WOMEN’S HI-TEC WORLD SQUASH CHAMPIONSHIPS – MANCHESTER 2008
TO USE POINT-A-RALLY SCORING FOR FIRST TIME
For the first time ever in its 30 year
history the women’s World Open at The Hi-Tec World Squash
Championships – Manchester 2008 this October will feature the fast
and dynamic point-a-rally scoring system.
This scoring method replaces the traditional
hand-in-hand-out system which only allows players to win a point
when they are holding serve, however all matches will still remain
the best of five games.
The point-a-rally method was formally
introduced onto the WISPA Tour for last month’s CIMB Malaysian Open
and now brings the women’s game into line with the men’s PSA
Tour.
Tournament Director, Paul
Walters said, “The Hi-Tec World Squash Championships -
Manchester 2008 are going to set a benchmark as the best tournament
the sport has ever seen so it’s great that we will be the first
ever women’s World Open to use this exciting scoring system. With
so many sports evolving at the moment squash needs to keep at the
forefront of change and this new method will make it easier and
more enjoyable for the spectators to follow the action.
“The point-a-rally system has proved over
many years on the men’s Tour that it provides for fast and
thrilling games and with the Men’s and Women’s World Opens being
staged along side each other in Manchester this October it makes
perfect sense that both will be using the scoring system.”
Defending World Champion Rachael
Grinham believes the new system will have a big impact on
matches saying, “It’s a big change for the game mentally, which
I think is huge because I believe at the top of the women’s game
most matches are won mentally. I do believe it will make matches
much closer, which will be better for the spectators’ point of
view.”
Rising English star and Hi-Tec World Squash
Championships - Manchester 2008 ambassador, Sarah
Kippax agrees that the new scoring will make a big
difference and added, “The new par scoring system is
going to have a massive influence on this year’s Women’s Hi-Tec
World Squash Championships. Even though it will have been in place
for a couple of months by the time we get to Manchester it will
still take some getting used to as we’ve all grown up with the old
system.
“Personally I’ve had some success with the
point-a-rally method as we used it early this summer when I reached
the finals of the European Individual Championships. It makes every
point absolutely crucial and there’s no time to switch off, even
for an instant. I think this new system will make everyone a lot
more consistent as we’ll know that we don’t have any second
chances.
“We’ll have to wait and see if it brings
the very top players closer to the chasing bunch but hopefully I
can master it and enjoy a good run at the World’s as it would be
great to have a big impact in front of the home crowd. I train in
Manchester every week so I have a lot of friends there and can’t
wait for October to come around and give it my best shot”.
The Hi-Tec World Squash Championships –
Manchester 2008 will run from Saturday 11th- Sunday
19th October and will for the first time ever on British
soil see the men’s and women’s top players battling it out
alongside each other for the title of World Champion. Tickets are
currently on sale at http://www.worldsquash2008.com/
where a limited number of VIP Hospitality Packages recently became
available.
For further information about the
Hi-Tec World Squash Championships – Manchester 2008 or high
resolution photography please contact the Event Press Office at
Capitalize:
Leigh Ireland
Telephone: 020 7940 1705 / 020 7940
1700
Mobile: 07771
903354
E-mail: lireland@capitalize.co.uk