RESULTS: European Individual Squash Championships, Herentals, Belgium
Women's final:
[1] Natalie Grinham (NED) bt [3/4] Vanessa Atkinson (NED) 9-11, 11-3, 11-5, 11-4 (35m)
Natalie Grinham, the world No4 from the Netherlands has been crowned European Individual Champion after first-time triumph in the European Squash Federation event at the Flemish Squash Center in Herentals, Belgium.
It was a long-awaited maiden title success as a Dutch player for Natalie Grinham, the Queensland-born 31-year-old who became the first player ever to win three squash gold medals in the Commonwealth Games in 2006 before becoming a Dutch national at the beginning of last year.
Grinham recovered from a game down to beat compatriot Vanessa Atkinson, the former world champion and world number one, 9-11, 11-3, 11-5, 11-4 in 35 minutes.
"I made a few errors at the start," admitted Grinham to www.squashsite.co.uk afterwards. "First, it’s all about getting used to the court again, getting the feel of it, but also, Vanessa played very well. I was a bit nervous, because I was out at the start of the year, I’ve been ill, so I’m still not that confident, I’m coming back into it slowly.
"Also, I’m still not that confident about the change of scoring. Before, I could be at 6-0 down, I was pretty confident I could come back, whereas now, if you don’t take a good start, you are really in trouble.
"I still haven’t won a world title though, and this year it’s in Holland so that’s something I really want to achieve," Grinham added. "And I haven’t decided yet when I want to stop and try having kids. One thing I know, now is not the time, I’m not ready for it yet, I’m too busy!"
