World No 5 Gawad Shocked on Day One of World Championships, Report by Sean Reuthe
photos PSA
February 23, 2019 -
An astonishing comeback from 2-0 down saw Egypt’s World No.33 Youssef
Soliman send 2016 World Champion Karim Abdel Gawad to a shock first
round defeat as squash’s first $1 million tournament – the PSA World
Championships presented by the Walter Family – got under way in Chicago
today.
Gawad, the World No.5, was one of the frontrunners for the men’s
trophy, but his exit leaves the draw wide open after a magnificent
fightback from Soliman at MetroSquash saw him record a 9-11, 6-11,
11-8, 11-8, 11-9 victory to claim the biggest win of his career.
“To come back against Karim is really tough because you always fear
that he will be the one to come back when you play him,” said Soliman.
“To be the one that was 2-0 down and to come back, I had to push really
hard and it was an unbelievable match for me. I worked him really well
in the first game, but he obviously won that one and then the second.
If I played fast and hit the ball hard, he was so good at taking the
pace off the ball and making me run around.
“This is definitely the biggest win of my career, I just beat the No.5
in the world. I won’t think about it because sometimes when you have a
huge win, it takes it out of you a lot. I won’t enjoy it that much, I
will just focus on my next round.”
Soliman will play Welshman Joel Makin in round two, while MetroSquash
also played host to another big upset as England’s Adrian Waller, the
World No.42, defeated World No.10 Diego Elias by a 3-1 scoreline.
Meanwhile, reigning men’s champion Mohamed ElShorbagy began his title
defence at Chicago’s Union Station, where an all-glass court –
featuring an interactive front wall – has been erected in Union
Station’s picturesque Grand Hall.
The World No.1 overcame training partner and former roommate Joshua
Masters 11-7, 8-11, 11-8, 11-5 to set up a round two clash with
Mexico’s Cesar Salazar.
“We aren’t just training partners, we actually lived together for three
years as well, so he knows me very well,” ElShorbagy said.
“Every day you learn something new, and even with my experience on tour
now, being a defending World Champion is not something that I have
experienced before. It’s probably the only thing I have never faced
before in my career and it’s going to be a new experience for me. But I
like challenges, it’s what brings the best out in any athlete and I
hope I can be at my best form this week.”
ElShorbagy is joined in the second round by World No.1-in-waiting Ali
Farag, who beat England’s Daryl Selby, while World No.3 Tarek Momen
defeated men’s United States No.1 Todd Harrity.
Germany’s Simon Rösner also won as he beat 2015 runner-up Omar Mosaad.
New Zealand’s Paul Coll, Colombia’s Miguel Rodriguez and the younger
ElShorbagy brother, Marwan, all earned their places in the last 32.
The women’s event will have an all-US fixture in store for fans at
Union Station as the country’s top two players – Boston-based Amanda
Sobhy and Port Chester’s Olivia Blatchford Clyne – both claimed wins on
day one.
Sobhy was making her first appearance at the sport’s biggest tournament
since 2016 and the World No.10 overcame England’s Julianne Courtice
11-4, 11-6, 11-7 to book her second round berth.
Blatchford Clyne got the better of Canada’s Hollie Naughton in five games at the University Club of Chicago.
“I saw the draw and I was like ‘ok, I have one of the tougher first
rounds’, but I’m kind of happy because it just rips the band aid off
and you can get straight into it,” said Sobhy, 25.
“She ran me around, but I enjoyed playing on the court and it’s a
fantastic audience. It’s amazing to be playing in front of a home crowd
and I love it. The bigger and rowdier the crowd, the better.”
Defending women’s champion Raneem El Welily also won on the opening day
as she dispatched South Africa’s Alexandra Fuller 3-0 and she will take
on 17-year-old compatriot Hania El Hammamy next.
“I think this might be the first time that I have seen her play and
actually played her,” said El Welily, who won the Windy City Open in
Chicago three years in succession between 2015-2017.
“I’ve seen her results though, so I know how dangerous she can be and I
was definitely trying out some new things today. It’s a new court and
atmosphere, [it’s a] great venue and I’m so happy to be back here in
Chicago.”
World No.2 Nour El Sherbini, a two-time World Champion, moved past
England’s Lily Taylor by a 3-0 margin, with compatriots Nour El Tayeb
and Nouran Gohar also claiming wins.
Malaysia’s eight-time World Champion Nicol David kicked off her last
ever World Championships with a comfortable win over Egypt’s Manna
Nasser and her reward is a matchup with England’s Millie Tomlinson at
Union Station.
Second round action begins on Sunday February 24 at 12:00 (GMT-5).
Fixtures from Union Station will be shown live on SQUASHTV (Rest of
World), Eurosport Player (Europe only) and the official Facebook page
of the PSA World Tour (Excluding Europe and Japan).
Results – Men’s First Round: 2018-2019 PSA World Championships presented by the Walter Family
Draw – Men’s Second Round: To Be Played February 24th
[1] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) v Cesar Salazar (MEX)
Campbell Grayson (NZL) v Leo Au (HKG)
[16] James Willstrop (ENG) v Victor Crouin (FRA)
Alan Clyne (SCO) v [6] Miguel Rodriguez (COL)
[8] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) v Gregoire Marche (FRA)
[L] Youssef Ibrahim (EGY) v [14] Ryan Cuskelly (AUS)
[9] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) v Chris Simpson (ENG)
Tom Richards (ENG) v [4] Tarek Momen (EGY)
[3] Simon Rösner (GER) v Richie Fallows (ENG)
Borja Golan (ESP) v Ben Coleman (ENG)
[11] Saurav Ghosal (IND) v Lucas Serme (FRA)
Joel Makin (WAL) v Youssef Soliman (EGY)
[7] Paul Coll (NZL) v Cameron Pilley (AUS)
Mohamed Reda (EGY) v [13] Fares Dessouky (EGY)
Adrian Waller (ENG) v Mazen Hesham (EGY)
Mostafa Asal (EGY) v [2] Ali Farag (EGY)
Draw – Women’s Second Round: To Be Played February 24th
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v [17] Hania El Hammamy (EGY)
[26] Nadine Shahin (EGY) v [9 Alison Waters (ENG)
[15] Victoria Lust (ENG) v [21] Emily Whitlock (ENG)
[25] Fiona Moverley (ENG) v [8] Nouran Gohar (EGY)
[7] Laura Massaro (ENG) v Coline Aumard (FRA)
[30] Rowan Elaraby (EGY) v [12] Annie Au (HKG)
[16] Salma Hany (EGY) v [L] Melissa Alves (FRA)
[31] Zeina Mickawy (EGY) v [3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
[4] Joelle King (NZL) v [23] Mayar Hany (EGY)
[18] Joey Chan (HKG) v [14] Joshna Chinappa (IND)
[13] Nicol David (MAS) v [24] Millie Tomlinson (ENG)
Lisa Aitken (SCO) v [5] Camille Serme (FRA)
[6] Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG) v [20] Yathreb Adel (EGY)
Liu Tsz-Ling (HKG) v [10] Tesni Evans (WAL)
[11] Amanda Sobhy (USA) v [19] Olivia Blatchford Clyne (USA)
Christine Nunn (AUS) v [2] Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
