Category: "players"

Australia make World Semi-Finals in Nimes!

November 16, 2012 • Tags: , , , , • Categories: all posts, players, teams, tournaments

Australia Make World Semi-Finals In Nimes

Australia pulled off a sensational upset in the quarter-finals of the WSF Women’s World Team Championship in Nimes when former world No1 Rachael Grinham and world No17 Donna Urquhart led the team to a 2/1 win over fourth seeds Hong Kong which takes the sixth seeds into the semi-finals and guarantees future funding for elite squash in the country.

All other quarter-finals went according to the seedings:

[1] ENGLAND bt [7] IRELAND 3/0
Laura Massaro bt Madeline Perry 7-11, 11-2, 11-8, 11-9 (47m)
Alison Waters bt Aisling Blake 11-7, 11-3, 11-3 (30m)
Jenny Duncalf bt Breanne Flynn 11-3, 11-2 (11m)

[3] MALAYSIA bt [5] NEW ZEALAND 2/0
Nicol David bt Joelle King 11-5, 11-7, 11-4 (36m)
Low Wee Wern bt Jaclyn Hawkes 11-3, 11-5, 11-13, 11-9 (41m)
Delia Arnold v Amanda Landers-Murphy

[6] AUSTRALIA bt [4] HONG KONG CHINA 2/1
Rachael Grinham bt Annie Au 11-3, 11-8, 4-11, 11-8 (45m)
Donna Urquhart bt Joey Chan 11-5, 11-6, 11-8 (27m)
Sarah Cardwell lost to Liu Tsz-Ling 9-11, 11-6, 7-11 (22m)

[2] EGYPT bt [10] INDIA 3/0
Raneem El Weleily bt Dipika Pallikal 16-14, 11-4, 11-7 (31m)
Nour El Sherbini bt Joshana Chinappa 11-7, 11-6, 11-9 (26m)
Nour El Tayeb bt Anaka Alankamony 11-6, 11-3 (12m)

Gaultier grabs quick victory in Mexico!

November 5, 2012 • Tags: , , , , • Categories: all posts, players, tournaments

Frenchman Greg Gaultier (le) took the 22nd PSA World Tour squash title of his career at the inaugural Abierto Mexicano de Raquetas – but the Frenchman’s 21-minute victory over world No11 Omar Mosaad (ri) in Mexico was his quickest title triumph on record, by a significant margin!

The PSA International 70 championship is the biggest Tour event ever to be held in Mexico – and was staged in spectacular style on an all-glass court sited in the Plaza de los Martires in Toluca, overlooked by the city’s historic cathedral.

World No3 Gaultier reached the final – his third in a row on the Tour – in stunning form. After arriving in Mexico fresh from victory in the NetSuite Open in San Francisco, the 29-year-old from Aix-en-Provence conceded just two games en-route to the Toluca climax.

By contrast, Egyptian Mosaad was taken to five games in his two previous matches – 1st beating No2 seed Karim Darwish in a 64-minute quarter-final upset, then overcoming German No1 Simon Rosner in a 75-minute semi.

The experienced Gaultier clearly took full advantage – crushing the tall 24-year-old from Cairo 11-6, 11-8, 11-5 to extend his unbeaten run over Mosaad to four wins in 30 months.

Over the past 11 years, Gaultier has won PSA Tour titles all over the globe, from home soil in France through to the USA, Qatar, Pakistan, Macau and now Mexico. At least ten of his final victories have taken more than an hour – one recorded at 84 minutes – but his Toluca triumph is the first achieved in less than half an hour!

Final:
[1] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt Omar Mosaad (EGY) 11-6, 11-8, 11-5 (21m)

Semi-finals:
[1] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [4] Peter Barker (ENG) 11-1, 11-4, 11-1 (37m)
Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt Simon Rosner (GER) 9-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-9 (75m)

Quarter-finals:
[1] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) 7-11, 11-5, 13-11, 11-4 (76m)
[4] Peter Barker (ENG) bt Nicolas Mueller (SUI) 11-8, 7-11, 11-3, 11-6 (50m)
Simon Rosner (GER) bt Borja Golan (ESP) 11-7, 5-11, 12-10, 12-10 (64m)
Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt [2] Karim Darwish (EGY) 9-11, 11-9, 11-6, 2-11, 12-10 (64m)

1st round:
[1] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [Q] Saurav Ghosal (IND) 11-1, 11-8, 6-11, 11-9 (72m)
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) bt Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) 11-8, 11-9, 11-4 (34m)
Nicolas Mueller (SUI) bt [Q] Olli Tuominen (FIN) 18-16, 11-5, 7-11, 13-15, 11-3 (60m)
[4] Peter Barker (ENG) bt [Q] Marwan El Shorbagy (EGY) 11-5, 6-11, 11-6, 6-11, 11-4 (61m)
Borja Golan (ESP) bt [3] Amr Shabana (EGY) 11-9, 7-11, 11-9, 6-3 ret. (39m)
Simon Rosner (GER) bt [Q] Chris Simpson (ENG) 11-13, 11-6, 11-8, 8-11, 11-7 (70m)
Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt Alfredo Avila (MEX) 11-9, 11-7, 11-6 (49m)
[2] Karim Darwish (EGY) bt Alister Walker (BOT) 11-5, 12-10, 13-11 (35m)

Wee Wern takes China Open title!

