No 'divorce papers' despite Commonwealth couple's squash duel

Donna Lobban

Australia's Donna Lobban.

Photo credit: Pool |

What you need to know:

  • Donna and her partner Cameron Pilley came back from a game down to win 9-11, 11-8, 11-8 and reach the semi-finals in Birmingham.
  • The defending champion, 35, said she was braced for her husband's reaction.

Birmingham, United Kingdom

Australia's Donna Lobban said she and her Scottish husband Greg Lobban would not be signing "divorce papers" after she beat him in mixed-doubles squash competition at the Commonwealth Games on Friday.

Donna and her partner Cameron Pilley came back from a game down to win 9-11, 11-8, 11-8 and reach the semi-finals in Birmingham.

The defending champion, 35, said she was braced for her husband's reaction.

"I might have to put up with him being in a terrible mood for a while, but if I had lost it would have been him putting up with me being in a terrible mood," she said.

But she added: "He is still the main person who is there for me and I'm there for him in tough times too. We won't be signing any divorce papers after today. We're still all right."

Speaking about a pre-match bet for the loser to cook dinner for a month, she joked: "I don't know if I want him to cook dinner, actually. It's pretty grim.

"I should have made a bet that if I win, I get to shave off his mullet and moustache. I don't know why I didn't think of that.

"I'm gutted we're the ones who put them out of the tournament. It doesn't feel good."

Greg, a former men's world doubles champion, said it had been tough facing his wife but he hoped she would now go on to win gold.

"Donna and I are competitors, we're professional, it's what we've been doing for a long time," said the 29-year-old, who was partnering Lisa Aitken.

"We knew how to split that apart (the personal and professional) and I think we did that.

"We treated it like any other match and we can both be proud of our performances."