World No.10 Georgina Kennedy has become the first Englishwoman since 2017 to qualify for the last four of the SmartCentres PSA Squash Tour Finals after she beat USA’s Amanda Sobhy at Toronto’s Revival Film Studios.
Defending champion Nouran Gohar will join Kennedy in the semi-finals after beating Belgium’s Tinne Gilis 2-0. The winner of Gohar’s match with Kennedy tomorrow will qualify top of Group A.
It’s all to play for in Group B, with USA’s No.2 seed Olivia Weaver sitting at the summit with seven points. Weaver will qualify top if she beats Egypt’s Fayrouz Aboelkheir tomorrow, while Aboelkheir and Japan’s Satomi Watanabe can still qualify with wins.
World No.3 Paul Coll’s withdrawal from the event due to injury earlier in the day handed 2-0 wins to both of his upcoming opponents, World No.2 Diego Elias and World No.7 Karim Abdel Gawad. That meant Elias qualified for the semi-finals without playing today, while Gawad’s 2-1 win over Mohamed ElShorbagy sees him through to the semi-finalsh.
Top seed Mostafa Asal qualified top of Group A after he beat Joel Makin in straight games. Makin will play Marwan ElShorbagy tomorrow, with the winner of that match joining Asal in the last four.
Reports and Reaction
Aboelkheir Scores First Squash Tour Finals Win
World No.14 Fayrouz Aboelkheir earned her first ever victory at the SmartCentres PSA Squash Tour finals after she came back from a game down to beat Malaysia’s Sivasangari Subramaniam in Group B of the women’s event.
It was a nip and tuck match throughout, with Sivasangari sneaking the opening game by an 11-10 sudden death scoreline. The Malaysian then fought back from 8-4 down in the second game but squandered the chance of the win, with two many errors being her undoing as Aboelkheir saw her off to draw level.
The Egyptian – who was a late call-up after the withdrawal of Amina Orfi – had the bit between her teeth at this point and while she was put under pressure by Sivasangari, she was able to find winners when she needed them to emerge victorious.
Aboelkheir moves up to second in Group B, level on points with USA’s Olivia Weaver, but below her due to virtue of Weaver having a higher percentage of points won. They will meet tomorrow, with a win for Aboelkheir guaranteeing her spot in the last four regardless of what happens in Sivasangari’s match with Japan’s Satomi Watanabe.
“Siva is very dangerous, especially in best of three,” said Aboelkheir afterwards.
“You never know when it’s going to go your way, sudden death is very new, but it makes it very exciting.
“Best of three is very short and it’s hard to come back. It’s nice to play new tournaments, it makes it more exciting because best of five gets boring at some point with long matches.”
Result : [8] Fayrouz Aboelkheir (EGY) bt [5] Sivasangari Subramaniam (MAS) 2-1: 10-11, 11-9, 11-7 (41m)
ElShorbagy Comes Back to beat Soliman
England’s Marwan ElShorbagy got his first win of the tournament under his belt after overturning a 1-0 deficit against Egypt’s Youssef Soliman to go third in Group A of the men’s event.
Marwan had won seven of his nine matches against Soliman on the PSA Squash Tour but was up against it in a one-sided opening game, from which he took just three points.
However, the more physical the match became the more it played into ElShorbagy’s hands. Traffic issues and interference around the middle of the court resulted in stop-start squash and ElShorbagy took full advantage.
After drawing level in the second game, the 31-year-old ground out victory in the third to move onto three points.
ElShorbagy will play World No.4 Joel Makin tomorrow and will require a win if he is to qualify for the last four.
“It was a tough match and he was very smart in the first game,” said ElShorbagy afterwards.
“He surprised me and rushed me. It was close and I was lucky to win, to be honest. He was in control in the third game and I was already thinking about the break.
“It’s been a very long season and we’ve played so many events and matches. Everyone is pushing so hard, it’s the last event of the season and we’re giving it our all. I’m not done and I hope I finish strong this tournament.
“I love playing this sport and I want to keep playing for as long as I can. We’re lucky to have the life we have. I remember going to New Zealand and Australia and I was tired, but my mum said that I was complaining about my blessings.
“That changed my mind a little bit and I just have to enjoy whatever I have left in my career. Ali [Farag] and Tarek [Momen] are good friends and I was very sad when I found out about their retirements. I will see them on the other side very soon, but for now I want to enjoy what I have left.”
Result : [5] Marwan ElShorbagy (ENG) bt [8] Youssef Soliman (EGY) 2-1: 3-11, 11-5, 11-9 (49m)
Weaver Makes it Two Wins from Two
United States No.1 Olivia Weaver made it back-to-back wins at a PSA Squash Tour Finals for the first time after she came from behind to defeat Japan’s Satomi Watanabe.
Watanabe – making her PSA Squash Tour Finals debut here this week – stormed out of the traps and was firing on all cylinders as she dropped just three points in the first game.
Weaver was on the back foot throughout virtually all of the opening game but was able to get herself in front of the World No.7 in the second and third games and go on the attack.
Weaver’s reward is top spot in Group B and she will qualify for the next round with any sort of win over Egypt’s Fayrouz Aboelkheir tomorrow.
“I always love sharing the court with Satomi,” said Weaver.
“We don’t play very often. I think we’ve only played once before this in San Francisco. But we train a bit together at tournaments. She’s such a skilful player. I love watching her play so I was really looking forward to today.
