LAURA Massaro suffered a shock defeat in the final of the British National Women’s Championship yesterday.

Chorley’s Massaro was top seed at the event and favourite to claim victory but she was beaten by joint third seed Sarah-Jane Perry at the National Squash Centre in Manchester.

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Warwickshire player Perry, 24, had never previously got beyond the quarter finals in the competition and resisted a determined fightback from world number three Massaro in a thrilling 80-minute final.

Massaro had reached the final with a comfortable 11-4 11-7 11-8 win against Bedfordshire’s Victoria Lust in the semi finals.

Previously she had claimed an 11-13 12-10 9-11 11-2 11-4 victory over Cheshire’s Emily Whitlock in the quarter finals.

In contrast Perry arrived in the final after a nerve-jangling win over four-time champion Alison Waters, when she had to save a match ball.

Perry had not won a tournament since her British Under 23 National Championship triumph in 2013.

She had never previously beaten Massaro but took the first two games 12-10 and 11-9.

Massaro then hit back to win the next two 11-7 and 12/10 to level the match.

The 31-year-old seemed odds on to go on and secure victory at that point, but world number 16 Perry had other ideas and won the decider 11-7.

“I’ve beaten two players that I’ve never beaten before back to back and they are both in the top five in the world so I’m pretty proud of myself,” Perry said after her victories over Waters and Massaro.

“I said to myself be confident, trust your skills and go get it.

“This is a very special achievement for me and hopefully it won’t be my last.”

Massaro’s husband Danny reached the final of the men’s over 40s competition but was also beaten yesterday, with top seed Nick Taylor claiming the title 11-5 11-7 6-11 11-5.