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CIB Black Ball Open 2021
Men's Draw
16 - 20 Dec
Cairo, Egypt, $112k

ROUND TWO
13 Dec
QUARTERS
14 Dec
SEMIS
15 Dec
FINAL
16 Dec

[1] Ali Farag (EGY)
11-1, 11-9, 11-5 (30m)
Iker Pajares Bernabeu (ESP)

Ali Farag
9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-5 (53m)
Gregoire Marche
Ali Farag
14-16, 11-1, 11-9,
6-11, 11-8 (97m)
Mostafa Asal
Ali Farag
11-7, 11-5, 13-11 (61m)
Paul Coll
[9/16] Gregoire Marche (FRA)
11-9, 13-11, 11-8 (47m)
[8] Mazen Hesham (EGY)
[7] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
6-11, 11-7, 13-11, 11-6 (57m)
[9/16] Saurav Ghosal (IND)
Karim Abdel Gawad
11-6, 11-7, 11-8 (51m)
Mostafa Asal
[4] Mostafa Asal (EGY)
11-2, 11-8, 9-11, 4-11, 11-8 (118m)
[9/16] Youssef Soliman (EGY)
[3] Tarek Momen (EGY)
11-7, 11-9, 2-11, 10-12, 12-10 (79m)
[9/16] Youssef Ibrahim (EGY)
Tarek Momen
11-6, 11-8, 8-11, 11-3 (47m)
Marwan Elshorbagy
Marwan Elshorbagy
11-5, 11-2, 11-2 (50m)
Paul Coll
[5] Marwan Elshorbagy (EGY)
5-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-8 (51m)
[9/16] Mohamed Elsherbini (EGY)
[6] Joel Makin (WAL)
12-10, 11-5, 11-13, 11-8 (74m)
[9/16] Omar Mosaad (EGY)
Joel Makin
8-11, 10-12, 11-9 ret. (75m)
Paul Coll
[9/16] Miguel Rodriguez (COL)
11-1, 11-13, 11-6, 11-5 (71m)
[2] Paul Coll (NZL)

ROUND ONE

[1] Ali Farag (EGY) bye
Iker Pajares Bernabeu (ESP) bt [9/16] Baptiste Masotti (FRA) 11-5, 12-10, 6-11, 11-8 (61m)
[9/16] Gregoire Marche (FRA) bt [WC] Abdelrahman Nassar (EGY) 11-0, 11-2, 11-5 (26m)
[8] Mazen Hesham (EGY) bye
[7] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) bye
[9/16] Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt Declan James (ENG) 11-9, 8-11, 11-2, 11-4 (65m)
[9/16] Youssef Soliman (EGY) bt Victor Crouin (FRA) 11-9, 9-11, 11-3, 11-0 (59m)
[4] Mostafa Asal (EGY) bye
[3] Tarek Momen (EGY) bye
[9/16] Youssef Ibrahim (EGY) bt Karim El Hammamy (EGY) 11-9, 12-10, 11-3 (47m)
[9/16] Mohamed Elsherbini (EGY) bt James Willstrop (ENG) 11-7, 6-11, 12-10, 5-11, 11-9 (79m)
[5] Marwan Elshorbagy (EGY) bye
[6] Joel Makin (WAL) bye
[9/16] Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) 9-11, 11-6, 13-11, 11-8 (68m)
[9/16] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) bt Patrick Rooney (ENG) 5-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-2 (42m)
[2] Paul Coll (NZL) bye

CIB Black Ball Open 2021
Women's Draw
12 - 16 Dec
Cairo, Egypt, $112k

ROUND TWO
13 Dec
QUARTERS
14 Dec
SEMIS
15 Dec
FINAL
16 Dec

[1] Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
11-1, 11-6, 11-2 (25m)
[9/16] Nele Gilis (BEL)

Nour El Sherbini
11-9, 11-7, 11-5 (33m)
Nour El Tayeb
Nour El Sherbini
11-7, 11-5, 11-3 (26m)
Georgina Kennedy
Nour El Sherbini
11-7, 9-11, 11-1, 11-7 (48m)
Hania El Hammamy
[7] Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
9-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-8 (36m)
Hana Ramadan (EGY)
Farida Mohamed (EGY)
9-11, 11-8, 3-11, 11-9, 12-10 (58m)
[5] Joelle King (NZL)
Farida Mohamed
12-10, 11-8, 11-6 (32m)
Georgina Kennedy
Georgina Kennedy (ENG)
11-7, 13-11, 11-6 (33m)
[4] Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)
[3] Hania El Hammamy (EGY)
11-7, 11-3, 11-6 (36m)
Nada Abbas (EGY)
Hania El Hammamy
11-9, 11-7, 11-4 (39m)
Rowan Elaraby
Hania El Hammamy
11-8, 8-11, 11-4 retired (55m)
Nouran Gohar
[8] Rowan Elaraby (EGY)
13-11, 14-12, 6-11, 14-12 (58m)
[9/16] Tesni Evans (WAL)
[6] Salma Hany (EGY)
6-11, 11-8, 11-9, 6-11, 11-4 (51m)
Mariam Metwally (EGY)
Salma Hany
9-11, 11-5, 11-6, 11-8 (46m)
Nouran Gohar
[9/16] Coline Aumard (FRA)
11-4, 11-2, 11-4 (28m)
[2] Nouran Gohar (EGY)

