Gold and 'four more years' for queen Nicol
Published on: Wednesday, September 24, 2014
INCHEON: Malaysia's world squash number one Nicol David declared Friday she wants four more years at the top of the sport after fighting back from a game down to claim the Asian Games singles gold.David eventually outclassed her compatriot Low Wee Wern 9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 12-10 in the final, but had to work to regain her Asian Games title.The 31-year-old, who now has four Asian Games golds to add to her seven World Open titles, warned rivals that she felt her game was still improving - and she had no plans to hang up her racquet yet.
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"When I'm feeling this good I don't want to settle down any time soon, so in another four years or so I'll be playing this game for sure," she told reporters."After all these years I'm understanding it a lot more and it's even more exciting so every time I step on court it's something new and for me it's just a challenge that I love."Rounding out the podium behind the Malaysian one-two were India's Dipika Pallikal and Hong Kong's Annie Au Wing Chi.Low, facing her idol in a major final for the first time, was far from overawed and put in a spirited performance with some flashes of brilliance.
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The 24-year-old world number seven came flying out of the blocks to take the first game as David struggled to find her rhythm.But David stepped up a gear from the second game, dominating the centre of the court and sending Low scurrying with an array of disguised drop shots and clever angles.
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The decisive fourth game was a fiercely-contested affair, culminating in a titanic rally with Low leading 9-7.With Low on the edge of three game points and the prospect of a fifth set looming, David dug deep to produce a superb winner.The defending champion got the game back to parity before an unforced error from Low gave her the opening she needed to wrap up the match in 53 minutes.David praised her opponent."She's got a lot of experience as well coming into this game and she's not in the final for nothing and I knew it was going to be a great battle and it showed today," she said.Low, singles bronze medallist at the games in Guangzhou, China four years ago, said she was pleased with her performance despite coming up short."It was a very good match, the two of us gave it our all, but Nicol is the world number one and seven-time world champion, so it's obviously very hard to break her down and her experience helped her towards the end," she said.And the years have done nothing to dim the smiling David's enthusiasm for the game. It has been 16 years since she won her first Asian Games gold in Bangkok but the thrill of big stage still drives her on."Playing in that show court, the glass court, you work so hard and you want everything to come together all at once," she said. "That buzz - you can't get it anywhere else but on that court so that's what motivates me and that's what gives me that drive to keep wanting to play and wanting to win."Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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