Rory Stewart denied consecutive titles in PSA Lagord Open final

Rory Stewart of Scotland was denied consecutive PSA World Tour titles by Frenchman Auguste Dussourd who claimed victory on home soil in the final of the PSA Lagord Open.

Following his win at last week’s PSA Bordeaux Gradignan Open, where he claimed his ninth career title, Rory again enjoyed a succession of stunning victories in Lagord, beating Daniel Poleshchuk of Israel in his opening match, followed by a 3-0 success over former World No.1 & fellow #teamunsquashable player James Willstrop in the quarter-finals & a four-game victory over 3rd seed Declan James of England in the semi-finals.

His exertions of his earlier triumphs however appeared to take its toll in the final against Auguste Dussourd, a player who had beaten him twice before on the PSA World Tour, including at this year’s Open de France de Squash in Nantes. Auguste produced a fine performance to the delight of the home crowd to claim his second title of the season with an 11-7 11-4 11-2 victory, the biggest title of his career to date.

PSA Lagord Squash Open Final:
[2] Auguste Dussourd (FRA) bt [5] Rory Stewart (SCO) 11-7 11-4 11-2

PSA Lagord Squash Open, Semi-Finals:
Rory Stewart produced another spectacular performance to beat 3rd seed Declan James in the semi-finals of the PSA Lagord Open in France.

The in-form 5th seed from Scotland, who last week won the PSA Bordeaux Open, recovered from losing a tight opening game to record a 56-minute 7-11 11-8 11-3 11-6 victory that will see him face 2nd seed Auguste Dussourd of France in tomorrow’s final.

PSA Lagord Squash Open, Quarter-Finals:
Rory Stewart produced the biggest win of his career with a 11-1 11-6 11-6 victory over former World No.1 & fellow #teamunsquashable player James Willstrop of England to progress to the semi-finals of the PSA Lagord Open in France.

The 5th seed from Scotland took the first game for the loss of just a single point & continued his spectacular form into the next two games, winning both the second & third games 11-6 to reach the semi-final at the expense of his top seeded English rival where he will face 3rd seed Declan James.

Fellow #teamunsquashable player Simon Herbert was beaten in the quarter-finals in five close games by Mazen Gamal of Egypt.

PSA Lagord Squash Open, 2nd Round:
James Willstrop will play fellow #teamunsquashable player Rory Stewart at the PSA Lagord Open in a repeat of their incredible 5-game thriller at the Commonwealth Games in August when James needed all his experience, fighting qualities & unbelievable racket skills to overcome a truly inspired performance from his Scottish rival.

The two UNSQUASHABLE players will face each other in the quarter-finals of the PSA Lagord Open in France following contrasting 2nd round victories. Whilst Rory progressed with a hard-fought 52-minute 11-8 8-11 11-6 11-9 win over Daniel Poleshchuk of Israel, James advanced with a near-faultless 11-5 11-8 11-2 victory over promising French player Edwin Clain.

Simon Herbert will join James & Rory in the quarter-finals where he will meet Mazen Gamal of Egypt after beating Wild Card Toufik Mekhalfi 11-7 11-8 7-11 14-12 in 55 minutes, however despite a battling performance from Yuri Farneti, the Italian No.1 was beaten by 2nd seed Auguste Dussourd of France.

PSA Lagord Squash Open, 1st Round:
Italian No.1 Yuri Farneti will join fellow #teamunsquashable players James Willstrop, Rory Stewart & Simon Herbert in the 2nd round of the PSA Lagord Squash Open in France following an impressive 26-minute 11-4 11-6 11-6 victory over Sandeep Ramachandran of India.

The 7-time Italian Champion will play Auguste Dussourd in the 2nd round whilst top seed James Willstrop will face Edwin Clain of France, the winner against UNSQUASHABLE player Elliott Morris Devred, Simon Herbert up against Wild Card Toufik Mekhalfi of France & Rory Stewart, winner of the recent PSA Bordeaux Gradignan Open, will play Daniel Poleshchuk of Israel.

Stuart Macgregor was unable to progress to the 2nd round after being beaten by the inform Ben Smith, the recently crowned PSA Swiss Open Champion.

James Willstrop confirmed as top seed for PSA Lagord Squash Open
Former World No.1 James Willstrop has been confirmed as the No.1 seed for the PSA Lagord Squash Open to be staged at the Lagord Tennis Squash in France from the 1st to 6th November.

Scotland’s Rory Stewart, who won the recent PSA Bordeaux Gradignan Open, & Simon Herbert are also among the top eight seeds which will include fellow #teamunsquashable players Italian No.1 Yuri Farneti, Elliott Morris Devred of Wales & England’s Stuart MacGregor.