US Open Finals

Finals

[1] Ali Farag 3-0 [2] Mohamed ElShorbagy                 11-4, 11-7, 11-2 (40m)
[3] Nouran Gohar 3-2 [4] Nour El Tayeb    3-11, 8-11, 14-12, 11-8, 11-7 (67m)

Nouran Gohar and Ali Farag captured the U.S. Open Squash Championships titles at Philadelphia’s Drexel University after overcoming Nour El Tayeb and Mohamed ElShorbagy to win the first PSA Platinum event of the 2019/20 season.

World No.5 Gohar has made it back-to-back Platinum titles after also taking the honours at the British Open in May, but the 22-year-old had to battle back from two games down and championship ball down to claim the 10th title of her career.

It looked like Nour was about to reiterate her 2017 victory after a blistering start which saw the World No.3 power to a two-game lead, while she had the championship within her grasp at 11-10 in the third.

But Gohar dug in to send the match into a fourth, and the tide turned immediately as she put together a series of well-constructed rallies to take the fourth as well. El Tayeb stayed with Gohar until 7-7 in the decider, but Gohar pulled away to claim a 3-11, 8-11, 14-12, 11-8, 11-7 victory which sees her win her third major PSA title, while she will go to World No.2 in the November Rankings.

🗣 Hear from 2019 @USOpenSquash champion @AliFarag as he talks to @GLSquash about his victory over @MoElshorbagy #USOpenSquash pic.twitter.com/Z3ybOrHYi0

— PSA World Tour (@PSAWorldTour) October 13, 2019

While Nour narrowly missed out on taking the women’s crown, Ali made no mistake in adding to his 17 PSA Tour titles as a masterclass of a performance saw him end ElShorbagy’s unbeaten start to the season in a free-flowing match that saw only four decisions made by the referee throughout the entirety of the 40-minute contest.

Mohamed has already won the China Open and San Francisco Open over the past month, beating Farag in the final of the former, while he was on a 12-match unbeaten run coming into today’s title decider.

But the three-time U.S. Open champion was powerless to prevent his fresh as a rose opponent from taking a 3-0 win today. Farag was sublime as he controlled the rallies right from the off, and after claiming a comfortable 11-4 victory in the opening game, he went in for the kill in games two and three, with an off-the-pace ElShorbagy failing to lunge properly in the final game.

Ali becomes the third Egyptian to win the U.S. Open twice after ElShorbagy and the legendary Amr Shabana, while it is his first PSA Tour title of the season.

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Nouran
I can’t believe it. It was so tough out there, I felt my legs burning and like I was doing court sprints with Nour out there in the first two games. I just tried to hang in there and I didn’t want the crowd to be upset about a bad final match. I was thinking ‘that’s the worst final ever’, but it turns out and I hope it was a good one.

I was trying to impose my game, but Nour was playing better in the beginning. She studied my game plan really well and she caught me off guard in the China Open as well and she was keeping the same style. I was really nervous and I thought ‘just fight, you didn’t work that hard to just let it go’, so for each point I was just telling myself to fight. I tried to adapt, I knew that my plan wasn’t working and I thought when the opportunity came to just take a risk and see how it goes.

I don’t remember coming back from match ball down. When I won the British Open, I was controlling the match sort of, so I thought it was probably coming, although you can never be sure, but tonight, I felt that I was only doing court sprints in the first two games! I just kept digging in and digging in, and trying to attack whenever I had the opportunity, and at the end of the 5th, I played well I think, but I still don’t know how I won that one…

Ali

It feels amazing.

To be winning not only a major, but the U.S. Open which is one of the most prestigious tournaments we have on the calendar, it feels amazing. It’s a good day for the family, I can’t be too disappointed but there is no-one I hate more in this building than Nouran Gohar right now! I’m kidding, both Nouran and Nour played an amazing match and how squash should be played.

Obviously I’m very proud with how I played as well, Mohamed has had an unbelievable start to the season, to be unbeaten in 12 matches in a row – I was one of the victims – to get the win today feels amazing.

Every court is different, it was quite bouncy, Mohamed played with a smart strategy today. I’ve said before that I’m at my most comfortable when Mike Way is around. We had a little chat in the morning, we set a game plan and I’m glad I stuck with it.

