Sarah-Jane Perry Stuns Laura Massaro to Win Women's British Nationals, Matthew Over Selby for Record-Setting 7th Men's Title by Scarlett Smith
photos SquashPics.com
February 15, 2015 -
England’s Nick Matthew has become the all time most successful British
squash player by winning his record seventh national title in
Manchester.
Matthew surpasses his own and Cassie Jackman’s previous record of six National Championship wins.
It was a relatively straight forward victory for Matthew who outpowered
Essex’s Daryl Selby 11/5, 11/3, 11/2 at the National Squash Centre in
Manchester.
Matthew said: “It was a massive goal of mine to break the record, I've
learnt a lot from the names on the trophy both men and women. I
watched Cassie (Jackman) train when I was growing up so it means a lot
to me to break the record.
“Daryl’s never beaten so I had to keep going even at 8-1 up in the final game I had to block out my emotion and stay focused.
“The win has made me feel young again, I’m always striving to improve
and want to thank my team for helping me to keep at the top,” added
Matthew.
In the women’s final Sarah-Jane Perry stunned Laura Massaro as she
continued her giant killing run by beating the world number 3 in a
thrilling final in Manchester to take her maiden National Squash
Championship title 12/10, 11/9, 7/11, 10/12, 11/7 in 80 minutes.
Perry also beat the world number 5 Alison Waters by the same 3-2 in the semifinal to reach her first final.
“I've beaten two players that I've never beaten before back to back and
they are both in the top five in the world so I’m pretty proud of
myself,” exclaimed Perry.
It was a close affair in the opening game as Massaro and Perry traded
points to reach a 10-10 tie break before the 24 year old broke clear to
take the game 12/10. The second game was equally tight but Perry
was able to push ahead and win the critical points to take a 2-0 lead.
In trademark fashion Laura Massaro battled back to win the next two games to draw level and take the match to a decider.
However, Warwickshire’s Perry wasn't going to let the opportunity slip
and raced to a 9-5 lead in the final game before taking a memorable win
in front of a capacity crowd at the National Squash Centre.
“I said to myself be confident, trust your skills and go get it.
I've had three five game matches in three days so it is pretty tough
but that’s what we train for. I’m off to Toronto on Tuesday so
not much time to celebrate!
“This is a very special achievement for me and hopefully it won’t be my last title,” added Perry.
Women’s final result:
[3/4] Sarah-Jane Perry (Warwickshire) bt [1] Laura Massaro (Lancs) 12/10, 11/9, 7/11, 10/12, 11/7 (80m)
Men’s final result:
[1] Nick Matthew (Yorks) bt [3/4] Daryl Selby 11/5, 11/3, 11/2 (45m)
