Nicol David (right) will face fourth seed Alison Waters of England for a place in the final.
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s seven-time world champion Nicol David made short work of team-mate Low Wee Wern to romp into the last four of the Tournament of Champions (TOC) in New York.
The 30-year-old top seed won 11-5, 11-3, 11-9 for her 25th straight victory since losing to Laura Massaro of England in the British Open final last May.
Nicol, who won the Hong Kong Open last month, will face fourth seed Alison Waters of England for a place in the final.
Waters had no problem eliminating compatriot and qualifier Sarah-Jane Perry 11-5, 11-6, 11-2 in the quarter-finals.
Nicol, who has been the world No. 1 ranked player since August, 2006, can expect a tough battle against Waters in the semi-finals.
They last met in the semi-finals of the Hong Kong Open last month and the Malaysian had to come back from a set down to beat the English woman.
When asked if she ever gets bored with squash after playing for so many years and being the No. 1, Nicol’s answer was emphatic.
“No. I just get more and more into it, especially these last few years when I feel like I truly understand the game,” Nicol was quoted as saying on the website www.squashsite.co.uk.
Eighth-seeded Wee Wern said that she gave her best against Nicol but her fellow Penangite was just too good.
“However, it was a good match for me as I need to train harder if I hope to break into top five in the world rankings,” said Wee Wern, who is ranked sixth in the world.
Second seed Laura Massaro of England came back from a set down to beat Joelle King of New Zealand 9-11, 13-11, 11-3, 11-7 to set up a date with fifth seed Camille Serme of France in the other semi-final.
Serme warded off a strong challenge from Ireland’s Madeline Perry 11-8, 11-4, 11-13, 11-8.
In the men’s category, top seed Gregory Gaultier booked his place in the semi-finals by dispatching Germany’s Simon Rosner 12-10, 11-6, 11-7.
World No. 2 Gaultier, who finished runner-up in the tournament last year, will meet Egypt’s Mohamed El Shorbagy for a place in the final.
England’s James Willstrop meets Amr Shabana of Egypt in the other semi-final.
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