Full name | Vanessa Louise Atkinson | |||||||||||||||||||
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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
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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. [1]
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. [2] 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 |
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