November 4, 2012 • Tags: , , , • Categories: all posts, players, tournaments

Low Wee Wern retains her China Open title after beating Joelle King in a marathon final. After clinching an unexpected straight-games win over No.4 seed Kasey Brown of Australia in the semi-final, the Malaysian came from behind twice in the final to defeat King 11-9 in the deciding fifth game.

Wee Wern started the event with a strong win over experienced Rachael Grinham, before taking five games to overcome Omneya Abdel Kawy, the Egyptian who had dismissed top seed Jenny Duncalf in the first round.

King put up a strong fight in search of her 7th WSA title and has been enjoying some of the best form of her career to date after impressive campaigns in recent months. This form looked to continue as she first defeated Sarah Kippax, followed by No.3 seed Annie Au and No.5 seed Alison Waters on her way to the final.

After the match, Wee Wern spoke of winning the biggest event of her career. She said: “The feeling has not sunk in yet. To be able to win a WSA Gold tournament is just amazing. It’s my first time playing in the final of such a big event, and to be able to win it, even if it’s 11-9 in the fifth, it’s my best one so far!

Final:
[6] Low Wee Wern (MAS) v [7] Joelle King (NZL) 6-11, 11-4, 3-11, 11-3, 11-9 (71m)

Semi-finals:
[6] Low Wee Wern (MAS) bt [4] Kasey Brown (AUS) 12-10, 11-7, 11-5 (39m)
[7] Joelle King (NZL) bt [5] Alison Waters (ENG) 12-10, 11-4, 11-6 (40m)

Quarter-finals:
[6] Low Wee Wern (MAS) bt [Q] Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY) 8-11, 11-9, 5-11, 11-6, 11-9 (75m)
[4] Kasey Brown (AUS) bt [Q] Aisling Blake (IRL) 11-9, 11-7, 11-5 (49m)
[7] Joelle King (NZL) bt [3] Annie Au (HKG) 11-4, 11-6, 8-11, 11-9 (61m)
[5] Alison Waters (ENG) bt [1] Raneem El Weleily (EGY) 7-11, 11-4, 11-1, 8-11, 13-11 (78m)

1st round:
[Q] Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY) bt [2] Jenny Duncalf (ENG) 13-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-6 (58m)
[6] Low Wee Wern (MAS) bt Rachael Grinham (AUS) 7-11, 11-9, 11-3, 11-8 (52m)
[4] Kasey Brown (AUS) bt Li Dongjin (CHN) 9-11, 11-4, 11-4, 11-3 (40m)
[Q] Aisling Blake (IRL) bt [8] Camille Serme (FRA) 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 1-11, 12-10 (59m)
[7] Joelle King (NZL) bt [Q] Sarah Kippax (ENG) 11-7, 12-10, 11-7 (60m)
[3] Annie Au (HKG) bt Donna Urquhart (AUS) 11-4, 8-11, 2-11, 11-9, 11-7 (42m)
[5] Alison Waters (ENG) bt [Q] Joey Chan (HKG) 11-6, 8-11, 11-2, 9-11, 11-4 (53m)
[1] Raneem El Weleily (EGY) bt Samantha Teran (MEX) w/o

Aziz took Valencia title!

October 27, 2012 • Tags: , , , , , • Categories: all posts, players, tournaments

Omar Abdel Aziz (le) ended the run of qualifier Harinder Pal Sandhu (ri) as the 29-year-old Egyptian world No41 beat the 6 years younger Indian in straight games 11-8, 12-10, 11-8. Aziz needed 65 minutes to claim his 5th PSA Tour event victory in his career.