ROUND ONE

[1] Nour El Sherbini (EGY) bye
[9/16] Nele Gilis (BEL) bt Yathreb Adel (EGY) 11-6, 9-11, 11-1, 4-0 ret. (32m)
Hana Ramadan (EGY) bt [9/16] Danielle Letourneau (CAN) 11-7, 11-8, 6-11, 11-7 (40m)
[7] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) bye
[5] Joelle King (NZL) bye
Farida Mohamed (EGY) bt [9/16] Tinne Gilis (BEL) 11-9, 11-9, 3-11, 13-11 (45m)
Georgina Kennedy (ENG) bt [9/16] Lucy Turmel (ENG) 11-9, 11-8, 11-7 (42m)
[4] Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG) bye
[3] Hania El Hammamy (EGY) bye
Nada Abbas (EGY) bt [9/16] Joshna Chinappa (IND) 11-8, 11-6, 11-7 (35m)
[9/16] Tesni Evans (WAL) bt Zeina Mickawy (EGY) 14-12, 9-11, 11-6, 11-7 (43m)
[8] Rowan Elaraby (EGY) bye
[6] Salma Hany (EGY) bye
Mariam Metwally (EGY) bt [9/16] Nadine Shahin (EGY) 6-11, 11-8, 11-3, 5-11, 11-4 (42m)
[9/16] Coline Aumard (FRA) bt [WC] Lojayn Gohary (EGY) 11-3, 11-4, 11-2 (28m)
[2] Nouran Gohar (EGY) bye
 Men's Reports
Coll Lifts Men's Cib Squash Open Black Ball Title

New Zealand’s Paul Coll has become the first non-Egyptian man to win a PSA World Tour title in Egypt for over four years after the World No.2 overcame World No.1 Ali Farag earlier today to win the 2021 CIB Squash Open Black Ball title.

Until tonight, Frenchman Gregory Gaultier was the most recent foreign male player to win in Egypt with his El Gouna International victory in April, 2017. But Coll – who also becomes the first non-Egyptian man to get his hands on a title at the Black Ball Sporting Club – has now broken that streak following an 11-7, 11-5, 13-11 victory over Farag.

The Kiwi was perhaps fortunate to have survived a quarter final fixture with Joel Makin which saw him go 2-1 down before Makin retired from the match due to an adductor injury. However, since then the 29-year-old has gone from strength to strength and he followed up a fine semi final win over World No.7 Marwan ElShorbagy.

Farag, appearing in his third final at the Black Ball Sporting Club, came through a gruelling 97-minute battle with World No.6 Mostafa Asal in the last four and struggled to match Coll, who dominated the court to capture the PSA World Tour Gold title.

It marks Coll’s 17th title on the PSA Tour and his third of 2021. It is also the first time that Coll has beaten Farag twice in succession, following last month’s win against the two-time World Champion in the Canary Wharf Classic final. The New Zealander wins over $17,500 for his efforts in Cairo this week.

“It was a real test for me tonight,” said Coll.


“I had my game plan sorted and I just wanted to execute that from the word go. Ali had a brutal match last night, and I knew if I could make it tough from the word go then I could have a good push. To beat a player like Ali you’ve got to be faultless the whole match, and I’m really proud of that performance from start to finish, I’m really happy.

“One of my goals was to win in Egypt because they’ve got so many good players here. They’ve raised the level of squash, so to come here and win a tournament was something that I had set my mind on and really wanted to do. It’s a really hard place to come and beat two Egyptians in their home territory.”

The next PSA World Tour event will be the men’s Houston Open between January 4-9. Farag tops the draw and all of the action will be shown live on SQUASHTV.
 
Farag And Coll Set Up Final Showdown

The final PSA World Tour match of 2021 will see World No.1 Ali Farag and World No.2 Paul Coll go head-to-head in the CIB Squash Open Black Ball title decider following their semi final wins over Egyptian pair Mostafa Asal and Marwan ElShorbagy earlier today.

