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Tuominen
sweeps exhausted Boswell for first Detroit title
By A.J. Hakim
Birmingham,
Mich. - After two epic semifinal upsets put Stewart Boswell
and Olli Tuominen through to the 2007 Motor City Challenge final
- presented by Suburban Infiniti - expectations were high that
Sunday’s meeting would be a humdinger. But as it turned out, Boswell’s
physically draining, 2-hour victory against two-seed Wael El Hindi
just 17 hours earlier would prove his undoing today.
Third-seed
Boswell, ranked #13 in the world, looked visibly fatigued after
the first game. As a result, four-seed Tuominen - who upset top
seed John White Saturday - capitalized early and often on his
way to a three-game victory over Boswell: 11-7, 11-6, 11-2.
“I was just
trying to keep it at a slow pace to give myself a bit more time,
“said Aussie Boswell. “But (Tuominen) was picking the pace up
and getting all the balls back.”

Boswell started
off strong, striking the ball at the board and hitting it dead.
With a series of precise nick-outs, he built a quick 5-0 lead
in game one. Two points later, however, Tuominen made a bushel
of impossible retrieves during a marathon rally. Though the point
ended in a let, it seemed to seal Boswell’s demise. From that
point on, the tireless Tuominen won eleven of the next twelve
rallies, reversing Boswell’s momentum.
“We played a couple of rallies and had a huge
one where it ended in a let,” Boswell said of the crucial seventh
point. “I thought I had about four winners, but he just kept rallying
them all back. It’s tough when you’re feeling tired and someone
keeps getting every ball back.”
Into the
second and third games, Tuominen never faltered, playing accurate
volleys, returning every ball, and taking advantage of his exhausted
opponent.

Boswell
stretches for a low, frontcourt backhand against Tuominen.. (Photo
copyright Birmingham Athletic Club)
“Today, Stewart was a bit tired from yesterday,”
said Tuominen, who won the MCC for the first time in three tries.
“He wasn’t moving too well, especially in the last two games.
I put a little pressure on him, and he really couldn’t move to
the front.
“I felt really
sore this morning, and quite tired actually,” added the Flying
Finn, who had survived a five-game semi as well Saturday. “So
I was really happy that he couldn’t push back that much because
it would’ve been a struggle for me as well to survive and recover.”
While evidently tired from the night before, Boswell
made no excuses for his uncharacteristic play, crediting Tuomenin’s
talents instead.
“I was tired in today’s match, but Olli had a
tough match yesterday as well,” said Boswell. “I don’t think you
can really use that as an excuse. He was just too sharp, really.”
In winning the eight-man invitational, Tuominen
was rewarded afterward with a new Rolex watch courtesy of Greenstone’s
Fine Jewelry and a $5,000 check.
“It’s a very,
very nice watch,” said Tuominen of his big pay day. “I’m just
happy to have played so well that I could win the entire tournament.
To win against a couple of these guys, who I might have to play
in upcoming tournaments, is a big thing mentally.”
The
final illustrated: Boswell shoots, Olli retrieves - and retrieves,
and retrieves. . . . (Photo copyright Birmingham Athletic
Club)

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