Kiwi falters after downing top seed

There was mixed feelings for young Marlborough squash professional Megan Craig following her latest Wispa (Women's International Squash Players Association) event on the Australian circuit in Melbourne last week.

Seeded 11th for the $10,000 Victorian Open, the 19-year-old scored the largest win of her career to date on Thursday afternoon when she upset top seed and world No20 Delia Arnold, of Malaysia, 3-1 in the second round. The marathon 72-minute match was tight the whole way with world No71 Craig eventually prevailing 11-9 10-12 12-10 14-12.

That result came after she breezed past unseeded Australian Grace McErvale 3-0 in round one.

However, the high of recording such a massive victory on Thursday was short-lived for the Marlborough teenager. On Friday, she took on Korean world No132 Song Sun-Mi in the quarterfinals and was beaten 0-3 (6-11 7-11 3-11). Of some consolation to Craig was the fact Sun-Mi went on to win the tournament, downing fifth-seeded Kiwi Amanda Landers-Murphy 3-0 in Sunday's final.

Craig has competed in four Wispa events since the end of May, twice making the semifinals and twice being beaten at the quarterfinal stage. Her next assignment is the Tasmanian Open in Bellerive, which starts on Thursday.

- The Marlborough Express

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