Farag’s match with World No.6 Asal will go down as one of the matches of the year – and one of the best battles ever at the Black Ball Sporting Club – with the 29-year-old finally prevailing by a 14-16, 11-1, 11-9, 6-11, 11-8 scoreline after 97 pulsating minutes of action.

Farag had beaten Asal in eight of their nine PSA World Tour matches coming into today’s match, but there was very little between them as Asal overturned eight game balls to take the opening game, before fighting through the fatigue to draw level in the fourth.

However, Farag just about had the better of the fifth game and finally got the win over the line to reach his third final at the Black Ball Sporting Club and his second at the Gold tier Black Ball event following his runner-up finish last December.

“[That was] very enjoyable,” said Farag afterwards.

“I felt good all the way to 10-5, there were a few stoppages here and there and I lost my rhythm. All credit to him, he is such a warrior, he kept digging and digging. I think I had eight game balls in that one and I couldn’t convert, but I am extremely proud of how I didn’t let that get into my head.

“It was a big blow psychologically, but I took the positives from the first and carried it on into the second and then the third, I played well again. In the fourth, there were a lot of stoppages again, the ball softened up a bit and I couldn’t get it to the back and I didn’t really have a plan. The fifth was a flip of a coin, man.”

Meanwhile, New Zealander Coll has reached his first final at this tournament following an 11-5, 11-5, 11-2 victory over World No.7 Marwan ElShorbagy. ElShorbagy won the Platinum edition of the Black Ball event in March of this year, but he was unable to follow up an impressive performance against World No.4 Tarek Momen in the previous round.

Coll, who was 2-1 down in his quarter final match with Joel Makin before an injury to the Welshman saw him retire, has now reached three PSA Tour finals in a row for the first time since 2016. Coll and Farag have contested four matches so far in 2021, with two wins apiece. If Coll wins in tomorrow’s final, he will become the first non-Egyptian man to win a PSA World Tour title in Egypt since Gregory Gaultier won the 2017 El Gouna International.

“It’s never easy playing someone like Marwan. I had to stay on my toes the whole time because he is probably one of the best players at winning quick points in a row, so I had to stay on my game,” said Coll.

“Winning on the big stages against the big guys like Ali, it gives you a lot of confidence in your game and the game plan. You know it works and it is really reassuring that you know what you’re doing and you’re on the right way. The two wins have been a massive confidence boost and it would be nice to finish the year with a third.”

The men’s CIB Squash Open Black Ball final will take place at 20:00 (GMT+2) on December 20 and all of the action will be shown live on SQUASHTV.

For more information on the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter and Facebook.
 
Makin Injury Sends Coll Through to CIB Squash Open Black Ball Semis

World No.2 Paul Coll has moved through to the semi finals of the CIB Squash Open Black Ball after his quarter final opponent - Welshman Joel Makin - was forced to retire from the match due to an adductor injury, despite holding a 2-1 lead.

Makin, who had won two of nine matches against the New Zealander, played some sublime, controlled squash to take a 2-0 lead and put himself on the verge of a semi final place at the PSA World Tour Gold event, but required attention from the physio at the start of the third game as he struggled with an adductor problem.

The World No.8 returned to court and battled on bravely but, after falling 11-9 as Coll halved the deficit, he ultimately decided he couldn’t continue onto a fourth game and was forced to shake hands with his opponent.

“It’s horrible, he was playing really well,” said Coll afterwards.

“He was super aggressive, he had a 2-0 lead and then you could see he wasn’t moving properly in the third. I was struggling to find my game on court today and he was sharp. I felt a bit unlucky in the second, but it’s just horrible to see him go off like that.

“I know how much work he puts into his training and to see him not finish a match is horrible. He pulled the third away from me, which I couldn’t believe. He was hitting some of the best shots he’s ever hit. It must be tough, especially when you’re playing well, it’s a horrible thing to happen to any athlete. I count my lucky stars today and I’ll turn up tomorrow ready to go.”

Coll will line up against World No.7 Marwan ElShorbagy for a place in the final after a masterclass from ElShorbagy saw him dispatch World No.4 Tarek Momen in four games.

Momen had won nine of their 10 matches on the PSA Tour, but ElShorbagy - who won the Platinum tier Black Ball event in March of this year - was sublime as he controlled the rallies and dictated the tempo of the match to win 11-6, 11-8, 8-11, 11-3 in 47 minutes.

“I don’t have the best record against Tarek,” said ElShorbagy.

