WORLD SQUASH NEWS

RESULTS: Women's Forbes Squash Open, Southport, USA

Semi-finals:
[1] Vicky Botwright (ENG) bt Marnie Baizley (CAN) 9-5, 9-1, 9-5
Runa Reta (CAN) bt [3] Pamela Nimmo (SCO) 9-4, 9-10, 0-9, 9-5, 9-7

Runa Reta Reaches Forbes Final

Unseeded Canadian Runa Reta stormed into her second WISPA World Tour final in a week - and only the second of her career - when she upset Scotland's third seed Pamela Nimmo in a five-game semi-final battle in the Women's Forbes Squash Open in Southport, USA.

After dismissing the top seed in last week's Ontario Open to make the final in her hometown of Ottawa, Reta maintained her fine run of form in Southport to remove England's No2 seed, the world No15 Stephanie Brind, to reach the semi-finals.

Her Scottish opponent has also been enjoying a revitalised run on the WISPA Tour - fighting her way back to 23 in the world after a sequence of injuries which took her to 30 in the WISPA list.  Indeed, after losing the opening game, Nimmo battled to survive 10-9 in the second then whitewashed the Canadian in the third to take a healthy 2/1 lead.

But the plucky 23-year-old Reta, who recorded a career-high 41 ranking in the March WISPA list, kept her focus and ultimately scored her notable 9-4 9-10 0-9 9-5 9-7 victory.

Reta will lead North American interest into a final against England's top seed Vicky Botwright.  The 26-year-old world No11 from Manchester brushed aside Canadian National champion Marnie Baizley, from Winnipeg, 9-5 9-1 9-5 to reach the Forbes final for the second successive year.

With three further runners-up berths to her credit since making her WISPA Tour final debut in Southport twelve months ago, Botwright is now poised to claim her maiden WISPA title.