Squash: Wiens continues his march: French Open

(First Edition)

HANSI WIENS, the unseeded German, continued his run at the French Open yesterday when he beat the third seed, Ross Norman of New Zealand, to reach the semi-finals.

Wiens, the German No 2, attacked the former world champion throughout the match and was good value for his 15-11, 15-13, 10-15, 15-12, victory in 62 minutes.

Having previously knocked out the English champion, Phil Whitlock, the world No 11, his victory over theeighth-ranked Norman should lift him to the brink of the top 10 in the list due next month.

Wiens is currently 18th - already the highest ever achieved by a German player.

Fierce driving to the back of the court kept Norman on the defensive in the opening two games and the New Zealander was frequently stranded as Wiens then caught him out with delicate drop shots.

But Norman is too experienced a campaigner to give up so easily and he was quick to seize the initiative in the third game as Wiens, nine years his junior, appeared to relax.

Norman succeeded in slowing the pace and was right back in the match when he took the third game.

At 12-12 in the fourth, the New Zealander was still in with a chance of survival but suddenly Wiens recaptured his earlier form to clinch the match with three thundering winners.

Australia's world No 10, Rodney Eyles, also reached the semi-finals with an impressive 17-14, 15-8, 15-8, victory in 50 minutes over his compatriot, Craig Rowland, who is a student at the Australian Institute of Sport.