Final:
[4] Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) bt [Q] Harinder Pal Sandhu (IND) 11-8, 12-10, 11-8 (65m)

Semi-finals:
[Q] Harinder Pal Sandhu (IND) bt [3] Chris Ryder (ENG) 5-11, 11-4, 11-7, 11-9 (80m)
[4] Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) bt Kristian Frost Olesen (DEN) 11-9, 11-6, 13-11 (55m)

Quarter-finals:
[Q] Harinder Pal Sandhu (IND) bt [1] Adrian Grant (ENG) 11-7, 5-11, 6-11, 11-8, 11-5 (120m)
[3] Chris Ryder (ENG) bt [Q] Davide Bianchetti (ITA) 7-11, 3-11, 12-10, 11-5, 0-1 ret.
[4] Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) bt Steven Finitsis (AUS) 11-5, 11-4, 11-8
Kristian Frost Olesen (DEN) bt Rasmus Nielsen (DEN) 11-7, 11-8, 11-2

1st round:
[1] Adrian Grant (ENG) bt Raphael Kandra (GER) 11-7, 11-6, 11-8
[Q] Harinder Pal Sandhu (IND) bt Charles Sharpes (ENG) 11-7, 11-3, 4-11, 11-4
[Q] Davide Bianchetti (ITA) bt Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) 11-8, 14-12, 11-2
[3] Chris Ryder (ENG) bt Ivan Yuen (MAS) 11-9, 11-7, 11-9
[4] Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) bt Alejandro Garbi Caro (ESP) 12-10, 11-4, 11-7
Steven Finitsis (AUS) bt [Q] Jens Schoor (GER) 11-4, 11-8, 9-11, 11-5
Kristian Frost Olesen (DEN) bt [Q] Joel Hinds (ENG) 11-7, 11-9, 8-11, 11-13, 11-9
Rasmus Nielsen (DEN) bt [2] Alan Clyne (SCO) 11-9, 16-14, 7-11, 9-11, 11-9

Netsuite Open Final 2012 (part 1)

October 25, 2012 • Tags: , , • Categories: all posts, players, videos

Check out the final of the Netsuite Open Final 2012 (part 1) when Greg Gaultier is on fire to beat Nick Matthew in straight games …

Rosner takes Santiago crown!

October 22, 2012 • Tags: , , , , • Categories: all posts, players, tournaments

Germany’s Simon Rosner celebrated the sixth PSA World Tour title of his career after triumphing in 4 games in the final of the Santiago Open in Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

After making his breakthrough in the semi-finals, where he stunned local hero and defending champion Borja Golan in a 73-minute marathon, it took the world No18 from Paderborn a minute longer to subdue Australian Cameron Pilley in the climax, where Rosner held his nerve to close out the match 8-11, 11-5, 11-8, 16-14 to win his first Tour title of the year.

“I’m just so happy to have won my sixth PSA title,” said the jubilant German afterwards. “I have been working really hard and that paid off finally.

“I would also really like to congratulate my opponent and roomie for a great match and a fair final,” added the 24-year-old.

Final:
[3] Simon Rosner (GER) bt [4] Cameron Pilley (AUS) 8-11, 11-5, 11-8, 16-14 (74m)

Semi-finals:
[4] Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt [1] Adrian Grant (ENG) 11-7, 11-6, 11-5 (38m)
[3] Simon Rosner (GER) bt [2] Borja Golan (ESP) 11-8, 12-10, 8-11, 11-8 (73m)

Quarter-finals:
[1] Adrian Grant (ENG) bt Ivan Yuen (MAS) 11-8, 11-5, 11-5 (32m)
[4] Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) 9-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-1 (43m)
[3] Simon Rosner (GER) bt [Q] Shaun le Roux (RSA) 11-9, 11-6, 11-9 (30m)
[2] Borja Golan (ESP) bt Adrian Waller (ENG) 11-8, 11-9, 8-11, 11-9 (62m)

1st round:
[1] Adrian Grant (ENG) bt Mark Krajcsak (HUN) 12-10, 11-3, 11-2 (37m)
Ivan Yuen (MAS) bt [Q] Yann Perrin (FRA) 4-11, 5-11, 12-10, 11-3, 11-6 (54m)
Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) bt [Q] Raphael Kandra (GER) 11-7, 7-11, 9-11, 11-3, 11-7 (51m)
[4] Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt Carlos Cornes Ribadas (ESP) 11-4, 11-6, 11-4 (22m)
[3] Simon Rosner (GER) bt Chris Ryder (ENG) 11-7, 11-7, 11-5 (25m)
[Q] Shaun le Roux (RSA) bt Joe Lee (ENG) 5-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-3 (50m)
Adrian Waller (ENG) bt [Q] Andrew Wagih Shoukry (EGY) 11-8, 11-3, 10-12, 12-10 (53m)
[2] Borja Golan (ESP) bt Saurav Ghosal (IND) 11-7, 11-4, 11-6 (39m)

David and Ashour maiden US Open Champions!

October 14, 2012 • Tags: , , , , , • Categories: all posts, players, tournaments

Two new champions were crowned in Philadelphia as Nicol David and Ramy Ashour took their 1st US Open titles ever to put their names in the list of winners of the prestigious Championships.

