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Commonwealth champion Tracey Hallam revealed that today's unexpected foray into doubles – agreeing to fill in for the stricken Gail Emms - may help prolong her career beyond the Beijing Olympics.

The 32-year-old women’s singles favourite now tops the draw in two events after pairing up as a last moment substitute with Donna Kellogg, whose European title winning partnership was interrupted by Emms’ illness.

“I agreed to play doubles because of the chance to play with Donna, but, yes, I might decide not to retire after Beijing if I can do well in doubles,” agreed Hallam, the only English singles player in two decades to reach the world’s top ten.

Kellogg seemed certain to scrap her attempt at defending the women’s doubles title when her fellow European champion Emms was forced to cry off with a bad virus.

But she refused to withdraw, kept everyone in suspense overnight, and emerged with another big name partner, Hallam, on the morning of the tournament's start.

“I asked her yesterday and she had a think about it overnight and came back and said yes,” said Kellogg. “Because she’s not played doubles for a while she might be a bit rusty but I think she will get over that.

“Tracey has not played in doubles for a long time, but obviously she’s a very skilful player and I think those skills will work well in doubles.

“I will probably concentrate on mixed doubles because I am playing with my normal partner,” added Kellogg, referring to Anthony Clark, her fellow former world silver mixed medallist with whom she upset Emms and Nathan Robertson, the Olympic silver medalists, in last year’s remarkable final.

“But women’s doubles is an important event and I enjoy it, and you don’t get that many opportunities to be national champion.”

With several of England’s stars contemplating retiring this year, it would be timely if the Kellogg/Hallam combo develops some hints of long term potential over the next two days.



The scratch partnership certainly began comfortably, with a 21-10, 21-5 win over Sarah Burgess of Hampshire and Rebecca Pantaney of Gloucestershire, a former national singles runner-up, which suggested that, provided both can cope with four matches tomorrow, Hallam and Kellogg may each mount a challenge for two titles.

“It’s relatively easy to play with Donna,” said Hallam, “because she hits a shot and makes a move and I know how to fall in somewhere else.

“I wanted to think about it overnight because I didn’t want it to affect my singles. But I had a lot of talking from Gail on the phone and she persuaded me that it would really be so easy!”

That remains to be seen how true that is, but Hallam certainly started her singles satisfactorily, beating Helen Ward of Yorkshire 21-7, 21-12 on a day when only two of the 12 seeds in the two singles events failed to reach their quarter-final slots.

One was Alex Marritt, the third-seeded Yorkshire Champion who survived against Martin Ventham of Hampshire but three hours later lost a tough contest against Daniel Plant.

The other was James Allinson, the eighth seeded man, who was squeezed out 16-21, 21-18, 22-20 by the experienced Chris Dakin - only for the ex-Yorkshire Warwickshire man to find two long matches in one day slightly too much.

Four hours later Dakin brought a 22-20, 16-21, 21-11 loss for Dakin against Chris Hotchen, a member of England’s under 19 world class potential squad, who next faces the top seed Rajiv Ouseph.

Ouseph, the 21-year-old former European junior champion, began with a smooth and skillfully executed 21-6, 21-10 win over Handal Suryaputra of Warwickshire and then had a tougher task in getting past a promising Robert Kettle 21-16, 21-11.

John Hyde interviews Rajiv ... more audio

If Ouseph wins again he meets the winner between Mark Constable, the seventh-seeded former national champion and Neil White, the improving 22-year-old winner of the Middlesex challenger.

The quarter-finals in the bottom half see Aamir Ghaffar, twice the former national champion, take on Plant, and Ben Beckman, son of Karen, the former European runner-up, play Nathan Rice, the second seed and last year’s runner-up.

Ghaffar, played well while winning 21-16, 21-17 against the tenacious Mark Sellwood and is also talking a good tournament as he attempts to capture his third title in five years.

“Last week I won the Wimbledon elite and beat most of the players, apart from Rajiv, who could win here. So I think I’m one of the favourites,” he said.

The women’s defending champion Elizabeth Cann looked especially sharp as she dispatched Sarah Walker of Essex 21-8, 21-9 to earn a meeting with Sarah Renton of Northumberland.

