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"Clinical Matthew takes World Open title"
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10 December 2010
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The
question of the day was which Englishman would become the first
from that country to became World Champion. The form book said
Nick Matthew, who came into the final boasting an impressive
head to head record against his fellow-Yorkshireman James
Willstrop, but this was the World Open final after all.
It was Willstrop who started the more impressively. The opening
rallies were probing, relatively slow-paced, and Willstrop was
making his opponent do marginally more work. After an error and
a stroke gave Matthew a 2/0 lead, which he extended to 4/1 with
a couple of trademark volley drops, Willstrop gained marginal
control of the rallies, levelling at 5-all and then surging
ahead from 7-all to take a well deserved lead after 21 minutes.
He continued to impress at the start of the second, eking out a
3/2 advantage, but Matthew, remaining patient, was starting to
take James out of his comfort zone, making him stretch more and
more to keep the rallies under control.
Matthew edged ahead 5/3, Willstrop levelled thanks to a couple of rare
errors from Matthew, but he was starting to dominate now, and it
was definitely Willstrop working harder. The points kept piling
up now for Matthew, and he levelled 11/6 after 18 minutes.
For the next two games Matthew kept the pressure on, playing
patiently, but tight, volleying on every opportunity as he does,
and Willstrop was having increasing difficulty keeping up. He
kept in the rallies, for sure, but he was struggling to find
anything to hurt his opponent with, and time after time Matthew
would move him from corner to corner before despatching a
winner, often with James totally out of position.
That was the pattern of the last two games. Third, 11/2 in 12
minutes, fourth, 11/3 in 14 minutes with Willstrop clearly
suffering from his harder series of matches to get to the final.
In the end it wasn't a dramatic confrontation like last year's
final here, or their semi-final in Canary Wharf, more an
inexorable march toward the inevitable, compelling, and well,
well, deserved.
Matthew thus adds the World Open title to his two Commonwealth
Gold medals to complete a marvelous end to the year, for him and
for England.
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For Results and details, click below -
World Open Saudi Arabia 2010
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