Squash star hurt

Press, 22 February 1977, Page 30

Squash star hurt

PA New Plymouth A leg muscle injury has put a tempoary halt to tournament play for the New Zealand squash player, Murray Lilley, of New Plymouth, who has been campaigning in Britain and Europe in recent months. Lilley and fellow New Zealander, Bruce Brownlee, of Rotorua, caught the headlines for their efforts in the British amateur championships at Wembley last December, Brownlee, the New Zealand champion, won the title and beat Lilley in the semi-finals. But in the second round Lilley beat Barry O’Connor, of London, in a match that set a world record for the longest competition squash match, playing for two hours and 35 minutes.

But according to letters received by Lilley’s parents, the New Zealand pair have continued to dominate tournaments. Brownlee has won six tournaments, and Lilley has won one and has been runner-up in four others. Lilley’s win was in the

London open, when he beat the Pakistani, Ramat Khan, in the final after scoring a win over Brownlee in the semi-finals. Ramataa Khan is ranked sixteenth in the world. Brownlee has won the Welsh open, a Woking tournament, the Middlesex title, beating Lilley in the final, 3-2, the British amateur, the Wimbledon tournament, beating Lilley in the final 3-2, and a tournament at Uppsala, Sweden, beating Lilley in the final, 3-0. A New Zealand team comprising Brownlee, Lilley and Craig Blackwood played a three-way test series against Swedish and Australian teams. New Zealand beat Sweden, 2-1, with Brownlee and Lilley the winners, and lost to Australia, 1-2, with Brownlee winning the only match. Meanwhile, in Dunedin the former New Zealand amateur squash champion, Neven Barbour, of Auckland, has announced that he is unavailable to go to Pakistan in April to play in the Hashim Kham Trophy event,

Indications from Pakistan to the New Zealand Squash Rackets Association last year were vague as to the date and, at that time, Barbour was available to travel for the projected dates in February/March. The selectors named Howard Broun (Auckland), Bruce Brownlee (Rotorua), Murray Lilley (New Plymouth) and Tony Naughton (Wellington) as well as Barbour, with Brian Barnett (Auckland), Craig Blackwood (Auckland) and Stephen Hughes (Wellington) as non-travelling reserves. Pakistan has now confirmed the starting date for the event as April 29 and the invitation is for three players plus one reserve, so, at this stage, no further changes to the team have been announced. Rugby.—France "A” beat West Germany, 50-3 in a rugby International in Auxerre, in France.

Tennis.—Chris Evert beat Martina Navratilova, 6-2, 2-6. 6-1 to win the SUSIOO,OOO Virginia Slims women’s professional tennis tournament in Los Angeles.