“There aren’t many players that I haven’t played – in the way that I have with Satomi – so I kind of love having a different puzzle to solve. Obviously with the way she was playing in that first game, it was a startling start. I’m really with how I regrouped after the first game and settled into the match after that.
“I think a lot of the time when I’m playing players, I want to be the one attacking, hitting winners and expressing myself here. When you’re playing someone who’s absolutely rifling it in like that and playing the way she was playing, sometimes you just have to trust the work you’ve done, and all you can do is make it as tough as possible for them, and if they hit 22 perfect winners then kudos to them.
“All you can do is the best you can out here, and that was really what I was focusing on.”
Result : [2] Olivia Weaver (USA) bt [4] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) 2-1: 3-11, 11-6, 11-6 (31m)
Asal Tops Group After Beating Makin
World No.1 Mostafa Asal has qualified top of Group A after a comprehensive 2-0 victory over World No.4 Joel Makin.
Asal and Makin met in a fractious semi-final battle at the British Open earlier this month with the Egyptian emerging victorious and he repeated the feat to win a ninth successive match in a row over the Welshman.
It was a high quality contest with both players hitting their marks, but Asal had the superior accuracy.
Makin’s matters weren’t helped in the second game after he required treatment due to an ankle injury and Asal completed an 11-6, 11-4 victory in 40 minutes to ensure he will play runner-up in Group B.
“It’s like a swimming pool [because of the sweat],” said Asal afterwards.
“I know when you’re in the hot seat there, maybe you’re not seeing the drops. He’s sweating too much. Just a drop of water can end your career with a slip.
“I need the referees to get the knowledge of that because I’m not stopping play, I want to continue to play but just it’s just those kind of things that can injure us.
“Today was a solid performance. I wasn’t sure that I would play this quality of squash to be honest. All credit to Joel… I’m happy with this performance.”
Result : [1] Mostafa Asal (EGY) bt [4] Joel Makin (WAL) 2-0: 11-6, 11-4 (40m)
Gohar Joins Kennedy in Semi-Finals
Women’s World No.1 Nouran Gohar will face off against World No.10 Georgina Kennedy for top spot in Group A after a dominant 2-0 win over Belgium’s Tinne Gilis in the final women’s match of the day.
Top seed Gohar has joined Kennedy in qualifying for the last four after beating Gilis 11-2, 11-4 in 23 minutes.
The win marks a sixth successive victory for Gohar over Gilis as she continues her attempts to win a fourth PSA Squash Tour Finals title.
“I think I played better than yesterday,” Gohar said afterwards.
“Tinne is a great player and we just played at the British Open, so it’s fresh in my mind what I needed to do, I needed to be careful and tried to have a strong start, but it can switch at any time. I’m just happy with the mental focus and the way I played, and I want to progress through that.
“I won’t say [what I need to improve for the next round], I’ll keep that to myself. Let’s catch them by surprise in the next round. Obviously I always try to improve overall performance, you can’t have improvements during the tournament, just tweaks and you try to focus on certain areas more.”
Result : [1] Nouran Gohar (EGY) bt [3] Tinne Gilis (BEL) 2-0: 11-2, 11-4 (23m)
Gawad Downs ElShorbagy In Intense Three-Game Affair
Egypt’s Karim Abdel Gawad reached the semi-finals of the PSA Squash Tour Finals after a dramatic 49-minute clash with fellow former World No.1 Mohamed ElShorbagy.
The Englishman came out with intent, firing shots into the front two corners with ferocious pace to build a strong lead in the first game.
The middle phase of the game saw two many mistakes from the ‘Beast’, giving the 2016 World Champion a few too many chances to showcase his excellent shot-making, but it was ElShorbagy who had the first opportunity to seize the lead at 10-9.
A irretrievably tight drive from Gawad took it to a dramatic sudden death, and the ‘Baby-Faced Assassin’ took advantage of a loose shot to take the lead in the match after a very close-fought first game.
The 2017 World Champion maintained his attacking edge in the second game, as both former World No.1’s battled to a 9-9 scoreline, and after a ridiculously impressive fan shot from ElShorbagy, he once again found himself with a chance to take a game, restoring parity in the match to take it to the decider.
The competitive spirit of the match came to a halt after a deep sliding lunge from ElShorbagy had the Englishman at limited capacity in the game, as Gawad seized the opportunity and quickly accumulated points to win 11-3, and take his place in Thursday’s semi-finals.
Speaking after the match, Gawad said: “At this stage, me and Mohamed don’t push 100% physically, but it’s always spirits, good techniques. We both played some good squash in the last few matches, so it’s always enjoyable to play him. Today was tough for both of us. It was 50/50 who would qualify. It’s always nice to play him and be on court with him.
“I think we both pushed too hard before that 10-10, and I would’ve been so depressed if I lost that game, and it’s so hard to come back in the best-of-three against Mohamed. It meant a lot to me, I tried not to think too much about it, I tried to play it as any of the other points.
“It’s always good to have a recovery day in this stage in my career and also at the end of the season. I’m looking forward to a good recovery day, going to look after my body, and be ready for my semi-final?”
Result : [7] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) bt. [6] Mohamed ElShorbagy (ENG) 2-1: 11-10, 9-11, 11-3 (49m)
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