Ricketts doesn't see withdrawal as major setback

New Zealand squash coach Anthony Ricketts. Photo / Greg Bowker

He's in Delhi minus his right-hand woman but New Zealand squash coach Anthony Ricketts doesn't see Shelley Kitchen's withdrawal from the Commonwealth Games as a major setback to the team's medal hopes.

Kitchen, Northland's squash star, was a late withdrawal from the Games team, suffering from pleurisy after a belated comeback to the sport following the birth of hers and Ricketts' child, a girl Amalia.

Her place has been taken by Matamata world No 51 Kylie Lindsay. Kitchen won a women's doubles silver medal and singles bronze at the 2006 Games in Melbourne.

"On a personal note I'm obviously disappointed for Shelley," Ricketts said. "Potentially this was her last Commonwealth Games and, having come back from having our little bubba girl, she's got right back into the mode and was going to be tough to beat.

"She was valuable to us in the women's singles and doubles, as well as the mixed, but Jaclyn (Hawkes) and Joelle (King) and both experienced, and we were probably never going to be that successful if we were reliant on one player anyhow."

Kitchen's no-show left Jaclyn Hawkes seeded seventh in the singles, with she and world No 20 Joelle King ranked fifth in the women's doubles field. Hawkes and Campbell Grayson are also seeded fifth in the mixed doubles.

New Zealand's medal success at recent Games has been prompted in the doubles. Without wanting to put the kybosh on the Kiwis' hopes of singles success, Ricketts said the expanded game loomed as their biggest chance of a medal.

"It's a big emphasis for us. That's not to say we won't be giving singles our best shot in the first week, but doubles is a very different game.

"If you look back at the '98 Commonwealth Games, doubles was a completely new phenomenon and people didn't really know what they were doing, which may have been reflected in results, but now, because of Manchester and Melbourne, clearly players know what they're doing and there's a bit of an art form to it.

"Racket skills are still the same but the angles change after singles. Doubles has been good for us and it's an opportunity for us to get on the podium."

Doubles is in the second week of the Games, with the singles starting today (Monday).

Hawkes will play play Australian Amelia Pittock in the first round but second seed Jenny Duncalf (England) looms in round three. King, seeded 12th, is also up against a qualifier in the first round.

In the men's singles, 15th seed Martin Knight and the 16th-sided Grayson have unseeded opponents first up in Hardeep Reel of Kenya and Ray Zimbule (Zambia).