Local favourite Emily Whitlock moved into the final of the Colwyn Classic with an impressive straight-game victory over Egyptian Nouran Torky.
The 19-year-old, who will be competing in the Hong Kong Open next week, triumphed 11-5, 11-9, 11-7 in 41 minutes to stay on course for a second successive title at the Welsh event.
However, the 3-0 scoreline does not reflect the challenge posed by Torky, who will rue not winning the second game after dominating proceedings.
Despite a nervy start, Emily took the first game but Torky quickly responded by dictating rallies and moving Whitlock around the court. At 9-6 down, Whitlock won a monumental rally and buoyed by the support of her home crowd, the world number 25 edged the second game 11-9.
True to form, Torky still came out fighting in the third and produced some amazing straight drives and flicks to have Emily twisting and turning. But it was Whitlock’s variety of shot-making which helped her progress to her second WSA final this year.
Whitlock now faces number two seed Lucie Fialova who beat fellow Czech Olga Ertalova 11-9, 11-3, 11-5 in 35 minutes to advance into only her second WSA final of her career. Once again, however, the 3-0 score line is not a true indicator as to how evenly matched the players were.
The first game, in particular, was exceptionally close, with both women favouring a patient approach from the back of the court. It was only when Ertalova started adding a bit of variety to her game that she was able to move ahead and clinch the first game. With the momentum behind her, Fialova romped through the second and third game as Ertalova wilted amid a barrage of powerful hitting from her opponent.
Semi-final Results:
[1] Emily Whitlock (Eng) bt Nouran Torky (Egy) [7] 11-5, 11-9, 11-7
[2] Lucie Fialova (Cze) bt Olga Ertalova (Cze) [3] 11-9, 11-3, 11-5