If you had told me 3 years ago when I hadn’t won a major than in two years time, you’re going to have two titles, I wouldn’t have believed you. I really need to thank the people that are behind me, I always say they are six people that played a major role in my life, and not only in my squash career: my parents, my brother Wael, Karim Darwish in Wadi Degla, Nour. But this one is a special dedication to Mike, as he’s been with me all week, and it definitely feels amazing. My fitness coach, Hossam Shaddad, and Derek Ryan, for their continuous support. I had a few niggles in the summer, and without them, I wouldn’t even be in this one.

Thanks to the crowd this week, and I see an Egyptian flag, which makes us feel very proud. Thanks to the sponsors to make this event happen, and US Squash of course, along with the PSA crew. And I’m already looking to seeing you next year…

 

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Semis

[1] Ali Farag 3-0 [7] Diego Elias (Per)                11-9, 11-6, 11-8 (53m)
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy 3-0 [3] Tarek Momen  11-8, 11-9, 11-3 (44m)

[4] Nour El Tayeb 3-0 [1] Raneem El Welily        11-8, 11-9, 11-5 (35m)
[3] Nouran Gohar 3-0 [2] Camille Serme (Fra)    11-4, 11-6, 11-4 (24m)

Nour
I watched our last match from San Francisco this morning. I was shocked, I didn’t think I was doing a lot of things bad, but she was just unbeatable and took every chance. Today, I was laughing, when I was 6-4 up in the first game I thought ‘yes, I’ve taken more points than I did last time.

Last time the most I scored was five, so after I took the first game I thought ‘wow, I’m in this and it’s not like last time’. I think that was my mindset going into today, I didn’t want to lose 3-0 to her and I took every point as it came because she can beat anyone 3-0 on her day and I don’t think I’ve ever beaten her in three, not in practice, not in my dreams, not anywhere.

I was talking to Ali before the match and I was in a good mindset and felt less pressure. If she beat me 3-0 again then it would be like nothing had changed, everyone is expecting her to do so because she is the best in the world at the moment.

It’s a pity it’s the semi-final because I want to play Raneem in a match like that in the final because this is it and you want to beat Raneem and go home but I need to forget about this match now and focus on tomorrow.

Nouran

Before playing here, I was thinking yesterday that all the semi-finalists are U.S. Open champions and I’m the only one that isn’t. Hopefully I can do it tomorrow!

I’m just really happy to be on court, I had a solo practice this morning and there are some days when you are feeling good and you are very excited to be one court and today was one of those days. It really helped against someone who is very precise, accurate and tactical like Camille. She beat me last time at home, which was really painful and it was great today.

You work really hard throughout the whole season for days like this when you are feeling great on court and I’m really happy about it. I’m just going to relax today and forget about it because tomorrow is a new day.

Nour is the player to beat. She has been chopping everyone now and she’s playing really well. I’m excited about tomorrow’s match, I think it will be a great one with a lot of contrast. She likes to slow it down and plays really good shots, I like to hit hard so it’s going to be interesting and challenging, but I’m looking forward to it.

Mohamed
Me and Tarek have had lots of tough battles this year. We have already played twice in the same week and we are probably going to play so many times this season. We had a tough match in San Fran and today was a bit different with different conditions. Winning that second game made a huge difference for me to be 2-0 up. You had to win the rally many times before you won the point. Patience was the key today and I think I was a little bit more patient than him.

I’m really happy to be off in three and playing Ali tomorrow, he has had a really good run here and with how many matches he has had, I had to make sure that I won in three if I was going to get through today.

It would mean so much to have a shot at winning the U.S. Open title for the fourth time, but I’m up against the best player in the world right now. I’m after him and I want his ranking, but right now he had an unbelievable season last season and I think it’s fitting that the first Platinum tournament of the season we have the World No.1 and No.2 in the final and hopefully it’s a good match in front of everyone.

Ali
I’m extremely happy. It felt like the first performance of the tournament, I had a couple of good wins against solid opponents at the start of the tournament but then the unfortunate situation of Miguel pulling out let me rest for three days, so it felt like I wasn’t in the zone anymore and that made me a little nervous.

I’m in my best comfort zone when Mike Way is around. We had a chat before the match and he settled me down. Diego got off to a great start and I think I weathered the storm well. I tried to dominate the ‘T’ area and it’s never easy against him because he hits the ball very cleanly and his positioning is very good.

If leaving the room today you would have told us that we would be leaving with two 3-0 wins tonight I wouldn’t have believed you. It’s a very good day for us.