“The first thing I told him when I won is that ‘I finally beat you!’. Every time I lose to him, I go back and try to work something out. We have the same coach here in Egypt, so he can give me some advice, but I worked a lot of times with tactics with Nick [Matthew] a few times and I’m glad it worked today. He messaged me this morning and said you’re a different animal than any time you’ve played him.”

World No.1 Ali Farag and World No.6 Mostafa Asal will go head-to-head in the other semi final fixture following respective wins over Frenchman Gregoire Marche and former World No.1 Karim Abdel Gawad.

Farag was troubled after an impressive start from Marche - the only unseeded player to make it this far - but found his range in the second game onwards to complete a 9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-5 triumph.

“I’m super proud of winning today,” Farag said.

“I don’t think I found my best performance and all credit to Greg, he didn’t let me settle. In the beginning I was too passive and my straight drives on the backhand side were too passive, they weren’t putting any pressure on him. I had to start firing myself up somehow, so I started yelling at myself and picked up the pace and I think I found my way from that point on.”

Asal returned to court after a controversial match against fellow Egyptian Youssef Soliman the day before - where a conduct game was awarded against Asal to punish him for his movement - but he was in fine form to beat Gawad 11-6, 11-7, 11-8 in 51 minutes.

“Karim is my favourite player, he’s my idol,” Asal said.

“When I was 12-years-old, I always had so many emotions for him and we are both from the same city and have played so much training and practice. He’s a big brother and I have so much respect for him.”

The semi finals of the CIB Squash Open Black Ball will take place at 20:00 (GMT+1) on December 19. The action will be shown live on SQUASHTV.

For more information on the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter and Facebook.
 
Asal Holds Off Soliman in Dramatic Round Two Clash at CIB Squash Open Black Ball

World No.6 Mostafa Asal held off fellow Egyptian Youssef Soliman in a dramatic 118-minute battle earlier today to reach the quarter finals of the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, PSA World Tour Gold event.

20-year-old Asal was tremendous in the opening two games as he hit his targets and outplayed Soliman, however Soliman refused to back down and took a third game that was littered with stoppages and refereeing decisions to halve the deficit.

Asal then led 4-1 in the fourth before an incident which saw the Egyptian hit his head on the floor after a collision with Soliman. After spending some time off court with the physio, Asal returned to court, only to be told that he had been given a conduct game against him in punishment for his movement, following a similar incident earlier in the contest where he received a conduct stroke against him for leaving his leg out.

An emotional Asal took a while to compose himself but returned for the fifth game, where he held his nerve despite the drama to secure his place in the quarter finals, and he will take on former World No.1 Karim Abdel Gawad, who won the Platinum tier Black Ball event in 2018.

Meanwhile, World No.4 Tarek Momen also had to battle through a five-game thriller as he overcame World No.16 Youssef Ibrahim by an 11-7, 11-9, 2-11, 10-12, 12-10 scoreline.

Momen was on top in the early stages but lost his focus in the third game and Ibrahim soon came back to level after saving a match ball in the fourth. A nail-biting fifth game saw Ibrahim save two further match balls, but he couldn’t deny Momen, who finally converted to set up a quarter final meeting with Marwan ElShorbagy.

“I am very proud of how I managed to close this one out, I eventually used my experience to close out a match that was slipping away from my hands,” said Momen afterwards.

“After the 2nd he stepped it up and cut his errors down and his quality just went up. I kept hitting some errors but then my quality went up in the 4th and 5th and I was playing good squash, I only made a few errors at crucial times and he played super well.

“To be honest, I thought this match was going to slip away from my hands, that’s why I’m so proud that I managed to close it out. He pushed me so hard and played an incredible match and overturned a poor start into an exquisite finish and a brilliant match towards the end.”

Frenchman Gregoire Marche is the only unseeded player to advance to the last eight after he got the better of No.8 seed Mazen Hesham, with an impressive 11-9, 13-11, 11-8 victory seeing him set up a fixture with World No.1 Ali Farag.

“Winning 3-0 against Mazen, it’s not what I was expecting,” Marche said.

“Every game was tough but I think I was a bit better mentally at the end of each game, not making any errors, which he did a bit too much today. I put enough pressure on him and I am happy with the way I moved, and I hit the ball in the corners today, so it was a good match.”

Farag, who reached the final of the Gold Black Ball event last December, overcame Spain’s Iker Pajares Bernabeu in his opening match, winning 11-1, 11-9, 11-5.

“There were lots of positives, I found my targets from the get go, there were lots of winners coming from my racket,” said Farag.

“But you know you can’t win 33 rallies like this, so you have to construct rallies a bit more and that’s a mistake I made in the second. I thought it would be more straight forward and I needed more patience to build the rallies and he punished me for it, but I’m happy I could get the balance right in the third.”

