RESULTS: Women's Meadowood Pharmacy Squash Open, Winnipeg, Canada
1st round:
[1] Latasha Khan (USA) bt Genevieve Lessard (CAN) 11-1, 11-3, 11-7
[5] Victoria Lust (ENG) bt [Q] Imelda Salazar Martinez (MEX) 11-3, 11-5, 11-7
[3] Lisa Camilleri (AUS) bt Samantha Cornett (CAN) 11-3, 11-5, 11-4
[6] Alexandra Norman (CAN) bt Leonie Holt (ENG) 6-11, 11-6, 11-9, 12-10
[8] Olivia Blatchford (USA) bt [Q] Tara Chawla (USA) 11-6, 11-5, 11-8
[4] Alana Miller (CAN) bt [Q] Nikki Todd (CAN) 11-5, 11-5, 11-7
[Q] Susannah King (ENG) bt [7] Carolyn Russell (CAN) 11-9, 5-11, 11-8, 11-6
[2] Emma Beddoes (ENG) bt Milou van der Heijden (NED) 11-8, 11-7, 11-4
Quarter-finals:
[1] Latasha Khan (USA) bt [5] Victoria Lust (ENG) 11-13, 11-7, 11-8, 11-8
[3] Lisa Camilleri (AUS) bt [6] Alexandra Norman (CAN) 7-11, 11-5, 11-3, 11-6
[4] Alana Miller (CAN) bt [8] Olivia Blatchford (USA) 11-3, 11-3, 11-8
[2] Emma Beddoes (ENG) bt [Q] Susannah King (ENG) 11-6, 11-4, 11-4
Local star Alana Miller coasted into the semi-finals of the Women's Meadowood Pharmacy Open after despatching USA's Olivia Blatchford in straight games in the quarter-finals of the $11,100 WISPA World Tour squash event at Winnipeg Winter Club in Winnipeg, Canada.
Based at the club and one of the organisers of the inaugural WISPA event, fourth seed Miller was continuing her comeback from a leg injury and overcame some nervousness to beat her eighth-seeded opponent 11-3, 11-3, 11-8.
"I was nervous going in because I was playing in front of my hometown crowd," said Miller, the Canadian champion in 2007 and 2008. "That hasn’t happened a lot in the last few years. But once I got out there I felt I was in control because my pace was really pushing her to the back to the court."
Miller has been hampered by a calf injury this season and spent most of the summer in rehabilitation.
"I tore my calf before the Canadian championships (in May)," she said. "My first tournament back was in August and I felt a little rusty. It’s taking time to get back to where I was but this week I’m feeling pretty good."
Miller goes on to face second seed Emma Beddoes, who beat English compatriot Susannah King, a qualifier, 11-6, 11-4, 11-4.
There was no similar Canadian success for Alexandra Norman, the sixth seed from Montreal who lost her quarter-final to fifth seed Lisa Camilleri of Australia in four games. Camilleri meets top-seed Latasha Khan of the USA in the other semi-final.
Semi-final line-up:
[1] Latasha Khan (USA) v [3] Lisa Camilleri (AUS)
[2] Emma Beddoes (ENG) v [4] Alana Miller (CAN)