Sweet Home Chicago Open Daily Update - September 12, 2008
Contact: Erika Skorupskas or Ryan Kuntz, Healy & Schulte, Inc.
Phone: 312/765-8770
E-mail: eskorupskas@healyandschulte.com
Indoor Play at Lakeshore Athletic Club
Completes First Round Matches; Semi-Quarter Finals Begin Tonight
By: Kim Tunney
Play Continues at Sweet Home Chicago Open Despite Weather
America's favorite pastime, baseball, is the only major sport that stops play due to rain. If it rains in baseball, the game moves into a rain delay.
With Chicago's newest favorite pastime, outdoor squash, the show just goes on. Last night's second set of first round matches were played indoors at Lakeshore Athletic Club. First up in the completion of first round play, England's Peter Barker kept the ball tight to the walls throughout to beat the University Club of Chicago's Head Pro Mark Heather. Englishman Heather, now a Chicagoan, came through the qualifying rounds and, literally by luck of the draw, his name was pulled to face the tournament's number two seed. Barker is on course to face Shahier Razik tonight, most likely indoors, unless the weather turns for the better.
Mark Heather (left) plays Peter Barker (right)
After the second match, Australian Steve Coppinger said he never felt relaxed against Egypt's Hisham Ashour. " I couldn't play my game. If I made a mistake or hit a loose shot, he was there for it," admitted the 6' 6" Coppinger. " I hit a few good shots, but it wasn't enough." Ashour played a fast-paced game as Coppinger struggled to find good length. "I've been training over the last three months," said Ashour, who advances to play Olli Tuominen tonight in the quarter finals.
Steve Coppinger (left) plays Hisham Ashour (right)
Shawn DeLierre from Canada played brilliantly, flicking the ball during the first game against Ollie Tuominen taking it to tie breaker, but losing 10-12. He fizzed in games two and three making a big push down 3-8 in the third that wasn't enough to reverse the tide. Against DeLierre, Tuominen
said, " I made a few errors in the first game then felt more comfortable
in game two."
Shawn DeLierre (left) plays Ollie Tuominen (right)
Canadian-by-way-of-Eygpt, Shahier Razik faced Englishman-by-way-of-South Africa's Shawn LeRoux who was disappointed in his three-game loss. Commenting on the pace of play, LeRoux said, " I wasn't in trouble with the pace. I've never played him before. Razik plays a simple but effective game. " Seeded five in the event, Razik said, " I was fortunate to win in three. The court plays dead so I went in short when I could," revealing his strategy against LeRoux.
Razik is scheduled to play Peter Barker in today's quarter finals. " I've never played him before," said Razik. " He's a lefty and a solid player which will be a little trickier. I'm looking forward to it."
On September 12:
Shahier Razik beat Shawn Le Roux 3-0 11/5, 11/6, 11/6 (31 min)
Peter Barker beat Mark Heather 3-0 11/5, 11/6, 11/9 (35 min)
Hisham Ashour beat Steve Coppinger 3-0 11/6, 11-7, 11/9 (31 min)
Olli Tuominen beat Shawn DeLierre 3-0 12/10, 11/3, 11/6 (32 min)
IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER, THE MATCHES WILL BE MOVED TO LAKESHORE ATHLETIC CLUBS, 211 NORTH STETSON, 312-616-9000
.
Tournament Details:
Date: Wednesday, September 10 . Monday, September 15, 2008
Location: Pioneer Court on Michigan Ave. , between the Tribune Towers and the Chicago River
About Sweet Home Chicago Open
The Sweet Home Chicago Open is the nation.s first-ever professional squash tournament to be held outdoors in an all-glass court, located in front of 401 North Michigan Avenue in Pioneer Court , between Tribune Tower and the Chicago River . Presented by Lakeshore Athletic Clubs, the Sweet Home Chicago Open is sponsored by Zeller Realty Group, Caledonian Fund Services, SmithBucklin and The Fairmont Chicago. This open-to-the-public event will feature many of the world.s top-ranked players as the newest stop on the Professional Squash Association (PSA) and U.S. Squash Association tournament series.
For more information, or to view a complete list of the players expected to compete, please visit www.sweethomechicagoopen.com. For all media inquiries, please contact Ryan Kuntz at 312-765-8770 (office)/317-850-7264 (mobile) or via e-mail at rkuntz@healyandschulte.com.
|