He is one of those players that has so much skill in his racket, but then when he loosens up it’s even more. You could see he was firing nicks at the end, I don’t think I did much wrong, maybe I took my foot off the gas, but it’s all credit to him and I’m happy to close it down in three.

We will both have solid opponents in the final now. Whoever it will be, they are all playing really well but we’re going to give it our best and if we walkaway with another repeat of 2017 then we would be very happy.

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Quarters

[1] Ali Farag bt [8] Miguel Rodriguez (Col)                       w/o (calf injury)
[7] Diego Elias (Per) 3-2 [4] Karim Abdel Gawad  4-11, 12-10, 11-7, 5-11, 11-7 (80m)
[3] Tarek Momen 3-1 [5] Simon Rösner (Ger)             8-11, 11-8, 11-3, 11-3 (54m)
[2] Mohamed Elshorbagy 3-0 [6] Paul Coll (Nzl)          12-10, 14-12, 11-5 (60m)

[1] Raneem El Welily 3-0 [6] Sarah-Jane Perry (Eng)  11-6, 14-12, 11-8 (34m)
[4] Nour El Tayeb 3-0 Rowan Elaraby                      11-6, 11-2, 11-7 (26m)
[3] Nouran Gohar 3-0 [8] Tesni Evans (Wal)           11-8, 11-5, 11-5 (34m)

Nouran
They say third time lucky, but for me it’s four.

Tesni played at a medium pace really well, I think she is the best at playing this. She really varies the pace really well and she hits really nice shots. I usually play with the fast pace and I had to do it extra today, because when she puts the ball in the middle she’s so tough to play against and I really had to double the effort, pick up more effort and do my best to be able to beat her in three today.

I started playing the U.S. Open when I was 15 years old and it was my first World Series event and I remember I was playing with Joelle King when she was World No.4, before the injury, and I was so excited to be on court and practising and everything, so to be in the semi-finals now is unbelievable.

It’s really special, I’ve been in semi-finals in other major tournaments, but this one is very special for sure.

Tarek
Getting to my first semi-final here is special. I’ve always wanted to well here but I’ve never reached the semi-final. The closest I came was last year when I was match ball up in the fifth but lost it in the tie-break, so it’s good that I have gone one step further and hopefully I continue to go further into the tournament.

I’m happy with the win, I have played Simon many times as we are the same age. Our head-to-head is 5-5 and there is nothing in it really, so I’m happy to get the win today.

I think every pair of players in the top ten must have played each other in a final. I’ve had big finals against Paul, Mohamed and Simon, so you just have to think about it as a normal match against a top player and be sharp 100% and execute the game plan as well as possible.

Mohamed
Playing Paul is always going to be tough. You have to accept before you go on court with him that you are going to go through a physically war with him before you can try to beat him. I think the first and second game were crucial, he had his leads in the first game, I had my leads in the second – we both lost focus when each one of us was leading, but I think a little bit of experience got me through them.

It was difficult because I came in with a game plan before the match and then I came to the court and it was so hot today, the ball was really bouncy compared to other days and I had to adapt and change my game plan. It kind of suited him, but any of the top guys you have to adapt and I did that well today.

I had to have courage and go for more winners. I didn’t volley as much as I would have liked in the match and I didn’t go as short but I went for it in the tie-breaks and luckily it paid off.

Tarek is a world class player and he gave a world class performance against Rosner today. I think our match in San Fran was one of the best matches we have ever played against each other, so I think tomorrow will be a difficult match against each other. I think it will be a high-quality match and I look forward to playing him.

Raneem

“It’s big for me to be back in the semi-finals, SJ is a very strong player and to beat her in three is a bonus.

Nour

“I’m feeling great on the court and I’m very pleased with how I’m playing,” said 26-year-old El Tayeb afterwards.

“I can’t wait to get back on here for the semis and hopefully reach another final.

“I’m happy that I’m reaching the stage where I’m playing Raneem. It’s been a great season so far, she is the best in the world for a reason, but I can’t wait to get on there and play a good match.

“I need to watch the last couple of matches and see what I was doing right and not so right. I think I will have to study again, even though we have played a million times, and see where I can improve for the next match.”

 

"It's got to be a contender for shot of the month!"

Simply sublime from @RaneemElWelily ✨#USOpenSquash pic.twitter.com/SGfaum8O7z

— PSA World Tour (@PSAWorldTour) October 9, 2019

Raneem
I’m so far away from defending my title. Into the semis now after a very very close match. SJ is a very talented player and she’s got great tactics on court, so coming off today with a 3-0 win is very positive for me.