There were also wins for World No.2 Paul Coll and World No.8 Joel Makin, who will meet in the other quarter final.

The quarter final fixtures will take place tomorrow (December 18) at 17:30. Live action will be shown live on 

WOMEN'S REPORTS

El Sherbini Captures Women’s CIB Squash Open Black Ball Title

World No.1 Nour El Sherbini is the women’s 2021 CIB Squash Open Black Ball champion after she overcame fellow Egyptian Hania El Hammamy earlier today at the Black Ball Sporting Club in Cairo, Egypt to win the PSA World Tour Gold title.

The pair met in the final of the Platinum tier Black Ball Open at this venue in March, 2020, while El Hammamy - who won that clash - was a losing finalist in the Gold Black Ball event this time last year. However, this time around El Sherbini emerged victorious, with an 11-7, 9-11, 11-1, 11-7 victory seeing her win her fifth PSA title of 2021.

World Champion El Sherbini came into the match having not dropped a game throughout the tournament and, while she made a good start to take the first game, the 26-year-old was pegged back in the second by a resilient El Hammamy. El Sherbini also had to content with a cut on her knee sustained after a collision towards the end of the second game.

She came out firing on all cylinders in the third game and was simply sublime as she blew El Hammamy away, dropping just one point in the progress. The fourth was a more evenly-contested affair, but El Sherbini’s quality was evident as she held her opponent off to capture her second trophy at this venue and her first at the Gold edition of the Black Ball event.

It is El Sherbini’s 27th PSA title and the Egyptian will take home over $17,500 for her efforts in Cairo this week.

“I’m really happy and proud,” said El Sherbini.

“Black Ball has always been a special event for me and I love to play here. From the first event, I reached about four finals and lost in them, so to be stood here having won two Black Ball Opens is an honour for me. I lost one of the finals against Hania, it was her first Platinum event and I’m sure it’s not going to be the last.

“She’s amazing and the three of us [El Sherbini, Nouran Gohar and El Hammamy] have been raising the bar so high this season and they’re playing the best seasons of their lives, so I’m really happy with my performance today.”

Meanwhile, the men’s event got under way today, with the likes of Miguel Rodriguez, Gregoire Marche, Saurav Ghosal and Youssef Ibrahim booking their places in the last 16.

The second round begins tomorrow (December 17) at 12:00 (GMT+2) and the action will be shown live on SQUASHTV.

The men’s event is held between December 16-20.

For more information on the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter and Facebook.
 
El Hammamy & El Sherbini To Meet in CIB Squash Open Black Ball Final

Egyptian duo Hania El Hammamy and Nour El Sherbini will line up in the final of the 2021 CIB Squash Open Black Ball following respective wins over World No.2 Nouran Gohar and England’s Georgina Kennedy earlier today at the PSA World Tour Gold event.

El Hammamy has claimed her first ever win over compatriot Gohar at the eighth attempt after Gohar was forced to retire from their match due to an ankle problem. The match was finely balanced after a thrilling opening two games which saw both players take a game apiece.

However, Gohar started to slow down in the third and, despite receiving treatment from the physio during the game break, was unable to continue the match, handing El Hammamy a place in the title decider.

“It’s always tough playing against Nouran and it’s not the way I wanted to get the first win against her,” El Hammamy said afterwards.

“I’ve never beaten her, not in juniors, not in training, not anywhere, to be honest. It’s not a great feeling to win this way and hopefully she recovers soon and we have many more tough matches.

“I was just focusing on my game plan and focusing on what I was doing. Today I felt really good on court and I didn’t want to lose my focus or lose my game plan at all. I don’t think I even noticed anything, but definitely something happened [to Nouran] and I didn’t see it.”

El Hammamy and El Sherbini met in the final of the Platinum tier Black Ball event back in 2020 prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, with El Hammamy capturing her first major PSA title. The World No.4 reached the final of the Gold Black Ball event last December too, but squandered a 2-0 lead against England’s Sarah-Jane Perry.

Gohar’s defeat means that El Sherbini is guaranteed to start the New Year as the World No.1. She would have lost top spot had Gohar bettered El Sherbini’s results in Cairo this week.

The 26-year-old overcame surprise semi finalist Kennedy - who was appearing in her first PSA Gold semi final - by an 11-7, 11-5, 11-3 margin to reach her fourth final at the Black Ball Sporting Club. It will be her second final in the Gold tier Black Ball event after she finished as runner-up to former World No.1 Raneem El Welily back in 2019.

“It was a tough match playing Gina for the first time,” El Sherbini said.

