Gawad Takes Lead on PSA Road to Dubai Standings by Sean Reuthe
photos PSA
November 22, 2016
- World Champion Karim Abdel Gawad has overtaken World No.1 Mohamed
ElShorbagy at the summit of the 2016/17 PSA Road to Dubai Standings
after he defeated his fellow Egyptian in the final of the Qatar Classic
- the third stage on the Men's Road to Dubai - last week.
Gawad, the World No.3 from Giza, has been in sublime form so far this
season, reaching a maiden World Series final at the Cathay Pacific Sun
Hung Kai Financial Hong Kong Open in August, before triumphing over
ElShorbagy in Doha to take the maximum 100 points available - just two
weeks after lifting the PSA Men’s World Championship title.
Only the top eight players on the PSA Road to Dubai standings will
qualify for the Dubai PSA World Series Finals, which will take place
inside the stunning Dubai Opera House from June 6-10, 2017.
Every PSA World Series tournament offers players the chance to compete
for vital points on the PSA Road to Dubai Standings, with a coveted
berth at the Dubai PSA World Series Finals - which will see the world’s
top stars battle for one of the sport’s most prestigious and lucrative
titles - up for grabs.
"To reach Dubai would be a dream come true for me, I’ve been dreaming
about playing in the World Series Finals since I started playing on the
Tour," said Gawad.
"When I first started dreaming of this, I was very far down the
rankings, but every year I’ve been getting closer and closer. Last year
I was very close, but I skipped two World Series events, so that’s why
I couldn’t make it to the World Series Finals.
"This year, I am focusing on playing this event and I am very glad that
I am very near to playing the World Series Finals this year. I will
keep working and keep focusing in the next tournaments."
Gawad sits atop the PSA Road to Dubai Standings with 205 points, 25 ahead of Delaware Investments U.S. Open winner ElShorbagy.
U.S. Open finalist Nick Matthew comes next with 105 points, with Hong
Kong Open winner Ramy Ashour (100) and U.S. Open semi-finalist James
Willstrop (80) rounding off the top five.
Hong Kong Open semi-finalists Max Lee and Ryan Cuskelly, and the
younger ElShorbagy brother, Marwan, are the other players currently in
the top eight, with the trio all sitting on 65 points.
The Women’s standings are unchanged and see Camille Serme and Nouran
Gohar sit level at the top with 125 points after winning the U.S. Open
and Hong Kong Open, respectively.
United States No.1 Amanda Sobhy and World No.1 Nour El Sherbini follow
with 105 points courtesy of respective runner-up finishes at the Hong
Kong Open and U.S. Open, while Nicol David (65), Raneem El Welily (55),
Laura Massaro (50) and Nour El Tayeb (40) make up the rest of the top
eight.
The next stage on the PSA Road to Dubai will be the J.P. Morgan
Tournament of Champions, which takes place between January 12-19, 2017
in the iconic setting of New York’s Grand Central Terminal.
The 2016/17 Dubai PSA World Series Finals will take place from June
6-10 at the Dubai Opera House and further information can be found by
visiting www.worldseriesfinals.com