It used to be very hard for me mentally to play the same person again and again but since the years have passed, I think I have got used to it. We play one week after the other and it’s very common that we play the same back-to-back. It’s just another match, I don’t think of it as a repeat of something that has happened before it is just a new match and a new opportunity.

Rowan is playing really good squash this week, she’s done a great job this summer and has worked really hard. Nour is a really strong player and I hope it’s going to be a good and entertaining match.

Nour
I’m feeling great on the court and I’m very pleased with how I’m playing. I can’t wait to get back on here for the semis and hopefully reach another final.

I’m happy that I’m reaching the stage where I’m playing Raneem. It’s been a great season so far, she is the best in the world for a reason, but I can’t wait to get on there and play a good match.

I need to watch the last couple of matches and see what I was doing right and not so right. I think I will have to study again, even though we have played a million times, and see where I can improve for the next match.

Round Three

[1] Ali Farag3-0 Adrian Waller (Eng)  11-3, 11-9, 11-8 (34m)
[4] Karim Abdel Gawad  3-0 Grégoire Marche (Fra)  11-5, 16-14, 11-7 (59m)
[3] Tarek Momen 3-0 Raphael Kandra (Ger) 11-5, 11-6, 12-10 (36m)
[6] Paul Coll (Nzl) 3-1 Mazen Hesham 6-11, 11-2, 12-10, 11-8 (64m)
[5] Simon Rösner (Ger) 3-1 Zahed Salem 11-4, 11-7, 6-11, 11-7 (57m)
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy 3-0 Campbell Grayson (Nzl) 11-6, 11-7, 12-10 (42m)

[1] Raneem El Welily 3-0 [15] Yathreb Adel  11-3, 11-5, 11-4 (21m)
Rowan Elaraby 3-2 [5] Joelle King (Nzl)  11-7, 7-11, 2-11, 12-10, 11-8 (55m)
[4] Nour El Tayeb 3-0 [14] Hania El Hammamy  11-7, 11-7, 11-8 (36m)
[3] Nouran Gohar 3-0 [13] Salma Hany      11-2, 11-8, 11-3 (31m)

 

Rowan
I’m out of words, I’m really happy with how I played and how I managed to go through the match. I can’t believe it.

I feel as though what I was working on in the off season has been paying off now. My coach, Mohamed Effat, has worked with me so hard during the summer, so I’m really happy that I was able to play my best squash. He just said that I didn’t have anything to lose and just give it my all and that’s what I did.

Raneem
I’m very much aware that everyone is at the top of their games right now. Everyone is trying to win every match and so that is what’s keeping me going at the moment.

She’s definitely a good player and has won many titles over the years. I was just trying to be as sharp as possible and not let anything go easy or not to let go at any point and that was the plan.

SJ and I have had so many close matches, it’s always a good match. I have one more day to recover and I’m just happy to be through.

 

Nour
This court holds a lot of special memories for me. It was my first major title and doing it with Ali was extremely special and even though I had a bad result here last year, I still feel very happy and emotional coming here.

I’m very happy to be the winner, Hania is an extremely tough competitor. She grew up at the same club as me. She’s like a younger sister and I’m very happy to see her playing so well, but I’m happy to take this one in three and go through to the quarter finals.

Raneem is the one who paved the way for all of us and we are all catching up with her and Nour El Sherbini. I think we’ve got a good generation passing on experience and knowledge to the next generation and it’s a nice period to be a part of.

Mohamed
It’s our first time playing against each other and we have even only practised against each other once or twice. He came to Bristol before the British Open in May and he is one of the nicest guys I have ever met in my life. We had a really good match, it was fair and clean and maybe I lost a little bit of focus at the end of the third and he showed how good he is as a squash player as he came back at me and I’m glad I finished it through in the end.

Paul has been doing really well and he had a really good end of season, especially his couple of matches with Farag and he obviously kept improving. He hasn’t lost a match so far this season and I think we are the only two players to have done that so far and unfortunately one of us will have to lose and hopefully it isn’t me.

I’m really happy to be back here in the quarters, the U.S. Open is one of the most prestigious tournaments on the calendar. It’s a Platinum event and we all aim for these. To win it once is unbelievable, to win it three times is something I will be proud of for the rest of my life, but I don’t want it to stop here I want to put my name on the trophy for the fourth time.

