Squash: Maria claims Liberty Bell Open title
Pakistan squash player surprises all in the US.
KARACHI:
Registering a series of upsets, Pakistan’s top-ranked female squash player Maria Toor clinched the Liberty Bell Open in Berwyn after entering the tournament as a qualifier.
The 22-year-old, ranked 162nd in the world, overcame second-seed Miranda Ranieri of Canada in straight games, winning the final 11-8, 11-3, 11-7. She had been training in Montreal under former world champion and Canada legend Jonathan Power’s supervision.
“This title is a huge breakthrough for me,” said Maria. “My aim is to extend my winning streak in order to improve my world ranking.”
Earlier, Maria outclassed several higher ranked players en route to the final. Hailing from South Waziristan, Toor beat sixth-seed Celia Allamargot 3-0 in the first round before causing the upset of the tournament with a straight-games win over top-seed Misaki Kobayashi. She then eased past third-seed Olivia Blatchford 11-6, 11-7 and 11-3 to reach her first international event final.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 17th, 2012.
Registering a series of upsets, Pakistan’s top-ranked female squash player Maria Toor clinched the Liberty Bell Open in Berwyn after entering the tournament as a qualifier.
The 22-year-old, ranked 162nd in the world, overcame second-seed Miranda Ranieri of Canada in straight games, winning the final 11-8, 11-3, 11-7. She had been training in Montreal under former world champion and Canada legend Jonathan Power’s supervision.
“This title is a huge breakthrough for me,” said Maria. “My aim is to extend my winning streak in order to improve my world ranking.”
Earlier, Maria outclassed several higher ranked players en route to the final. Hailing from South Waziristan, Toor beat sixth-seed Celia Allamargot 3-0 in the first round before causing the upset of the tournament with a straight-games win over top-seed Misaki Kobayashi. She then eased past third-seed Olivia Blatchford 11-6, 11-7 and 11-3 to reach her first international event final.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 17th, 2012.