Defending champion and world no.4 Laura Massaro beat world no.14 Donna Urquhart in her quarter-final match at the Tub O’ Towels Cleveland Classic to make it to the semi-finals.
The two tall, powerful women were intent on playing at an assertive pace and attacking whenever the opportunity presented itself. To start Massaro got the better of things, jumping out to a 7-0 lead, but few errors crept into her play, Urquhart was able to fight back to 8-10 before surrendering a stroke to lose the game.
Second game went to Urquhart and it looked like the makings of a see-saw battle, but Massaro came out in the third playing more aggressively, got Urquhart on her heels, and Massaro never looked back, taking the game 11-6. The fourth was all Massaro, 11-2, as her precise shot-making forced a series of tins out of the Aussie.
Can Laura Massaro repeat her success from last year by winning it again this year?
Quarter-finals:
1 Nicol David (MAL) bt 8 Annie Au (HKG) 11-5, 11-6, 11-1(27m)
3 Madeline Perry (IRL) bt 7 Raneem El Weleily (EGY) 11-8, 9-11, 14-12, 11-3 (41m)
4 Laura Massaro (ENG) bt [Q] Donna Urquhart (AUS) 11-8, 4-11, 11-6, 11-2 (40m)
Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt 2 JennyDuncalf (ENG) rtd 6-11, 11-5, 11-3, 4-1
Semi-final line-up:
1 Nicol David (MAL) v 3 Madeline Perry (IRL)
4 Laura Massaro (ENG) v Amanda Sobhy (USA)
