QAT)
Nathan Lake (ENG) v [2] Saurav Ghosal (IND)