Day Three – Round Two

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[3] Tarek Momen 3-1 Youssef Soliman                11-7, 4-11, 11-7, 11-5 (51m)
George Parker (Eng) 3-1  [15] Omar Mosaad       13-11, 3-11, 11-4, 11-6 (48m)
[6] Karim Abdel Gawad 3-0 Borja Golan (Esp)              11-9, 11-9, 11-9 (47m)
[5] Marwan ElShorbagy 3-2 Mohamed ElSherbini  9-11, 11-6, 11-4, 9-11, 11-4 (70m)
[7] Fares Dessouky 3-0 Ryosei Kobayashi (Jpn)           11-6, 11-8, 11-7 (36m)
[11] Mohamed Abouelghar 3-0 Arturo Salazar (Mex)  11-7, 11-5, 11-4 (24m)
Youssef Ibrahim 3-0 Shahjahan Khan (Usa)              11-8, 11-5, 13-11 (53m)
[1] Ali Farag 3-0 Eain Yow Ng (Mas)                           11-6, 11-9, 11-5 (34m)

[2] Nouran Gohar
3-0 [32] Lisa Aitken (Sco)                    11-3, 11-4, 11-5 (29m)
[8] Salma Hany 3-1 [26] Zeina Mickawy                 11-8, 11-6, 11-13, 11-5 (43m)
[4] Hania El Hammamy 3-0 Ho Tze Lok (Hkg)                  11-5, 11-2, 11-6 (27m)
[15] Nadine Shahin 3-1 Rachel Arnold (Mas)        12-14, 13-11, 11-4, 11-7 (38m)
[1] Nour El Sherbini 3-0 Emilia Soini (Fin)                        11-3, 11-5, 11-8 (22m)
[11] Rowan Elaraby 3-1 [18] Sabrina Sobhy (Usa)  10-12, 11-8, 11-8, 11-7 (46m)
Baptiste Masotti (Fra) 3-2  [14] Mazen Hesham v
[5] Amanda Sobhy (Usa) 3-0 [22] Nada Abbas                 11-9, 11-5, 11-5 (28m)
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy 3-0  Patrick Rooney (Eng)        11-7, 11-6, 11-7 (33m)

Mohamed ElShorbagy
“I hope everyone enjoyed that, I think we both played a high quality match and it’s the first time we’ve played against each other.

“I rate him a lot, he reminds me of James Willstrop. I’ve played him so many times in my career and there is a lot of similarity. James played a fantastic game and Pat has been having some great results in the past few months and I’m really happy for him.

“He surprised me, not many players can go in the first game and play at such a fast pace. He forced me to adapt and when he started playing fast, I wanted to show him I could go faster. I started playing as fast as him to see how long he could go for.

“I remember when I was 17-year-old I tried to do something similar to Ramy in the first game, and then Ramy showed me who the boss was. I tried to do the same today, but I’m not sure how many years longer I can do that to him.

“I love being here and when the crowd gets into it, it makes both players play really well. I can’t wait to be back again.”

Mohamed Abouelghar

“I think he struggled with his body a little bit. He had a touch match yesterday and at the beginning he was playing to the front a lot and I couldn’t read his game. As soon as I adapted I got in my groove and it all went well from that point.

“Me and Fares have been playing together since we were young, and we both know what to expect. When you play the World Champs and you get to the later stages and start playing on the glass court, it has a different feeling.

“I’m happy I have a rest day tomorrow and I’ll try and get onto the glass court and have a rest.”

Ali Farag

“It was not as easy as 3-0 looks, for sure. He doesn’t give you any cheap points, you have to earn every single one. Maybe a little at the end he felt it physically but in the first two games I had to earn every single point.

“The main goal for today was to find my targets in the back corners as I couldn’t really play a proper game in the first round as my opponent was injured. Today I am very happy with the way I found them, and I am hoping I can take that on to the next one.

“I was a little silly at 3-1 in the second. I played a long rally and I put some good work into him. I went to 2-3 and I made some silly mistakes, he was 7-3 up. I put another hard rally into him and I was able to run away with it. The dynamics are totally different from being 2-0 up to 1-1.

“We players, we thank the organisers. They leave no stone unturned. Each one of us has their own demands, and I just want to thank them for all the hard work they have done. I am really grateful and I can’t wait to be back.”

Nour El Sherbini

“I am definitely very happy. She reminded me that we played against each other ten years in the World Junior Championships. We haven’t played each other since, a long time! She moved me a lot on court, she has amazing touch form the back of the court so I had to move a lot to get every shot back. She kept pushing every point but i am happy through to the third.

“The support is the main thing for every one of us so having my dad here, coming all the way from Egypt to support me, is amazing. We are in a bubble so we don’t have a lot of time together so I appreciate that he is here spending the week with me. The whole family will be watching in Egypt, it’s very late! I really appreciate everyone at the venue and back home.”

Marwan ElShorbagy

“Results-wise, I’m happy to get the win today as we come from the same generation and it was a tough battle. I had to focus all the way through and I’m happy to get the win in the end, but the quality of the refereeing wasn’t up to the standard that I expected from the World Championship.

“I’m happy to use my experience to win the match and I’m looking forward to another battle with Greg Marche. I’ve played him only once on the PSA and that was at the World Championship here in Chicago two years ago. It was a tough player and since the beginning of the season he’s played really.

“He did well at the World Tour Finals, and I think this is the best squash of his career. I’m expecting a tough battle tomorrow, but I’m really looking forward to it.”

Salma Hany

“I’m very pleased with how I played today, Zeina is a very dangerous player, she attacks a lot and I’m glad I managed to contain her well.

“I had a lead in the third, I was 9-6 up, and then I let it go a little bit. All credit to her, she fought back, but I’m glad I had a good start in the fourth to close it out in four. I’m looking forward to going to the amazing venue.

“It’s the World Champs, it’s a big event for all of us, and I’m looking forward to playing on the big stage and performing there.

“Everyone is here to win, nobody wants to go home soon in this event. I put in some work before this event, and I’m taking it match-by-match, enjoying my time out there and looking forward to getting another chance to perform again in this tournament.”

Nouran Gohar

“I was actually feeling good today. There are some days where you wake up and you are really excited to be on court. I was really happy, and I enjoyed myself out there today,” Gohar said.

“That is why you appreciate these days, you put the work in and you wait for the good days. You try to push through the bad days because that’s what makes you stronger! It happens a lot and you have to just keep working hard.

“It wasn’t easy at all. Even the first two games, it wasn’t very quick. It is very tricky the you are playing well to keep that form going. Lisa is a great fighter and I knew how tough she is. I was really focussed on every point and in the last game, she found a way to win some points. I had to get back to my original plan and to execute, but all credit to her!”

Tarek Momen

“I am very happy with this match.

“Youssef is my training partner and it is not easy playing against someone you spend so much time with and who knows your game.

“The thing with Youssef is that if I don’t stick to my gameplan, he will punish me. With every time he started to run with a streak of points, I knew that something wasn’t right and it is always the length, like when I start going short too soon. That is when he is so dangerous so I was reminding myself to stick to my gameplan, regroup and only attack when I was in a good position.

“I am quite happy to finally find my short game. It has been a few months since I have played a tournament and felt like I was comfortable playing the short game. I would still go for it but it has not been as accurate as it was here. This is a good thing.

“The court is a bit dead so I was trying to adjust my length. Back home, with the warm temperatures, I would find the back corners but now I am trying to get that depth with every game. I felt like we have played some great rallies, and I am glad to win, but this match will help me get better with every round!

World Champs Day Three schedule

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