It was Ashour’s 2nd attempt after losing the final in 2009 against Amr Shabana. The Egyptian was successful this time after beating Frenchman Greg Gaultier in straight games to take the 25th PSA title of his career.

Unbelievable but true: The US Open was the only major title that was missing from Nicol David’s trophy cabinet as she struggled the years before to make the semis. But this time David suceed with a 4-games victory against Raneem El Weleily to set a new record of WSA titles, moving one ahead of Sarah Fitz-Gerald to 63.

Ramy Ashour takes first US Open crown!

October 13, 2012 • Tags: , , , , • Categories: all posts, players, tournaments

Ramy Ashour takes first US Open crown!

Egypt’s Ramy Ashour upset the seedings for the second time in 24 hours when he beat world No3 Gregory Gaultier in the final of the US Open to win the PSA World Series squash event in Philadelphia for the 1st time.

The straight games triumph (11-4, 11-9, 11-9 ) also marks the 25th PSA Tour title of the 25-year-old’s career – a remarkable 17 of which have been World Series events. “I lost in this final three years ago so to win a prestigious title like this against such a great player as Greg feels just unbelievable,” said Ashour, the fourth successive Egyptian winner of the title. “I felt good on court tonight but I had to fight really hard to win.

Final:
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt [3] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) 11-4, 11-9, 11-9 (43m)

Semi-finals:
[3] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [1] James Willstrop (ENG) 11-7, 11-2, 11-8 (53m)
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt [2] Nick Matthew (ENG) 15-13, 8-11, 11-8, 11-4 (74m)

Quarter-finals:
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) bt [8] Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) 11-6, 7-11, 12-10, 8-11, 11-5 (90m)
[3] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [5] Karim Darwish (EGY) 6-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-4 (61m)
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt [6] Peter Barker (ENG) 10-12, 11-5, 11-6, 7-11, 13-11 (75m)
[2] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [7] Amr Shabana (EGY) 11-6, 4-11, 10-12, 11-9, 11-9 (92m)

2nd round:
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) bt Daryl Selby (ENG) 9-11, 11-4, 12-10, 11-5 (81m)
[8] Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) bt Cameron Pilley (AUS) 10-12, 11-8, 12-10, 10-12, 11-4 (92m)
[5] Karim Darwish (EGY) bt Christopher Gordon (USA) 11-4, 11-3, 11-8 (38m)
[3] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt Borja Golan (ESP) 11-7, 11-4, 11-7 (54m)
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Tarek Momen (EGY) 13-11, 11-7, 11-8 (35m)
[6] Peter Barker (ENG) bt Tom Richards (ENG) 11-5, 11-7, 11-8 (51m)
[7] Amr Shabana (EGY) bt Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) 9-11, 11-7, 11-1, 11-5 (64m)
[2] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt Adrian Grant (ENG) 11-2, 11-5, 15-13 (68m)

1st round:
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) bt Alister Walker (BOT) 11-4, 11-3, 7-11, 11-9 (80m)
Daryl Selby (ENG) bt [Q] Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) 11-5, 11-9, 12-10 (57m)
Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt [Q] Stephen Coppinger (RSA) 11-0, 11-5, 11-5 (30m)
[8] Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) bt Simon Rosner (GER) 11-7, 6-11, 11-9, 11-7 (68m)
[5] Karim Darwish (EGY) bt [Q] Max Lee (HKG) 13-11, 11-2, 11-9 (38m)
Christopher Gordon (USA) bt Hisham Mohd Ashour (EGY) 11-9, 8-11, 13-11, 5-11, 11-6 (59m)
Borja Golan (ESP) bt [Q] Joe Lee (ENG) 8-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 (76m)
[3] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt Olli Tuominen (FIN) 11-1, 11-2, 11-3 (24m)
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Saurav Ghosal (IND) 11-7, 13-11, 11-9 (46m)
Tarek Momen (EGY) bt Nicolas Mueller (SUI) 5-11, 11-7, 10-12, 12-10, 11-6 (70m)
Tom Richards (ENG) bt Ong Beng Hee (MAS) 11-6, 11-3, 10-12, 11-6 (56m)
[6] Peter Barker (ENG) bt [Q] Shahier Razik (CAN) 11-4, 11-6, 11-1 (33m)
[7] Amr Shabana (EGY) bt [Q] Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) 11-9, 11-6, 15-13 (60m)
Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) bt [Q] Aamir Atlas Khan (PAK) 11-5, 11-7, 11-9 (47m)
Adrian Grant (ENG) bt [Q] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) 11-9, 8-11, 11-1, 5-11, 11-9 (88m)
[2] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt Omar Mosaad (EGY) 7-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-9 (66m)