 

Ali
I feel good. I played well against a really tough opponent. I don’t know what it is about the lefties but they all hit the ball so cleanly, especially with Adrian as well, he holds it before he hits it so he keeps you unsettled on the ‘T’ and I can’t take it as early as I would like.

The first I was able to impose that, but he changed that in the second and the third. I’m really happy and feeling sharp and looking forward to progressing through to the quarter finals.

Everyone is playing really well and everyone is really sharp and wants to do well this season. The season is still young but I hope I can achieve as much as last season and give it my all.

 

Karim
It was very tough. When you are playing a player like Greg, he’s very tough physically and the second game was really tough physically. I had to keep my focus the whole time and never lose my concentration, especially with a player like him.

Greg is one of the best French player on the tour and I saw him training really hard in the off season with the videos he put up on Instagram. He’s always a tough opponent for me and we always have tough matches that can go to five, so to win in three is huge for me today and it will give me a push into the next round.

 

Round Two

[1] Ali Farag 3-0 Daryl Selby (Eng)   11-4, 11-6, 11-6 (38m)
[4] Karim Abdel Gawad 3-0 Mostafa Asal  11-7, 11-9, 15-13 (49m)
[3] Tarek Momen 3-2 Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi (Qat) 7-11, 11-7, 11-9, 5-11, 11-6 (65m)
Raphael Kandra (Ger) 3-1  Fares Dessouky        9-11, 12-10, 11-5, 11-7 (59m)
Zahed Salem 3-1 Marwan ElShorbagy      9-11, 12-10, 13-11, 11-5 (51m)
Mazen Hesham 3-2 Omar Mosaad  9-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-3, 11-4 (61m)
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy 3-1 Borja Golan (Esp) 11-8, 5-11, 11-7, 11-9 (68m)

[1] Raneem El Welily 3-0 Nadine Shahin 11-5, 11-4, 11-5 (23m)
[15] Yathreb Adel 3-2 Julianne Courtice (Eng) 11-3, 11-9, 6-11, 4-11, 11-5 (47m)
Rowan Elaraby 3-0 [11] Victoria Lust (Eng)  11-6, 11-3, 11-5 (26m)
[14] Hania El Hammamy 3-2 Nada Abbas    12-10, 9-11, 10-12, 11-9, 11-4 (70m)
[4] Nour El Tayeb 3-0 Tinne Gilis (Bel)  11-6, 11-1, 11-1 (19m)
[3] Nouran Gohar 3-1 Nele Gilis (Bel)  11-1, 5-11, 11-2, 11-9 (45m)
[13] Salma Hany 3-0 Low Wee Wern (Mas) 11-5, 11-7, 11-2 (25m)

Raneem
I’m always happy to be back here in Philly, I absolutely love it here and the atmosphere is always amazing. It’s definitely not been a bad start to the season. I’m pretty pleased with the way I have performed, but the season is still very long and it is only two tournaments out of 10 or 12. It counts for nothing so I have to put it behind me and keep moving forward.

I think there are a lot of inspiring Egyptian squash players currently playing the sport and if I happen to be one of them then I am extremely happy with that. I think they just look at me that way because I’m the oldest currently, but it’s not just me it’s everyone. I’ve been inspired and I am being inspired every day. Every Egyptian girl has her own characteristics on court and we are all aspiring to be the best.

Karim
It wasn’t easy at all. I remember playing him three years ago at my club and bageled him twice. Three years later we are playing here at the U.S. Open, 18-years-old and World No.25. He’s coming up really quickly and is really strong and playing some awesome squash. He is now my partner in practice and we practice two or three times a week – maybe I should stop doing that. He’s a rising star and I’m sure he will be in the top ten pretty soon.

It’s very important, especially in the early rounds to really push. You have a long run, hopefully, so finishing the first rounds 3-0 is very important and you just need to give it some energy. It was a tricky first round for me today and I’m really glad to win in three.

Ali
I’m feeling good. For some reason for me I feel like it is the first tournament of the season. I feel like I haven’t played in so long, but I played in China and reached the final, but I just had this strange feeling today that I’m about to start something from the beginning.

I think I dealt with it well, I knew that I had to start sharp. I’m in my comfort zone when Nour is there with me and knows how to talk me down. Playing against Daryl is such a tough draw as well, it’s never easy. He’s experienced, knows how to mix up the pace well and never lets you settle. I’m happy that I managed to stay sharp until the end and to get the win in three.