The other women’s quarter-final in the bottom half will be between the fourth-seeded Rachel Howard, who has just been selected for a Uber Cup debut later this month, and Fontaine Chapman, an under 19 member of England’s world class potential programme.

In the top half Jill Pittard, the calibration engineer who has three times been a national runner-up despite living a flat-out 16-hour day to juggle her badminton with her profession, faces another up-and-coming player, Kate Robertshaw of Yorkshire.

The winner will probably play Hallam, who plays the first in what is likely to be a four-match day against Caroline Westley, a late developing member of England’s world class performance programme.

“It will be singles, doubles, singles, doubles - if I get through,” said Hallam. “I don’t know what shape I will be in at the end of that.”
    

Comfortable for Cann

John Hyde interviews Elizabeth ... more audio

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Archer & Bok take out the third seeds 21/11, 21/17
in second round ...

Lengthy Openings

It didn't augur well for the schedule when the first four mixed doubles  matches went to three games - Hanson & Westley, Clarkson & Dabek, Adcock & Connor and George & Agathangelou all being taken the full distance before progressing to this afternoon's second round.

Chris Adcock & Gabby White

Scoring technology

A fine comeback, then an upset ...
 
Daniel Plant bt Tom Dunlop
   15/21, 21/11, 21/19



"It was a bit of a struggle, having come back and then falling behind right at the start of the third. I just tried to keep the gap to a minimum, within five is ok, and if you can just hang in anything can happen when it gets close at the end."


  
Daniel went on to knock out #3 seed Alex Marritt  21/18, 13/21, 21/15 to reach the quarters ...

Ouseph off to safe start

An unexpectedly
champion partnership

by Richard Eaton

Donna Kellogg, the winner of two titles at last year’s English national championships, has made an unexpected and enterprising last moment bid to rescue her hopes of defending both successfully.

Kellogg seemed certain to scrap her attempt to win the women’s doubles again yesterday when her fellow European champion Gail Emms was forced to cry off with a bad virus.

But the mixed and women’s doubles titleholder insisted on keeping her name at the top of the draw without Emms, keeping us all in suspense before unveiling another high profile partner shortly before the tournament began today.

Kellogg will now partner Tracey Hallam, the Commonwealth champion who is the top seeded in the women’s singles and who as a result has the chance to win two titles at a national championships for the first time.

“Tracey has not played in doubles for a long time,” said Kellogg. “But obviously she’s a very skilful player and I think those skills will work well in doubles.

“I asked her yesterday and she had a think about it overnight and came back and said yes. Because she’s not played doubles for a while she might be a bit rusty, but I think she will get over that.

“I will probably concentrate on mixed doubles because I am playing with my normal partner,” added Kellogg, referring to Anthony Clark, the fellow former world silver mixed medallist with whom she upset Emms and Nathan Robertson, then world champions, in last year’s remarkable final.



“But women’s doubles is an important event and I enjoy it, and you don’t get that many opportunities to be national champion.”

Many people have felt that deceptive skills of the left-handed Hallam would translate well to doubles. There have also been suggestions that she should consider continuing as a doubles player after this year’s Olympics, by which time she will be 33.

Kellogg also has to think about whether she will continue after the Beijing Games in August. At the moment she is undecided.

“For now I am just trying to concentrate on the Olympics and training hard,” she said. “I will be capable of playing on. It depends on how motivated I am to keep achieving.

“I have to decide whether I have the drive to get out of bed every morning and do training. I don’t want to just play: I want to achieve something new. I will look at it after the Olympics and sit down and think.”

With several of England’s other stars contemplating retirement, it must be hoped that the Kellogg/Hallam combo develops enough long term potential this week to persuade them to prolong their careers.

Meanwhile Rajiv Ouseph, the 21-year-old former European junior champion from Middlesex, began his first nationals as top seed with a smooth and skillfully executed win.

Ouseph came through 21-6, 21-10 against Handal Suryaputra of Warwickshire and talked of how much fitter he felt since reverting to full-time play again last year.

“I have the skill, but it’s a question of getting strong enough,” said Ouseph, who recently made his debut in the Super Series, the highest level of international competition.

“Of course there is a bit more pressure on me this year as top seed, but I’ll push that out of my mind.”

Ouseph went on to beat Robert Kettle 21/16, 21/11 in the second round.