Jessica all pumped up to face Herring in semis

PETALING JAYA: An improved Jessica Keng is looking confident ahead of an uphill task in the semi-finals of the RedOne Professional Squash Association (PSA) WSF Satellite.

The 22-year-old Jessica stormed into the last four after breezing past compatriot K. Vinikasheinie 11-5, 11-2, 11-4 in the quarter-finals at the Malacca Club Rotunda yesterday.

Jessica will next face top seed Erina Sano Herring of Japan, who swept aside S. Abhitha 11-8, 11-3, 16-14 in another quarter-final match.

The match against Herring will be a good platform to assess her current level of play.

“I believe that my performance in this tournament has improved compared to previous ones, mainly in the areas of my skills, mental preparation and strategic gameplay,” said Jessica.

“As the top seed, Herring is a formidable opponent, so I won’t take her lightly.

“Instead, I see it as a great opportunity to test my skills and strategy against a top player. I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

Jessica has set her sights on winning her second PSA title.

“My goal is to win the title again,” said Jessica, who nailed her first PSA title in the previous Satellite tournament in August.

“But also, I’m not underestimating the competition, as there are also two other strong competitors (Doyce Lee Ye San and Whitney Isabelle Wilson) at the bottom draw. So, my primary focus right now is on winning tomorrow’s (today’s) match before looking ahead to the title.”

QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS

(Malaysians unless stated)

Men: Wee Ming Hock bt Dominic Long 11-7, 11-5, 11-4; Duncan Lee bt Tay Jun Qian 11-4, 11-9, 11-7; Amir Amirul Azhar bt Hashvind Kugan 11-9, 8-11, 12-10, 5-11, 11-6; Na Joo-young (Kor) bt Hi Jia Rong 11-4, 3-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-4.

Women: Whitney Isabelle Wilson bt Goh Zhi Xuan 11-9, 11-4, 11-7; Erina Sano Herring (Jpn) bt S. Abhitha 11-8, 11-3, 16-14; Jessica Keng bt K. Vinikasheinie 11-5, 11-2, 11-4; Doyce Lee Ye San bt N. Shasmithaa 11-3, 11-9, 11-9.