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Ramy Ashour sets up dream semi-final!

Egyptian 2-times World Champion Ramy Ashour (ri) was almost struggling to win the 1st game against Indian contender Saurav Ghosal (le). But from that point onwards, Ashour seemed to be at operating temperature and took the 11-9, 11-5, 11-9 victory in 48 minutes of high entertaining squash to set up Saturday’s AJ Bell World Championship semi-final with Nick Matthew.

Semi-finals:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) v [4] Nick Matthew (ENG)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v [6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY)

Quarter-finals:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Saurav Ghosal (IND) 11-9, 11-5, 11-9 (48m)
[4] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [8] Amr Shabana (EGY) 11-8, 11-4, 11-7 (43m)
[6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY) bt [3] James Willstrop (ENG) 12-10, 11-6, 2-11, 11-9 (78m)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [13] Daryl Selby (ENG) 11-7, 11-4, 12-10 (60m)


Nick Matthew takes first semi-final spot!

In a match where 6 World Championship titles have been on the new ASB glass court in Manchester, English 2-times winner Nick Matthew (le) was most of the time in control of Egyptian maestro and 4-times champion Amr Shabana (ri).

Finally Matthew won in straight games (11-8, 11-4, 11-7) to book his 5th World Championship semi-final.

Semi-finals:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) v [4] Nick Matthew (ENG)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v [6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY)

Quarter-finals:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Saurav Ghosal (IND) 11-9, 11-5, 11-9 (48m)
[4] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [8] Amr Shabana (EGY) 11-8, 11-4, 11-7 (43m)
[6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY) bt [3] James Willstrop (ENG) 12-10, 11-6, 2-11, 11-9 (78m)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [13] Daryl Selby (ENG) 11-7, 11-4, 12-10 (60m)


Selby makes World Championship quarters!

A dazzling performance by 13th seed Daryl Selby in the 3rd round of the AJ Bell PSA World Championship will see an unexpected Englishmen contesting the quarter-finals in Manchester.

Selby, the World No14 forced World No5 Karim Darwish into the decider, where it was nip and tuck as Selby took the 4-11, 11-9, 12-10, 8-11, 11-8 victory in 85 minutes.

Will now meet Selby in-form Frenchman Greg Gaultier, the No2 seed, beating Egypt’s Tarek Momen 11-5, 11-6, 11-6.

Quarter-finals:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) v Saurav Ghosal (IND)
[4] Nick Matthew (ENG) v [8] Amr Shabana (EGY)
[3] James Willstrop (ENG) v [6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v [13] Daryl Selby (ENG)

3rd round results:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt [14] Cameron Pilley (AUS) 9-11, 11-8, 11-4, 12-10 (62m)
Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt Henrik Mustonen (FIN) 5-11, 8-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-2 (66m)
[8] Amr Shabana (EGY) bt [16] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) 11-6, 11-5, 11-9 (37m)
[4] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [11] Omar Mosaad (EGY) 11-4, 11-7, 11-13, 11-4 (71m)
[3] James Willstrop (ENG) bt [9] Borja Golan (ESP) 11-4, 11-8, 11-6 (48m)
[6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY) bt [12] Simon Rosner (GER) 11-1, 11-9, 11-7 (41m)
[13] Daryl Selby (ENG) bt [5] Karim Darwish (EGY) 4-11, 11-9, 12-10, 8-11, 11-8 (85m)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [10] Tarek Momen (EGY) 11-5, 11-6, 11-6 (45m)


World Championship with 2nd round upsets!

Indian Saurav Ghosal scoring a significant upset in the 2nd round of the AJ Bell PSA World Championship in Manchester, as he beat Alister Walker, the World No15 from Botswana 11-7, 11-5, 7-11, 11-7 in 55 minutes.

Ghosal, the World No17, will line up against fellow non-seed Henrik Mustonen, the 22-year-old Finn who celebrated his 1st ever appearance in the 2nd round with a shock victory over England’s No7 seed and former semi-finalist Peter Barker as the Londoner slipped midway through the 3rd game after leading 2/0 – and, after losing the game, conceded the match as the result of a calf injury.

The 4-11, 2-11, 11-6 (ret.) win leads world No40 Mustonen to become the only Finnish representative in the last 16.

The top four seeds each progressed to the third round after straight games wins.