“She has been playing amazing, she’s very fit and playing really good squash and I had to get my ‘A’ plan to play her. I knew how big an event this was for her and playing in the semi final is big, but I’m really happy with my performance and that I knew how to play against her.”

The pair will lock horns in the final at 20:00 (GMT+2) tomorrow (December 16) and the action will be shown live on SQUASHTV as well as the channels of PSA’s broadcast partners.

The men’s event also begins tomorrow and play will start from 12:00 (GMT+2) and be shown live on
Kennedy Reaches First Gold Semi Final at CIB Squash Open Black Ball

England’s Georgina Kennedy will line up in the semi finals of a PSA World Tour Gold event for the first time after she put in a devastating performance against World No.27 Farida Mohamed earlier today at the CIB Squash Open Black Ball in Cairo, Egypt.

World No.25 Kennedy - who has won eight titles on the PSA Challenger Tour in 2021 - overcame England No.1 Sarah-Jane Perry in the previous round by a 3-0 margin and she continued her fine form against Mohamed as she recorded a 12-10, 11-8, 11-6 victory to seal her last four berth.

“I am still in shock a bit right now,” said Kennedy, who was the only non-Egyptian to line up in the quarter finals.

“It was cool last night, my parents were watching SQUASHTV and saw the quarter final line-up and it was my name along with seven Egyptians, so it’s really exciting. Egypt is known for being the dominant force in squash, so I am really proud that I can immerse myself amongst those girls.

“[To win] is a tough task for sure with the quality of the players still in the draw. I think I just need to focus on my game and not think too much about who I am playing because it’s quite intimidating, the quality of the squash that these girls play. I have been watching them at home on SQUASHTV and now I am here playing with them.”

The 24-year-old will go up against World No.1 Nour El Sherbini in the next round after she got the better of World No.9 Nour El Tayeb in straight games.

El Tayeb is appearing at her first tournament in 14 months and gave birth to a baby daughter in July of this year. The 28-year-old tested El Sherbini in the opening game and certainly showed glimpses of her shot-making talents, but the reigning World Champion proved to be too much for El Tayeb to handle as El Sherbini closed out an 11-9, 11-7, 11-5 victory.

El Sherbini reached the final of the Gold edition of the Black Ball event in 2019 and will compete against Kennedy for the first time in her career.

“She [El Tayeb] is a fighter and it is very inspiring that she is back and playing like this,” El Sherbini said.

“I don’t think anyone could believe she has just given birth five months ago. It is really amazing and I didn’t expect that she would push me that hard, but I am really happy to see her playing like this and she will get fitter and get better over the next few tournaments. I was a bit emotional playing her today.”

The other semi final will see World No.2 Nouran Gohar and World No.4 Hania El Hammamy - who finished runner-up at the Gold tier Black Ball event last December - battle for a place in the final.

24-year-old Gohar came back from a game down against fellow Egyptian Salma Hany to reach the semi finals of a Black Ball event for the first time since the inaugural edition back in 2019.

“I think we have played every tournament this season, me and Hania,” said Gohar.

“We always have great battles and I really enjoy it on court with her. I think we bring the best out of each other and it is good for the game. We have played in different occasions, in quarter finals, semi finals and finals. I am really excited for tomorrow’s battle.”

El Hammamy, who won the Platinum tier Black Ball Open in 2020, dispatched compatriot Rowan Elaraby by an 11-9, 11-7, 11-4 scoreline to earn her spot in the last four.

“I am definitely happy to get through, it is never easy playing Rowan, we have a long history in juniors,” El Hammamy said.

“Before the match, I saw the head-to-head and it was 6-3 in my favour, even though I felt I lost a lot of finals in World Juniors to her, so I didn’t think I had the upper hand. We have a long rivalry and we will play a lot on the PSA World Tour as well. I have a lot of memories of playing Rowan, so I am happy with the win and definitely happy with how I handled the pressure.”

The semi finals of the CIB Squash Open Black Ball take place tomorrow, and action from the Black Ball Sporting Club will begin at 20:00 (GMT+2). Matches will be shown live on SQUASHTV.

The women’s event takes place between December 12-16, before the men’s event is held between December 16-20.

For more information on the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter and Facebook.
 
El Tayeb Makes Triumphant Return at CIB Squash Open Black Ball Following Pregnancy

Former World No.3 Nour El Tayeb made a triumphant return to action after 14 months on the sidelines as she overcame fellow Egyptian Hana Ramadan to reach the quarter finals of the CIB Squash Open Black Ball - just five months after giving birth to a baby daughter.

El Tayeb, who withdrew from the 2020 edition of this tournament last December due to her pregnancy, fought back from a game down to complete a stunning win over World No.33 Hana Ramadan, completing a 9-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-8 victory to move into the last eight of the PSA World Tour Gold event held at the Black Ball Sporting Club.

