Masotti – who is the only unseeded player left in the men’s draw - caused a huge upset at Le Maison du Squash to knock out World No.37 Grayson – who along with the other top eight seeds received a bye into the second round - by an 11-9, 11-9, 11-7 scoreline.
The Frenchman will now face Finland’s Olli Tuominen, who defeated French wildcard Christophe Andre earlier in the day, in the next round at the stunning théâtre Graslin.
“I was very focused because I wanted to win this match to be able to get on the glass court,” said the 23-year-old Frenchman following his win.
“This is my second win over a player in the top 40 and I hope I can continue playing like this and play a lot of matches here.
“My home town is about a one-hour drive away from here and my father came to watch me play. It feels so good to win, this tournament is really nice and I love being able to play in France.”
In the women’s draw, 18-year-old Lucy Turmel also upset the seedings to become the only unseeded women’s player left in the tournament, after she defeated Netherland’s number five seed Milou van der Heijden in straight-games.
The young Englishwoman will now take on Egypt’s World No.30 Nadine Shahin for a place in the semi-finals of the PSA Challenger Tour event.
“Last time I played Milou I lost 3-1, so I knew it was going to be tough. I knew I had to be confident going into it and it was a hard match even though it was 3-0.”
Over on the glass court at the picturesque 18th century théâtre Graslin, top seeds James Willstrop and Emily Whitlock, along with defending champions Gregoire Marche and Fiona Moverley all secured berths into the next round.
England’s former World No.1 Willstrop avoided a scare against compatriot Patrick Rooney as, after building up a solid 2-0 lead, the top seed appeared to suffer with tiredness and in the end narrowly edged past his younger opponent in front of a packed-out house in Nantes.
“Patrick is too good, and I can’t be off my game really,” said Willstrop following his tough tournament opener.
“He played really well, he worked me so hard and took me to the point where I was exhausted. I’m lucky to win that game because if he had of taken me to a fifth then I don’t think I’d have gone through.
“It’s an outstanding venue and we are very lucky to be able to play here. I have a little bit of an invested interest in it because I love the stage and live theatre, so this habitat is even more exciting for me and that’s why I was so desperate to win today.”
Meanwhile, defending men’s champion Gregoire Marche continued his unbeaten run at the tournament after he conquered compatriot Auguste Dussourd under the lights of the théâtre Graslin.
“Nantes has always been a great venue for me and I think this year it is the most beautiful,” said the 28-year-old Frenchman.
“I remember the first year – it was something great – but every year they keep pushing to make it better. I can’t miss this tournament, it is one of my favourites.”
While in the women’s draw, English duo Whitlock and Moverley saw off Scotland’s Lisa Aitken and South Africa’s Milnay Louw, respectively, in straight-games.
Results – Men’s Round Two
[2] Declan James (ENG) bt Sebastien Bonmalais (FRA) 3-0: 11-6, 11-7, 11-4 (41m)
[5] Lucas Serme (FRA) bt Charlie Lee (ENG) 3-0: 11-7, 15-13, 11-5 (52m)
[8] Olli Tuominen (FIN) bt [WC] Christophe Andre (FRA) 3-1: 11-6, 4-11, 11-8, 11-4 (43m)
Baptiste Masotti (FRA) bt [6] Campbell Grayson (NZL) 3-0: 11-9, 11-9, 11-7 (40m)
[7] George Parker (ENG) bt Shehab Essam (EGY) 3-0: 11-9, 11-9, 11-7 (39m)
[3] Zahed Salem (EGY) bt Bernat Jaume (ESP) 3-1: 11-13, 11-8, 11-8, 11-6 (61m)
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) bt Patrick Rooney (ENG) 3-1: 11-6, 12-10, 6-11, 11-9 (51m)
[4] Gregoire Marche (FRA) bt Auguste Dussourd (FRA) 3-0: 11-6, 11-7, 11-9 (51m)
Results – Women’s Round Two
Lucy Turmel (ENG) bt [5] Milou van der Heijden (NED) 3-0: 11-9, 11-5, 11-7 (32m)
[4] Nele Gilis (BEL) bt Rachael Chadwick (ENG) 3-0: 11-8, 11-7, 11-4 (34m)
[7] Alexandra Fuller (RSA) bt Chloe Mesic (FRA) 3-0: 11-4, 11-3, 11-4 (21m)
[6] Julianne Courtice (ENG) bt Kace Bartley (ENG) 3-0: 11-6, 11-7, 11-5 (24m)
[3] Nadine Shahin (EGY) bt Alison Thomson (SCO) 3-0: 11-7, 12-10, 13-11 (34m)
[8] Tinne Gilis (BEL) bt Ineta Mackevica (LAT) 3-0: 11-2, 14-12, 11-6 (26m)
[1] Emily Whitlock (ENG) bt Lisa Aitken (SCO) 3-0: 14-12, 11-7, 11-1 (36m)
[2] Fiona Moverley (ENG) bt Milnay Louw (RSA) 3-0: 11-4, 11-8, 11-5 (23m)
Draw – Men’s Quarter-finals: To be played Thursday September 6
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) v [5] Lucas Serme (FRA)
[7] George Parker (ENG) v [3] Zahed Salem (EGY)
To be played Friday September 7:
[8] Olli Tuominen (FIN) v Baptiste Masotti (FRA)
[4] Gregoire Marche (FRA) v [2] Declan James (ENG)
Draw – Women’s Quarter-finals: To be played Thursday September 6
[1] Emily Whitlock (ENG) v [6] Julianne Courtice (ENG)
Lucy Turmel (ENG) v [3] Nadine Shahin (EGY)
To be played Friday September 7:
[4] Nele Gilis (BEL) v [7] Alexandra Fuller (RSA)
[8] Tinne Gilis (BEL) v [2] Fiona Moverley (ENG)
No comments:
Post a Comment