3rd round line-up:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) v [14] Cameron Pilley (AUS)
Saurav Ghosal (IND) v Henrik Mustonen (FIN)
[8] Amr Shabana (EGY) v [16] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
[4] Nick Matthew (ENG) v [11] Omar Mosaad (EGY)
[3] James Willstrop (ENG) v [9] Borja Golan (ESP)
[6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY) v [12] Simon Rosner (GER)
[5] Karim Darwish (EGY) v [13] Daryl Selby (ENG)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) v [10] Tarek Momen (EGY)


All seeds got through!

All seeds got through the 1st round in the end, but some had to fight hard to do so. World No1 Ramy Ashour (ri) faced more problems as he liked to beat Dutch Laurens Jan Anjema 10-12, 13-11, 11-3, 11-4 (65m).

1st round:
[1] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) 10-12, 13-11, 11-3, 11-4 (65m)
[Q] Fares Mohamed Dessouki (EGY) bt Alan Clyne (SCO) 9-11, 4-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-9 (82m)
Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (MAS) bt Mazen Hesham Ga Sabry (EGY) 11-8, 12-10, 4-11, 8-11, 13-11 (79m)
[14] Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt Campbell Grayson (NZL) 12-10, 11-8, 11-9 (48m)
[15] Alister Walker (BOT) bt [Q] Shaun le Roux (RSA) 11-8, 11-5, 13-11 (49m)
Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt Joe Lee (ENG) 11-5, 12-10, 11-3 (48m)
Henrik Mustonen (FIN) bt [Q] Jaymie Haycocks (ENG) 7-11, 11-8, 7-11, 12-10, 11-8 (84m)
[7] Peter Barker (ENG) bt Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) 11-4, 8-11, 11-4, 11-5 (72m)
[8] Amr Shabana (EGY) bt Adrian Grant (ENG) 11-6, 11-7, 11-7 (38m)
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) bt Omar Abdel Meguid (EGY) 11-3, 10-12, 11-4, 7-11, 11-4 (78m)
Leo Au (HKG) bt [Q] Shahier Razik (CAN) 11-8, 11-5, 7-11, 11-9 (90m)
[16] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) bt Gregoire Marche (FRA) 11-6, 11-7, 4-11, 11-9 (75m)
[11] Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt Christopher Gordon (USA) 11-6, 11-5, 11-8 (34m)
Ong Beng Hee (MAS) bt Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) 11-9, 11-9, 2-11, 10-12, 11-8 (70m)
Max Lee (HKG) bt Jonathan Kemp (ENG) 11-7, 13-11, 12-10 (39m)
[4] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [Q] Zahed Mohamed (EGY) 11-5, 11-4, 11-5 (39m)
[3] James Willstrop (ENG) bt [Q] Joel Hinds (ENG) 11-4, 11-4, 13-11 (35m)
Tom Richards (ENG) bt [WC] Ben Coleman (ENG) 11-8, 11-7, 11-9 (53m)
Cesar Salazar (MEX) bt [Q] Steven Finitsis (AUS) 11-8, 4-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9 (75m)
[9] Borja Golan (ESP) bt Chris Simpson (ENG) 11-9, 6-11, 9-11, 11-8, 11-5 (110m)
[12] Simon Rosner (GER) bt [Q] Raphael Kandra (GER) 11-5, 11-5, 11-9 (57m)
Abdullah Al Muzayen (KUW) bt [Q] Andrew Wagih Shoukry (EGY) 11-9, 11-8, 12-10 (44m)
Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) bt Julian Illingworth (USA) 11-8, 11-7, 11-7 (45m)
[6] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY) bt Adrian Waller (ENG) 11-6, 6-11, 6-11, 11-9, 11-7 (74m)
[5] Karim Darwish (EGY) bt [Q] Nasir Iqbal (PAK) 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 (28m)
Olli Tuominen (FIN) bt [Q] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) 11-5, 4-11, 8-11, 11-8, 14-12 (74m)
Stephen Coppinger (RSA) bt [Q] Ammar Altamimi (KUW) 11-5, 11-5, 11-4 (30m)
[13] Daryl Selby (ENG) bt [Q] Charles Sharpes (ENG) 11-7, 11-5, 11-4 (35m)
[10] Tarek Momen (EGY) bt [Q] Eddie Charlton (ENG) 11-9, 11-6, 11-7 (39m)
Nicolas Mueller (SUI) bt Marwan Elshorbagy (EGY) 7-11, 12-10, 11-5, 12-10 (52m)
[Q] Matthew Karwalski (AUS) bt Mohd Ali Anwar Reda (EGY) 11-2, 11-5, 11-5 (32m)
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [Q] Kristian Frost Olesen (DEN) 11-8, 11-7, 11-6 (47m)


In-form Gaultier heads for Manchester!

