Any suprises there:

 

Men
Stewart Boswell (27, ACT)
Daniel Jenson (30, SA)
Joseph Kneipp (32, QLD)
David Palmer (29, NSW)
Anthony Ricketts(26, NSW)

Women
Kasey Brown (20, NSW)
Dianne Desira (24, VIC)
Natalie Grinham (27, QLD)
Rachael Grinham (28, QLD)
Amelia Pittock (22, VIC)

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Spent ?

I am not sure about that, perhaps as they seemed to lack something from the kick off.

They seemed unsure about being able to win, perhaps even nervous, would that be possible in two so experienced I wonder ?

There may be something in that as in contrast the Kiwi girls were just going for it with little or no hesitation.

In fact that is what I think I saw in the Australian pair, a  hesitation that was not there in previous matches.

Either way two marvelous players.

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viper, sounds like they were spent from the previous day's effort.

it will be interesting to see if they get picked.

i will endeavour to get an interview with one of them very soon.

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Kitchen and co. beat SF and Cooper in 3, the Australians were never really in the match.

I think the extra pace and power of Kitchen in particular was the telling point, both Kiwi girls hit it very hard.

Sarah and Robyn hit a number of unforced errors as well which was probably brought on by having to rush their shots.

Grinham and Knieep won the mixed doubles, very nearly at a huge cost with Grinham falling heavily and injuring her lower leg quite badly, opening a gash that took about 15min to stop bleeding.

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robyn keeps herself pretty fit. she has been playing in the local men's competition on and off since retiring from the circuit. - She plays at about or just above my level which is low premier or high second grade.

you might remember she was the coach of the national women's team a few years back and had to play in the semis and final after two of the players were injured. she had not played on the circuit for at least 12 months and went within an ace of beating a wr no 5 player I think in the final.

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Thanks Ray.

I could not believe how well Cooper was hitting the ball, both drives and more amazingly deft touch shots.

She has been out of the game for a number of years, yes ?

I think the Australians will beat the hard hitting but one dimensional Kiwis today, as long as it does not go to 5 games then fittness might play a big part.

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hi viper and all
just because a doubles team wins (in the case of australia at least), it does not mean they are certain to be selected. however if robyn c and sarah f win the women's doubles i think they will be selected. i think craig rowland is also a chance  - they are all proven doubles players having won medals before. the two camerons might get selected if they win

it will depend on how some of the teams perform in the semis. I predict some smokeys which are not on your list

by the way, there are regulations on team selection. everything has to be spelt out so that, in the case of an appeal, selectors can justify their positions to an independent panel (court of arbitration for sport)

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Watched my first doubles games today.

Cooper and SF beat Grinham and Hoops in a tough tense fought battle.

I must say Cooper is in fine touch especially her short game and Hoops played fantastic.

It is a interesting game this doubles, dangerous even as the number of bruises on the legs shows.

Watching the other younger players who just smash it I reckon the more varied game of Cooper and Co. have a real chance of going all the way, their short game and use of angles catches the kids out.

The match could have gone either way, but I think guile won out in the end.

Again well done to the organises, this event like the Aust Open seems to be running very well from a spectators point of view.

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Viper - I have never been a selector for doubles only singles at National and State level in juniors mostly.
From speaking to Robyn and others at times I understand the players put their hand up to play as interested (usually in response to an invitation to play), maybe they get together themselves as a pair, the selectors put a draw together, trials are held where all the pairs would compete against each other just like a preliminary selection trial would be conducted. A coach appointed, and a weeks training takes place, maybe.. got the idea.
Obviously if you lose, you will not be selected.  If you win with excellent averages you will be most likely to make it.
These players have played doubles before at a high level and do have a reputation.  The older and more experienced players would have some advantage over the fit current crop I would think and the results bear that opinion.
Just because you can play singles, does not mean you will make an outstanding doubles player, and then there is the combination.
Viper, from knowing a bit about how the systwm works I make these comments but I may not be 100% correct.  Think about how you would organise this type of selection from your club, how you would do it, and the process you would go through to get the best players, and how you would seed them, and how you would justify your rankings of the players.  It is about a process as I see it.

Just a thought, the rules and regs covering the selection procedure are probably on the Squash Aust site - they usually do not turn around unless they follow the Constitution.....go have a look if you have a day to spare.

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"especially if a combination proves to be good even if their singles ranking is non existent "

I guess if sara fitz/robyn cooper  beats Rachael Grinham & Amanda Hopps today then that might be one of the smokeys you mentioned.

 

So does Squash Australia select the team or is it a special panel of some sort I wonder ?

 

Quote :

"The major upset of the day was five times World Open champion, Sarah Fitz-Gerald teamed with former Australian representative Robyn Cooper ousting third seeds Australian pair, Amelia Pittock and Melissa Martin "

This suggest they are in good form

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i will find out details but if memory serves me correctly, teams are selected depending on personal eg

• In australia at least teams are elected on what will win most medals
• The top two singles players will almost certainly get selected
• depending on results at the world Doubles some smokeys might make it in
• especially if a combination proves to be good even if their singles ranking is non existent
• possible unlikely aussies might be craig rowland/brad freeme and sara fitz/robyn cooper
• different countries have different selection criteria
• It is a juggling act when you have to cover all bases with a 10 person team

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