Squash: Sharplin notches first national title after sixteen attempts

By BOB PEARCE

It was 16th time lucky for Daniel Sharplin when he won the national men's title at the national centre in Auckland yesterday.

The 30-year-old, originally from South Canterbury but now a club pro in New York, beat 20-year-old Aucklander Jared Conning 9/4 10/8 3/9 1/9 9/4 in an enthralling 66-minute final.

On Saturday, Conning, the top-ranked under-21 player, had ended Paul Steel's 10-year run of national titles in four games.

Sharplin went for broke in the first two games of his fifth national final and it paid off.

But as he said later: "I've had the flu and after the second game my legs were gone.

"I tried to go for some cheap points and he was all over me. I hit a lot into the tin.

"In the fifth I tried to keep him a little bit deeper and suddenly he was the one who was tired."

Sharplin does not play the world circuit, but he did reach the final of the US nationals in March, where he had to withdraw with a calf injury.

World No 2 Carol Owens beat Sarah Cook from Christchurch 9/2 9/3 9/1 to win her first national final since switching her loyalty from Australia to New Zealand.

Both will be in the team for the world championships in Denmark next month where they will be joined by Leilani Rorani (world ranked 7) and Shelley Kitchen (19).

In the absence of Rorani and Kitchen, Cook showed remarkable form considering she does not play the world circuit and had not played seriously until three weeks ago because of a calf injury.

The tall Cantabrian, who works fulltime as a firefighter, accounted for Lara Petera in the semifinals but found Owens too fit and fast in the 30-minute final.

"The pressure is often greatest when you're expected to win," said Owens.

Owens will put in four weeks of hard training before the world team championship. The individual worlds follow soon after in Qatar.