The 28-year-old - who has slipped to No.9 in the PSA Women’s World Rankings - welcomed her daughter, Farida, into the world in July of this year, together with husband and men’s World No.1 Ali Farag.

“I surprised myself with how I kept hope even after losing the first game,” El Tayeb said.

“I felt a little bit emotional when I saw my parents here, I felt like when I was growing up and they used to come to my matches when I was still a child. To play this way and win was good, although I got quite tense at the end.

“For me, I had to do something, I had to come back to squash, it’s the only thing I do well. I’m happy to have my family here for my first match and I can keep going with the comeback. It's a nice challenge and I think I can do it.”

El Tayeb will lock horns with World No.1 Nour El Sherbini in the next round. El Sherbini was El Tayeb’s most recent opponent before this week, with the reigning PSA World Champion beating El Tayeb at the CIB Egyptian Open in October, 2020. El Sherbini booked her spot in the last eight courtesy of a comfortable 3-0 win over Belgium’s Nele Gilis.

“The next round is going to be difficult playing Nour [El Tayeb] again, it’s amazing to see her back and winning,” said El Sherbini, who won the Platinum edition of the CIB Black Ball Open in March of this year.

“It’s always been a rivalry between us since we were juniors and have been travelling together, so it’s really good to see her back on court and to be playing against each other.”

Elsewhere, England’s Georgina Kennedy has claimed the biggest victory of her career to date after she ended the title defence of her country’s No.1 player Sarah-Jane Perry. Perry won the Gold Black Ball event in December, 2020 but has bowed out in round two this year after Kennedy recorded an 11-7, 13-11, 11-6 victory to beat her first top five player.

The 24-year-old - ranked at World No.25 - will compete in the quarter finals of a PSA Gold event for the first time and she will line up against 19-year-old Egyptian Farida Mohamed, who also caused an upset as she took out World No.7 Joelle King. Kennedy is the only non-Egyptian left in the event.

“It’s definitely my best result, SJ has always been an idol of mine,” Kennedy said.

“I’ve had the opportunity to play her a couple of times and she’s taught me so many lessons. I’ve always taken something away to work on with my coach after playing her. I think today I played above my normal level and I sensed she was slightly off and I got some good dying lengths and that was the difference. I’m just so happy to be through.”

World No.27 Mohamed made it back-to-back wins over New Zealand’s King as she achieved a 9-11, 11-8, 3-11, 11-9, 12-10 victory in the opening match of the day. It follows up her shock win over the Kiwi in the Platinum Black Ball Open back in March, 2020.

“It’s interesting to play top players, the pressure isn’t on you but at the same time, it is time for me to rise up the rankings,” Mohamed said.

“Every tournament I try to take something positive from it to push me harder and get big wins in every tournament. Joelle is very experienced and she wanted her revenge. It was very hard from the first point, but I’m so happy with this win and I’m glad I managed to focus at the end.”

There were also wins for World No.2 Nouran Gohar, World No.4 Hania El Hammamy, World No.8 Salma Hany and World No.10 Rowan Elaraby.

The CIB Squash Open Black Ball continues tomorrow with the quarter finals. Action starts at 17:30 (GMT+2) and will be shown live on SQUASHTV.

The women’s event takes place between December 12-16, before the men’s event is held between December 16-20.

For more information on the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter and Facebook.
 
Abbas Upsets Chinappa as CIB Squash Open Black Ball Begins

The opening day of action at the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, PSA World Tour Gold event saw five of the eight fixtures go the way of the lower-ranked player, with Indian No.1 Joshna Chinappa proving to be the highest-profile casualty as she fell to World No.28 Nada Abbas as the women’s event began at the Black Ball Sporting Club in Cairo, Egypt.

Abbas, who was born in Cairo, has showcased some of her best ever form at this venue in the past and reached her first ever major PSA quarter final at the Platinum tier CIB Black Ball Women’s Squash Open back in 2020. The 21-year-old was on top throughout against World No.12 Chinappa, and she rattled off an 11-8, 11-6, 11-7 victory to seal her place in the last 16.

“I’m really happy to get this win today, even if it took a year and a half [after her last win] on this court,” Abbas said.

“Better late than never. I’ve had a tough year this year and at the end of last year, so to be honest in the last few months I’ve just been focused on enjoying my game, trying to play my best and enjoy what I’m doing. If I’m not enjoying what I’m doing, then it’s useless.

“For now, I’m enjoying my squash, or trying to enjoy it and trying to play my best and not focus on the results or rankings.”

