Full name | Vanessa Louise Atkinson | ||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Country | Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||||||
Residence | Leeds, England | ||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Newcastle, England | 10 March 1976||||||||||||||||||||
Turned Pro | 1995 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Retired | 2011 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Plays | Right Handed | ||||||||||||||||||||
Coached by | Liz Irving | ||||||||||||||||||||
Racquet used | Karakal | ||||||||||||||||||||
Women's singles | |||||||||||||||||||||
Highest ranking | No. 1 (December, 2005) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Title(s) | 25 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tour final(s) | 42 | ||||||||||||||||||||
World Open | W (2004) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Last updated: 3 December 2019. |
Vanessa Louise Atkinson (born 10 March 1976 in Newcastle, England) is a former professional squash player from the Netherlands, who won the World Open in 2004 and reached the World No. 1 ranking in December 2005.
Atkinson was born in England, but her family moved to the Netherlands when she was still a child. She began playing squash as a youngster in Dordrecht. She now resides in Harrogate, Yorkshire, with her partner James Willstrop, himself a professional squash player and a former World No. 1. [1] [2]
Atkinson's biggest win came in 2004 when she won the World Open title in Kuala Lumpur by defeating fellow compatriote Natalie Grinham (at that time still representing Australia) with a score of 9–1, 9–1, 9–5 in the final. [3] Atkinson also has won major tournaments in Qatar, New York, Monte Carlo, Malaysia and Ireland.
Atkinson retired from professional play in May 2011.
Outcome | Year | Location | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | 2004 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Natalie Grinham | 9–1, 9–1, 9–5 |
Outcome | Year | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|
Winner | 2004 | Rachael Grinham | 9-4, 9-7, 9-6 |
Winner | 2005 | Vicky Botwright | 9-7, 9-4, 9-2 |
Outcome | Year | Opponent in the final | Score in the final |
---|---|---|---|
Winner | 2004 | Nicol David | 9-2, 9-4, 9-0 |
Runner-up | 2005 | Nicol David | 3-9, 9-3, 1-9, 9-1, 9-4 |
Carol Owens is a former New Zealand-based squash player who won the World Open in 2000 and 2003.
Sarah Elizabeth Fitz-GeraldAM is an Australian former professional squash player who won five World Open titles – 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001 and 2002. She ranks alongside Janet Morgan, Nicol David, Susan Devoy, Michelle Martin and Heather McKay as the sport's greatest female players of all time.
Vicky Botwright is a squash coach and former professional squash player from England. She reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 5 in 2005. In 2008, she finished runner-up at the World Open, losing in the final to Nicol David 11–5, 1–11, 6–11, 9–11. Botwright was a member of the England team which won the World Team Championships in 2006.
Datuk Nicol Ann David is a retired female Malaysian professional squash player. Beginning in August 2006, David was the world number one for a record-breaking 108 consecutive months, finally ceding the ranking in September 2015 to Raneem El Weleily. She has won the World Open title a record 8 times in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014, as well as the British Open title in 2005, 2006, 2008, 2012 and 2014. In July 2016, she reached her 151st successive month in the top 10, breaking the record in both men's and women's categories. She surpassed Peter Nicol's previous records of 150 months.
Rachael Margaret Grinham is an Australian former professional squash player. She won the World Open in 2007, and the British Open in 2003, 2004, 2007 and 2009. She reached the World No. 1 ranking in August 2004 and held it for 16 consecutive months.
Natalie Marie Grinham is an Australian former professional squash player. During her career, she has won three Commonwealth Games gold medals, and finished runner-up at both the World Open and the British Open. She reached her highest career ranking in 2007 when she became the World No. 2. She represented Australia in international squash competitions up to 2006. She is married to the Dutch squash player Tommy Berden, and took up Dutch citizenship in February 2008. Both Tommy and Natalie became the first husband and wife team to win a joint championship in squash after winning the respective trophies at the inaugural edition of the Tranzparanz Open in June 2006 which was held in Almere, Netherlands.
James Willstrop is an English professional squash player from Yorkshire.
Natalie Grainger, also known for a period by her former married name Natalie Pohrer, is a former professional female squash player.
Suzanne Horner is an English former professional squash player.
Nicholas MatthewOBE is a former English professional squash player who has won the two most prestigious tournaments in the professional game, the British Open and the World Open, three times each. He reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 1 in June 2010. His home club is Hallamshire Tennis and Squash Club in Sheffield which has named 'The Nick Matthew Showcourt' after him.
Raneem Mohamed Yasser Saad El Din El Welily is a former professional squash player from Egypt. She reached a career-high world ranking of No. 1 in September 2015. She is a three-time finalist at the World Open, in 2014, 2016, and 2019-2020. She became the World Champion in 2017, after defeating her compatriot Nour El Sherbini in the finals.
Jennifer Duncalf is a former professional squash player from England. She reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 2 in December 2009.
Laura Jane Massaro is an English retired professional squash player.
Annelize Naudé is a Dutch former professional squash player. She reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 13 in January 2006, and won five WISPA tour titles as well as having been the runner-up nine times since 1996. She retired as a professional player in 2010.
Delia Arnold is a former professional squash player who represented Malaysia. She reached a career-high ranking of World No. 12.
Jaclyn Hawkes is a New Zealand professional squash player.
Nour El Sherbini is an Egyptian professional squash player. She is currently ranked as the world No. 1 in women's singles by the Women's Squash Association (WSA), having held the position for a total of 43 weeks. Nour, the only player representing Egypt in the list of most winner in all time of PSA Women's World Championship. And The Most Egyptian Player to win a Major series title, has won the British Open four times and the US Open once. Nour has won 40 titles, including the PSA Finals Twice.
Nour El Tayeb is a former professional squash player who represented Egypt. She reached a career-high ranking of World No. 3, in March 2018.
The WSA World Tour 2011 is the international squash tour and organized circuit, organized by the Women's Squash Association (WSA) for the 2011 squash season. The most important tournament in the series is the World Open held in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The tour features three categories of regular events, the World Series, which features the highest prize money and the best fields, Gold and Silver tournaments. The Tour is concluded by the WSA World Series Finals, the end of season championship for the top 8 rated players.
Sarah-Jane Perry is a professional squash player who represents England and Great Britain. She reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 5 in July 2020.