Watanabe battles past Hutton to set up final clash against Kennedy in Steel City Open

Top seed Satomi Watanabe had to wage a grim battle before overcoming Jasmine Hutton in five games in the semifinal of the Steel City Open 2026. Satomi will now clash against second seed Georgina Kennedy, who got the better of Amanda Sobhy 3-0 in the other last four game.

World No.6 Watanabe had never lost to Hutton on the PSA Tour before, but knew she was in for a tough test from the off in this encounter, with the two players never once separated by more than two points in the opening game.

It was Watanabe who eventually took it, clinching her third game ball at 12-11 up, and she was soon close to a two-game lead at 9-7 up in the second. The left-handed Englishwoman dug deep, though, winning the next two points to level the score at 9-9 before a perfectly-weighted backhand down the line brought her game ball.

A Watanabe backhand into the tin, which ballooned up over the back wall and was well caught by a front-row spectator, handed Hutton the game on the following rally, and she was soon back in front in games, wrapping up an 11-minute third game 11-8.

At 4-2 up in game four, Hutton would have been sensing victory was within her reach, but Watanabe kept her cool, choosing her attacking moments wisely and executing drop shots well, something that had eluded her at times earlier in the match.

She only lost two of the next 11 rallies to take game four 11-6, a run that shifted the momentum dramatically in her favor. She carried that momentum into game five, needing little more than five minutes to bring up nine match balls at 10-1, and while the first two came and went, the third would not, with a forehand volley glued to the right-hand wall getting her over the line.

Georgina Kennedy and Amanda Sobhy catch their breath after an epic rally on match ball. Pics: PSA Squash Tour

Kennedy avenges loss against Sobhy

She will now face Kennedy in the final after the No.2 seed eased past Amanda Sobhy 3-0, avenging her defeat in last week’s Cincinnati Open final. Sobhy’s win over Kennedy in Ohio last week had edged her 3-2 in front in their head-to-head standings, but Kennedy evened that score here with a clinical display.

The first game could have gone either way, with Kennedy clinching it 11-9 on a stroke decision having earlier overcome a slow start, in which she was 3-0 down in the first couple of minutes.

But from the start of game two, it was largely one-way traffic, with Sobhy undoubtedly feeling the effects of her epic comeback win over her sister Sabrina in the semifinals less than 24 hours ago.

Kennedy, meanwhile, put in a clinical display, nonetheless, moving both herself and the ball around the court, losing only three points in each of the next two games to wrap up victory, albeit only after winning a breathtaking, 40-shot rally on match ball, which was appreciated by the crowd inside Steel City Squash.

Results (semifinals): 1-Satomi Watanabe (JPN) beat 4-Jasmine Hutton (ENG) 3-2: 13-11, 9-11, 8-11, 11-6, 11-3; 2-Georgina Kennedy (ENG) beat 3-Amanda Sobhy (USA) 3-0: 11-9, 11-3, 11-3.