Abbas will play World No.4 Hania El Hammamy - who won the Platinum Black Ball Open in this venue back in 2020 - in the next round. She will be joined there by fellow Egyptian Mariam Metwally, the World No.42, who upset World No.15 Nadine Shahin in five games.

It was a quick-fire five-game battle - lasting just 42 minutes - and Metwally recovered from a slow start to win it 6-11, 11-8, 11-3, 5-11, 11-4. The 25-year-old will play No.6 seed Salma Hany next for a place in the semi finals.

“I’ve played Nadine many times, we often practice together, so I know the game plan and I was just trying to stick to it as much as I could, and it worked,” Metwally said afterwards.

“The plan was to stay calm as much as I could and play deep shots, and whenever I have the chance to attack I went for it, and that’s what I did today.”

Canada’s Danielle Letourneau was the other top 20 player to see her tournament come to a premature end as she fell to Hana Ramadan. World No.33 Ramadan will take on former World No.3 Nour El Tayeb in the next round. El Tayeb, who has now slipped to No.9 in the PSA Women’s World Rankings, will make her highly-anticipated return to action tomorrow after 14 months on the sidelines due to the birth of her daughter in July of this year.

“My nerves were all over the place, especially when I was up 2-0,” said Ramadan.

“For me [the best tactic] is to stay calm and remember my game plan or go to my plan B. It cost me one game, but fortunately not two more. I just need to stay calm and remember how to keep the pressure on and keep the momentum going.”

Egypt’s World No.27 Farida Mohamed kicked off the day’s upsets with a 3-1 win over World No.21 Tinne Gilis in the opening match of the tournament. The 19-year-old will line up against New Zealand’s Joel King in the second round and she will look to follow up her win over the Kiwi at the same stage of the Platinum Black Ball Open back in March, 2020.

“It was very tough playing her [Gilis] to be honest, but I’m very positive with the way I played today,” Mohamed said.

“I managed to do 75 percent of the plan I’d planned today. I wasn’t very angry today, I was trying to keep my focus and I’m happy with this.”

The CIB Squash Open Black Ball continues tomorrow with stars such as World No.1 Nour El Sherbini and defending champion Sarah-Jane Perry - who won the gold edition of the Black Ball Open last December - getting their tournaments under way. The action starts at 12:00 (GMT+2) and will be shown live on SQUASHTV.

The women’s event takes place between December 12-16, before the men’s event is held between December 16-20.

For more information on the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter and Facebook.
 

PREVIEW

El Tayeb to Return at CIB Squash Open Black Ball Following Birth of Daughter

Egypt’s former World No.3 Nour El Tayeb will make her highly-anticipated return to competitive action at December’s CIB Squash Open Black Ball between December 12-16 following the birth of her daughter.

El Tayeb, together with husband and men’s World No.1 Ali Farag, welcomed her daughter, Farida, into the world in July and will line up at the PSA World Tour Gold tournament just five months after becoming a mother for the first time. El Tayeb has won two major PSA titles, the 2017 U.S. Open - which she won on the same night Farag won his first major title - and the 2018 Windy City Open.

The 28-year-old is seeded at No.7 for the event and will receive a bye into round two where she will take on either Canada’s Danielle Letourneau or Scotland’s Lisa Aitken. A win there will pit her against World No.1 Nour El Sherbini - who won the Platinum edition of the CIB PSA Black Ball Squash Open in March - in the last eight.

El Sherbini is the top seed for the event and is seeded to come up against England’s Sarah-Jane Perry in the semi finals. Perry is the defending Gold edition champion after she came back from two games down to upset Egypt’s Hania El Hammamy, who is seeded No.3 at this year’s event.

El Hammamy is predicted to meet World No.2 Nouran Gohar in the semi finals on the bottom half of the draw.

A men’s Gold event will also be held between December 16-20, and World Champion Farag will headline a field that also contains the likes of New Zealand’s Paul Coll, former World Champion Tarek Momen and U.S. Open winner Mostafa Asal.

Farag was a runner-up at this event in December, losing to compatriot Fares Dessouky, and is seeded to play World No.6 Asal in the last four. Momen, meanwhile, has a tough draw that could see him take on Marwan ElShorbagy - who won the Platinum edition of this tournament in March - in the quarter finals before a potential clash with World No.3 Coll in the last four.

World No.448 Abdelrahman Nassar is the men’s wildcard, while World No.204 Lojayn Gohary has been named as the women’s wildcard.

Action from the CIB Squash Open Black Ball will be shown live on SQUASHTV, while the semi finals and finals will also be shown live on the channels of PSA’s broadcast partners.

For more information on the CIB Squash Open Black Ball, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter and Facebook.
 
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