Any signs of the bitter Yorkshire rivalry which marred last year's British Open final were put to one side on Sunday as Nick Matthew easily defended his national title against James Willstrop in Manchester.
In a one-sided affair, Matthew underlined his world No 2 status to prevail 11-5, 11-6, 11-6 in 50 minutes as an error-prone Willstrop failed to match the 29-year-old’s physical strength and consistency.
Those attributes were evident in the opening game here and in such a crucial match, Willstrop simply left himself with too many deficits to claw back. Seven errors, mostly to the tin, accounted for the 19-minute first game – despite its obvious quality.
The next two followed similar patterns as Matthew managed to pull away mid-game to land his third title and fall only one behind Phil Kenyon, who won the British squash title four times between 1977 and 1985.
Matthew, whose winning run over his rival now stretches back to the 2007 English Open, said: “That has to go down as one of my finest performances. It is not often you beat James Willstrop 3-0.
“It was tight in every game but I managed to get through each one. I always feel good in this venue and it feels great to be national champion.”
Sensing the danger Matthew possessed at one-game to the good, Willstrop came out attacking in the second. He made a statement of intent with a convincing kill to level at 3-3 but at a crucial juncture lost his length as Matthew never let his opponent back in the game.
A steady concoction of winning boasts and decisive front wall winners then handed Matthew six match balls. Willstrop came back with two stunning winning rallies but, to his chagrin, it proved a step too far. As he put it afterwards: “He completely found me out.”
The 26-year-old added: “To get to the final is still great but in tournament such as this the biggest disappointment is that I didn’t produce.”
On quelling a lively British Open final the pair encountered last September, Matthew said: “I’ve learnt to be clinical and in control of my own game. I have to play aggressive to play my strengths but I am delighted everything has come together.”
Nevertheless Willstrop, who admitted to “a lack of spark” on court, is currently leading an English resurgence after last year’s ankle injury. He won the season-opening Tournament of Champions in New York last month before being forced to concede last week’s Sweden Open final to Matthew with a niggling injury.
Before lifting his second title last year – he won his first in 2006 – Matthew said that he had “geared my whole preparation” towards beating Willstrop in the semi-final stages. Such was his form that he utterly dominated a comfortable 3-0 win. It was a case of déjà-vu for those who witnessed the same outcome this year.
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