Fresh from his triumph in the U.S. Open in Philadelphia, France’s Greg Gaultier is seeded to reach the final of the AJ Bell World Championship next week in Manchester.

But the World No2 has been in 3 World finals already – 2006 in Cairo, 2007 in Bermuda and 2011 in Rotterdam – and this time he’s looking to go one better.

Gaultier will take to the court in Manchester on a streak of 22 wins in his last 23 matches, the only blemish being his defeat in the Netsuite Open final at the hands of World No1 and defending World Champion Ramy Ashour.


Miguel makes it 3rd time unlucky for Selby!

Colombian squash star Miguel Angel Rodriguez upset top seed Daryl Selby (4-11, 11-2, 11-2, 11-6 ) in the final of the Bluenose Classic to consign the Englishman to runner-up of the event in Halifax for the 3rd time since 2010.

Rodriguez pronounced the final as “one of the best matches I’ve ever played”. “I didn’t play badly today and played well in the first game. I take my hat off to him, and he definitely deserved to win,” said Selby later.

Final:
[3] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) bt [1] Daryl Selby (ENG) 4-11, 11-2, 11-2, 11-6 (58m)

Semi-finals:
[1] Daryl Selby (ENG) bt [4] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) 11-13, 5-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-2 (109m)
[3] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) bt [2] Alister Walker (BOT) 11-3, 8-11, 11-5, 11-5 (51m)

Quarter-finals:
[1] Daryl Selby (ENG) bt Eddie Charlton (ENG) 11-8, 11-2, 11-8 (46m)
[4] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) bt Campbell Grayson (NZL) 11-7, 11-8, 13-11 (62m)
[3] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) bt [Q] Eric Galvez (MEX) 11-3, 8-11, 13-11, 11-5 (51m)
[2] Alister Walker (BOT) bt Martin Knight (NZL) 6-11, 11-7, 10-12, 11-3, 11-7 (78m)

1st round:
[1] Daryl Selby (ENG) bt Cesar Salazar (MEX) 11-2, 12-10, 11-6 (46m)
Eddie Charlton (ENG) bt Steven Finitsis (AUS) 11-8, 7-11, 2-11, 11-7, 14-12 (112m)
Campbell Grayson (NZL) bt Shaun le Roux (RSA) 11-7, 11-2, 11-6 (37m)
[4] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) bt Rex Hedrick (AUS) 11-9, 11-2, 11-2 (34m)
[3] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) bt [Q] Arturo Salazar (MEX) 11-8, 11-7, 11-3 (29m)
[Q] Eric Galvez (MEX) bt Muhd Asyraf Azan (MAS) 11-7, 11-7, 11-13, 11-8 (127m)
Martin Knight (NZL) bt [Q] Jan Koukal (CZE) 11-9, 11-4, 7-11, 12-10 (64m)
[2] Alister Walker (BOT) bt [Q] Lucas Serme (FRA) 16-14, 8-11, 11-4, 11-6 (61m)


Nick Matthew’s nickname!

The tournament comperes love to refer to us players by our nicknames. Many of these monikers were originally coined by the main Squash TV commentator Joey Barrington in an effort to reintroduce to squash some of the gladiatorial features the sport enjoyed during his father Jonah’s heyday in the 1960s and 1970s.

Like darts or snooker, some of them are a bit cheesy: Ramy Ashour is the Artist, James Willstrop is the Marksman, Amr Shabana the Maestro, Gregory Gaultier is Asterix, Karim Darwish the Dark Prince, Alister Walker the Predator, I’m the Wolf. But there’s no doubt they add an extra element to the sport. It’s a great way for the audience to connect with a player’s style and, more importantly, personality.

I actually quite like my nickname. I’ve been called a lot worse than the Wolf in my time, believe me. My favourite nicknames of all are Omar Mosaad’s, whom Joey has christened the ‘Hammer of Thor’ thanks to his hard-hitting style, and Simon Rosner’s, who is the ‘German Tree-Chopper’. He really does swing from so high on his forehand, and so steeply, that you can imagine him with a lumberjack outfit on …

If you are getting curious about Nick’s stories, get your own copy now.