SQUASH - Rivals will `go hard out to beat me'

Muscling your way into the world top 10 is one thing but, when Shelley Kitchen turns up to try to win her third consecutive national squash title in Palmerston North tomorrow, being the big gun won't mean much.
Not to Kitchen anyway.
The 27-year-old Northlander cracked her way into the world top 10 on the Women's International Squash Players (WISPA) tour after winning the Australian Open in July.
It was only a brief visit though. She dropped back to No.11 shortly after.
Even though she has slipped back, Kitchen stills turns up as the highest-ranked player in the draw in Palmerston North. World No.20 Jaclyn Hawkes and No.32 Louise Crome are the next best players.
Kitchen tries to brush off her rabid hot favouritism with the one-game-at-a-time line, but then admits the preliminary games will mean little. The final is already the game she has eyes for.
"It's my third title I'm going for now, so obviously there is a lot of pressure there to win. But I don't think I will have a hard game until the final now," Kitchen said.
"Joelle King is out with a back injury so that means it narrows down to the final where I would get the first real test."
Her confidence is well founded. A rigorous off-court training regime on the WISPA circuit and her extensive overseas playing experience means she is regarded with some reverence when she turns up at the nationals these days.
It hasn't always been the case. It took Kitchen until 2005 to win the national tournament, so she knows what it feels like to be the underdog at this tournament.
"Definitely there are a lot of girls who are out to beat me. That's just squash really. I have to be careful, everyone I play is going hard out to beat me."
But, for Kitchen, the nationals are just the start of a seven-week international playing season.
Two weeks after Palmerston North she goes to Calgary in Canada then on to New York for two more tournaments before playing the world championships in Madrid.
WISPA tournaments in Qatar and Hong Kong in November round off the mind-boggling schedule.
"I would like to get my ranking into the top eight. Playing a couple of lower-key tournaments in the USA will help that but then it is getting a good draw in the bigger tournaments that will make all the difference."
In the men's draw at Palmerston North, No.1 seed is Kashif Shuja (world ranking No.41). His main rivals are Martin Knight, Campbell Grayson and Joshua Greenfield. Finals are scheduled for Sunday.