Electrifying squash from @TkMomen & @tamimi__94!! ⚡️#USOpenSquash pic.twitter.com/35u9Q6Zn7I

— PSA World Tour (@PSAWorldTour) October 6, 2019

Tarek
I always give every player the upmost respect and never underestimate anyone. I went into today’s match knowing that Abdulla has a good arsenal of attacking shots and I knew that he has a good game, but I feel the way he played today was well above his ranking. He was just unbelievable and at some points I felt like he couldn’t make any mistakes.

I’m really happy with the way I managed to push through and I really toughed it out today. The third game I was down I think 8-3 and 9-5 and I came back and won it, but I made the mistake of thinking that he would give up the fourth but he didn’t and he surprised me again.

I couldn’t come back in the fourth and then the pressure was really on in the fifth. I entered the court trying to pump myself up because there was no room for any errors and I needed that good start at the beginning and overall I’m really happy with the win over a tough opponent.

Mohamed
When you play Borja it is always going to be tough. He is one of those players that if you are going to take them out you have to fight for every point. He is so experienced, he knew what time to change the ball, what time to slow the pace and when to play at a faster pace.

He confused me mentally throughout the whole match and very few players can do that and that just shows the experience he has. He played unbelievable squash and very accurate. The only thing was that he lost a bit of focus at the end and I used that and luckily got the win.

It would mean a lot to get my fourth title here, every season I work on my game a lot. I finish every season ask myself what went wrong and what I need to work on. I want to be back at No.1 again, I don’t want any other number but No.1 I’m going after that spot big time this season. Every session I did this summer was with that focus and I’m not going to relax until I get it.

Round One

Daryl Selby (Eng) 3-1 Karim Ali Fathi  9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-6 (56m)
Mathieu Castagnet (Fra) 3-0 Youssef Ibrahim 11-9, 11-9, 11-7 (48m)
Mostafa Asal 3-0 Ramit Tandon (Ind)  11-5, 11-3, 11-9 (42m)
Mazen Hesham 3-0 [WC] Spencer Lovejoy (Usa) 11-4, 11-3, 11-9 (27m)
Campbell Grayson (Nzl) 3-2 Youssef Soliman  11-5, 13-15, 11-7, 6-11, 12-10 (107m)
Adrian Waller(Eng) 3-1 Karim El Hammamy  8-11, 12-10, 11-2, 11-5 (54m)

Nadine Shahin 3-0 [WC] Laila Sedky (Usa)  11-2, 11-6, 11-6 (21m)
Rowan Elaraby 3-0 Ho Tze-Lok (Hkg) 11-5, 11-8, 11-8 (30m)
Nada Abbas 3-2 Zeina Mic-kawy 5-11, 11-7, 11-9, 5-11, 11-6 (61m)
Low Wee Wern (Mas) 3-2 Mariam Metwally    11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 7-11, 14-12 (59m)
[WC] Sabrina Sobhy (Usa) 3-1  Mayar Hany    13-11, 8-11, 11-9, 11-3 (48m)

 

Mazen/Lovejoy
I could see the fire in him. He kept improving as the match went on and he kept fighting. I’m really glad to be able to close it out in three.
I take it day by day now. I’m getting older and my body is getting older, but I’m getting wiser. I think it’s helpful having a great team with me now. I’ve got a few additions to my team now and physios in England and Germany that have really helped me. I don’t change much, but I change smarter and I think this is going to help with everything going on and taking it match by match. I want it to be able to enjoy this season.”

Nadine/Sedki
I’ve started this summer with a different coach, Omar Abdel Meguid, so he’s been pushing me mentally and physically. Lately I’ve been feeling more confident and ready.

I have no expectations against Raneem El Welily, she has been my role model and hopefully I can give her a run for her money tomorrow and hope for the match.

 

Mostafa Assal
It’s unbelievable, I’m trying to play my best squash and Ramit is a very good opponent, he is unbelievable.

I want to thank every coach that has helped me in this performance, Amir Wagih, Mahmoud Abdelkader, IslamAdel, and Dr Mohamed Dafrawy, I appreciate them a lot…

The first two games were tough and in the third I was 7-3 down and I managed to come back. Playing against Ramit is tough, he is playing some really good squash and I’m happy to be in the second round and facing my partner in training, Karim Abdel Gawad.

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