Since my last blog quite a bit has changed I am now based in Cheltenham again and my ranking is starting to steadily go in the right direction.In March I travelled to Kish Island just off Dubai for a $10,000 dollar event where I managed to come through qualifying and eventually get through to the quarter finals losing to World number 54 Mark Krajcsak of Hungary who went on to win the event.
Then I was involved in a Closed Satellite in Chesterfield at Brampton Manor squash club in I was seeded one for the event and it a strange feeling to have the pressure on me to beat people something which I haven't felt as much since leaving the junior age groups. I managed to put in some good performances and come away with the win beating Richard Birkes 3.0 in the final WR 270.
After these events I had a bit of time back home in Cheltenham having only recently moved back from a brief time in Manchester. It was good being back and getting a few weeks of hard training in before my next events.
The season seems to have disappeared a bit to quick after some time out injured but I still have a few tournaments left to go. Last week I was competing in the Irish Open held at Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club in Dublin, the tournament had a high quality field including ex Gloucestershire man Ali Walker now ranked No.13 in the world and Borja Golan of Spain also ranked in the worlds top 20.
I managed to get through qualifying beating two players ranked higher than me, first Jaymie Haycocks ranked 102 in the world and the Steve London ranked just inside the top 150. I was massively pleased with both these results as I had only just sneak into the event and to get through qualifying was far more than I expected. In the first round I was drew to play Jonathan Kemp ranked 40 in the world its fair to say I had a baptism of fire at that level but on the whole a lot of positives to take! on top of this my ranking has now gone from 228 in March up to 163!
This Sunday I head of for a tour of the America's first I am in Atlanta and then I head off to Guatemala. Both events have a strong field and I will have to work my way through qualifying.
Also I would just like to say a big thank you and welcome to Airport Parking & Hotels Ltd (APH) who have recently agreed to sponsor me. They offer an excellent range of services for the independent traveller which include: Airport Parking, Airport Hotel & Parking Packages, Executive Airport Lounges, Car Hire, and Travel Insurance. I look forward to a long and prosperous partnership with them.
Nathan
