Major milestone as Masters wins his first $10k title in Canada
By Alan Thatcher, Squash Mad Editor
Josh Masters made sure of a continued rise up the rankings when he captured his first ever PSA M10 title after winning the Sunrise Foods International Saskatoon Movember Boast, defeating World No.67 Peter Creed in the final in Canada.
Masters, the number five seed from Kent, eased past Canadian qualifier Nick Sachvie in round one, and then New Zealand’s Martin Knight to set up a semi-final tie with Andrew Schnell, before breezing past the Canadian to make it to the final with relative ease.
Creed had a slightly trickier route to the final, and had to navigate his way past Finnish duo Matias Tuomi and Henrik Mustonen, the latter being the tournament’s number one seed. The Welshman made light work of Canada’s Michael McCue in the semi-final to set up a final clash with Masters.
After a confident start saw 21-year-old Masters go a game up, Creed established himself in the second, taking seven points in a row to pull away from 4-4 and level the scores.
Creed’s momentum continued into the third game as he surged 7-3 ahead, but Masters battled back to force a tiebreak, eventually taking it 16-14, before edging the fourth to seal the third PSA World Tour title of his burgeoning career.
His work with Ben Ford, and the court time he is enjoying with a host of stars, including world number one Mohamed Elshorbagy, in Hadrian Stiff’s Elite Academy in Bristol, is certainly paying handsome dividends.
An attacking player with considerable flair, Masters is certain to advance on his current ranking of 60, which represents considerable improvement over the whole of 2016.
PSA M10 Sunrise Foods International Movember Saskatoon Boast Open 2016, YMCA Saskatoon, Saskatoon, Canada.
Final:
[3] Joshua Masters (ENG) bt [5] Peter Creed (WAL) 11-6, 4-11, 16-14, 11-8 (72m)
Semi-finals:
[5] Peter Creed (WAL) bt [8] Michael McCue (CAN) 11-7, 11-6, 11-5 (40m)
[3] Joshua Masters (ENG) bt [2] Andrew Schnell (CAN) 11-7, 11-4, 12-10
Quarter-finals:
[5] Peter Creed (WAL) bt [1] Henrik Mustonen (FIN) 10-12, 11-4, 7-11, 12-10, 11-8 (58m)
[8] Michael McCue (CAN) bt [4] Shawn Delierre (CAN) 11-9, 11-9, 11-7 (42m)
[3] Joshua Masters (ENG) bt [6] Martin Knight (NZL) 11-7, 11-6, 11-8 (44m)
[2] Andrew Schnell (CAN) bt [7] Joshua Larkin (AUS) 10-12, 11-8, 11-6, 11-4 (50m)
1st round:
[1] Henrik Mustonen (FIN) bt Matias Tuomi (FIN) 11-7, 11-8, 11-4 (29m)
[5] Peter Creed (WAL) bt [Q] Babatunde Ajagbe (NGR) 11-5, 11-5, 6-11, 11-7 (43m)
[8] Michael McCue (CAN) bt [WC] Thomas King (CAN) 11-6, 11-1, 11-1 (24m)
[4] Shawn Delierre (CAN) bt Andrés Herrera (COL) 6-11, 4-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-7 (65m)
[3] Joshua Masters (ENG) bt [Q] Nick Sachvie (CAN) 11-8, 17-15, 11-8 (55m)
[6] Martin Knight (NZL) bt [Q] Miled Zarazua (MEX) 10-12, 11-7, 12-10, 11-7 (51m)
[7] Joshua Larkin (AUS) bt [Q] Kyle Finch (ENG) 11-2, 4-11, 11-6, 11-6 (44m)
[2] Andrew Schnell (CAN) bt Joe Green (ENG) 11-7, 12-10, 7-11, 11-5 (59m)
Qualifying finals:
Nick Sachvie (CAN) bt Mark Broekman (ENG) 11-9, 11-3, 11-2 (30m)
Kyle Finch (ENG) bt Kale Wilson (TRI) 11-2, 11-7, 11-6 (21m)
Babatunde Ajagbe (NGR) bt Marco Toriz-Caddo (MEX) 11-8, 8-11, 11-8, 11-8 (51m)
Miled Zarazua (MEX) bt Micah Franklin (BER) 12-10, 7-11, 11-4, 11-6 (53m)
1st qualifying round:
Nick Sachvie (CAN) bt Jason Gelowitz (CAN) 11-1, 11-3, 11-3 (23m)
Mark Broekman (ENG) bt Mateo Buitrago (CAN) 11-2, 11-2, 11-3
Kyle Finch (ENG) bt Derek Shevkenek (CAN) 11-3, 11-3, 11-6
Kale Wilson (TRI) bt James Landeryou (CAN) 8-11, 11-5, 11-2, 11-6
Babatunde Ajagbe (NGR) bt Thomas Jackson (CAN) 11-6, 11-9, 11-0 (16m)
Marco Toriz-Caddo (MEX) bt Noah Wernikowski (CAN) 11-6, 11-2, 11-6 (24m)
Miled Zarazua (MEX) bt Brock Janzer (CAN) 11-9, 10-12, 11-5, 11-5 (45m)
Micah Franklin (BER) bt Stephan Johnson (CAN) 11-4, 11-4, 11-4 (23m)
Picture by KIM ROBERTS