PHOTO ALBUM – GALLERY
Semis
[4] Rachel Arnold (MAS) 3-2 [1] Rowan Elaraby 3-11, 11-6, 12-10, 6-11, 11-7 (51m)
[3] Amanda Sobhy (USA) 3-0 [7] Kenzy Ayman 11-8, 11-4, 11-6 (22m)[2] Eain Yow Ng (MAS) 3-0 Kareem El Torkey 11-5, 11-4, 11-6 (35m)
Quarters
[1] Rowan Elaraby 3-0 [5] Salma Eltayeb 11-6, 11-5, 11-8 (20m)
[4] Rachel Arnold (MAS) 3-0 [8] Nadine Shahin 11-6, 11-7, 11-7 (21m)
[7] Kenzy Ayman 3-0 [2] Nele Gilis-Coll (BEL) 11-7, 15-13, 11-7 (38m)[1] Marwan Elshorbagy (ENG) 3-0 Omar Mosaad 11-5, 11-6, 11-3 (26m)
[2] Eain Yow Ng (MAS) 3-1 [7] Karim El Hammamy 5-11, 11-8, 11-3, 11-3 (50m)
Kareem El Torkey 3-2 [6] Velavan Senthilkumar (IND) 7-11, 11-7, 9-11, 11-4, 13-11 (69m)
Ayman and El Torkey Claim Maiden Bronze Semi-Final
Egyptian duo Kenzy Ayman and Kareem El Torkey both reached their first-ever Bronze-level semi-finals after shock upsets over No.2 seed Nele Gilis-Coll and No.6 seed Velavan Senthilkumar at the Bronze-level 2025 Squash On Fire.
In the biggest upset from the women’s draw, Ayman began the match in fantastic form, finding her shots well in the front corner as Gilis-Coll’s retrievals were not quite quick enough with the Egyptian earning a 1-0 lead.
The second game saw a far closer contest. The Belgian began lengthening the rallies, and pacifying Ayman’s accurate shot-making to push the pair into a tie-break. The No.7 seed had four game balls saved by her opponent in what felt like a pivotal moment in the match, but she showed her mettle to convert the game on her fifth time of asking to take a 2-0 lead.
From there, the Egyptian managed to remain comfortably ahead in the third game as she cruised to one of her biggest wins to-date.
“I can’t believe it. I’m so proud of myself, I’m over the moon right now,” Ayman said after the match.
“The match was really tense… …The second game was the key of the match. When it went to 13-13, I was really tired. I think if I had lost that game, I would’ve lost all of the other games.“When I won the second game, Nadine [Shahin] in my corner told me – ‘You’re going to win this in the third match’, so for me it was that moment.”
Another incredible clash closed out the day’s proceedings as El Torkey overcame India’s Senthilkumar to reach his maiden Bronze-level semi-final.
The match was close-fought from the beginning, with El Torkey using an impressively wide range of shots to force his left-handed opponent around the court. The two players were level at 1-1 after the first two games, but it was the Indian who claimed the lead at 2-1 to go one game away from the semi-finals.
El Torkey rallied well, and put in a blistering performance to restore parity in the match at 2-2 and force the match into a decisive fifth.
The players were perfectly-matched, as all four corners saw deep, explosive movements from the Indian and the Egyptian, but it was El Torkey who had the first match ball at 10-9. Senthilkumar dug deep, levelling the scoreline at 10-10 and 11-11, but ultimately the unseeded El Torkey won out to earn his place in the semi-final.
Round Two
[1] Rowan Elaraby 3-0 Nardine Garas 11-3, 11-2, 11-6 (19m)
[5] Salma Eltayeb 3-0 Nicole Bunyan (CAN) 11-5, 11-8, 11-4 (22m)
[8] Nadine Shahin 3-1 Hannah Craig (IRL) 8-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5 (37m)
[7] Kenzy Ayman 3-0 Saskia Beinhard (GER) 11-6, 11-2, 11-6 (28m)Omar Mosaad 3-2 [5] Nathan Lake (ENG) 2-11, 11-6, 11-13, 11-7, 15-13 (72m)
Round One
Nardine Garas 3-0 Nour Megahed 11-6, 11-7, 11-5 (21m)
Alina Bushma (UKR) 3-1 Nour Heikal 8-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-4 (32m)Ryunosuke Tsukue (JPN) 3-0 Yassin Elshafei 11-9, 11-3, 11-5 (27m)
Kareem El Torkey3-1 Muhammad Asim Khan (PAK) 11-6, 8-11, 11-6, 11-6 (43m)
Mohamed Sharaf3-2 Ibrahim Elkabbani 7-11, 11-3, 8-11, 11-8, 11-5 (58m)
Yahya Elnawasany (EGY) 3-0 Spencer Lovejoy (USA) : 11-5, 11-9, 11-5 (35m)
Mohamed Sharaf claimed his first Bronze-level win in dramatic fashion in his first World-Event match, defeating World No.65 Ibrahim Elkabbani.
The all-Egyptian contest saw constant changes in momentum. Elkabbani was the first to take advantage of the fast pace of the match, claiming a 1-0 lead before Sharaf quickly restored parity in the match with an 11-3 second-game win.
The World No.65 retook his lead, but the World-Event debutant was not to be dissuaded, and in a fourth and fifth game that saw plenty of traffic and referee intervention, the 23-year-old came back to claim his space in the second round.
Speaking after the match, Sharaf said: “I’m so happy to get the win today. It’s my first ever World event and to get my first win here against a very tough opponent [means a lot]. We’ve been very close friends since we were young and it was very tough mentally to play him but I’m happy that I got the win in five.”
