Egypt’s
World No.3 Mohamed ElShorbagy and England’s World No.6 Sarah-Jane Perry
are the 2017 Oracle NetSuite Open champions after they claimed
respective wins over World Champion Karim Abdel Gawad and legendary
Malaysian Nicol David on finals day in San Francisco.
ElShorbagy had a difficult 2016/17 season by his own high standards -
losing his World No.1 ranking and struggling for form throughout - but
has begun the new campaign in style, backing up a thrilling five-game
victory over last year’s runner-up James Willstrop with a sublime
display against Gawad, who struggled to back up after a brutal 90-minute
semi-final with Peru’s Diego Elias.
ElShorbagy hadn’t beaten Gawad in over a year, losing to his compatriot
twice in the meantime, but he outclassed the World No.2 this time
around, reading his shots well and playing with stunning attacking force
to record an 11-9, 11-6, 11-3 triumph - lifting his 26th Tour title and
taking the lion’s share of the $100k prize fund.
"I’m
really happy, it’s only my first tournament of the season and I think
it’s the first time in my life that I have won the first tournament,"
said ElShorbagy.
"When I was World No.1 for 28 months, all of the players studied me
every single day but, coming into this season, I’m studying everyone.
I’m coming in really hungry and I really want to do well this season.
"I’ve put in a lot of work this summer and there is nothing in my mind
apart from getting back to World No.1 this season. I’m going to do
everything I can to get back to where I feel I should be."
In the women’s $50k event, 2015 runner-up Perry - who dispatched top
seed and defending champion Laura Massaro in the semi-finals - had won
the last three meetings between her and David but was up against it as
her opponent, an eight-time World Champion, surged into a two-game lead
courtesy of some precise attacking at the front of the court.
27-year-old Perry fought back in the third to halve the deficit before
squandering two game balls in the fourth to hand David a championship
ball.
But
a fortuitous nick off a Perry cross court handed the initiative back to
the player from England, and she converted her next game ball before
holding her nerve in the decider to seal an 8-11, 8-11, 11-7, 14-12,
11-7 victory that sees her pick up the ninth Tour title of her career
and her first since 2015.
"I was just thinking of my nan [at championship ball down], it’s one
I’ve got to dedicate to her because she passed away a couple of weeks
ago and on that championship ball I told myself that I had to be brave
and do it for nan and it worked," said an emotional Perry.
"If a dead nick isn’t a sign that she’s looking down on me, then I don’t
know what is. I had nothing in the tank but I just kept getting another
ball back against someone who was playing amazing.
"This is my biggest title and I reached my first World Series final last
season, so I’m looking to set my marker down early. Winning this one has
kickstarted my season and hopefully it’s a sign of things to come for
the rest of the year."
World Champion Karim Abdel Gawad will take on compatriot Mohamed
ElShorbagy in the final of the 2017 Men’s Oracle NetSuite Open, PSA M100
tournament after he launched a superb comeback from two games down to
beat Peru’s World No.17 Diego Elias in San Francisco,
Elias had beaten World No.4 Matthew in the previous round and continued
where he left off against the Englishman in the first two games as he
outplayed Gawad with some sublime winners paired with a composed and
mature game plan that belied his 20 years of age.
However,
Gawad grew into the match as time wore on, with his relentless pressure
ultimately paying off as Elias’s energy levels dipped and he came back
to win three games without reply to take it 6-11, 4-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-9
in 90 minutes.
"Me and Mohamed are almost the same age, he’s only six months older, and
we’ve always been competing since we were 7 years old.
"It’s very tough playing him and we always have a huge battle. Hopefully
we’ll have a great match and have enough in the tank for tomorrow."
ElShorbagy
will appear in a second successive PSA World Tour final after he
overcame last year's runner-up James Willstrop, also in a five-game
thriller.
"It’s very tough playing him and we always have a huge battle. Hopefully
we’ll have a great match and have enough in the tank for tomorrow."
ElShorbagy
will appear in a second successive PSA World Tour final after he
overcame last year's runner-up James Willstrop, also in a five-game
thriller.
Willstrop had fought back from a game down and 10-4 down in the second
to go 2-1 ahead but ElShorbagy - who won the PSA Dubai World Series
Finals on his last Tour outing - came back at him in the fourth to set
up a nail-biting decider.
Both players had match balls as the clash headed into a tie-break but it
was the man from Egypt who held his nerve to take it 11-2, 11-13, 8-11,
11-6, 14-12.
“I was thinking I should have been 2-0 up and then suddenly I’m 2-1 down
in the semi-finals against someone like James, it was such a huge
challenge for me to stay positive and remove any kind of negative
thoughts," said ElShorbagy.
"I’m really proud with how I came back, it was never easy, and even in
the fifth game, to be 10-8 up and then finding myself 11-10 down after
having two match balls, it was challenge after challenge.
“James was playing so well today and once he won that second game and
got his confidence, he was like a train, there were times when I
couldn’t stop him. I had to keep fighting and that’s what I do best."
Malaysia’s
eight-time World Champion Nicol David will play England’s Sarah-Jane
Perry in the women’s final after a ruthless display from the World No.5
saw her ease past India’s Pallikal Karthik in just 22 minutes.
David had recovered from match ball down to beat Victoria Lust in the
previous round, but she was in charge of proceedings right from the off
as she glided around court and gave Pallikal Karthik no chance to launch
any kind of attack, with the World No.21 failing to even amass a point
in the second game.
Pallikal Karthik found her range more in the third but couldn’t do
anything to break David’s spell as the former World No.1 powered to an
11-3, 11-0, 11-5 victory that will see her clash with Perry, who knocked
out top seed and defending champion Laura Massaro in yesterday’s
semi-final.
“I’m
just so pleased to get into the finals here in San Francisco," David
said.
"It’s my first time in the final here, so it will be very exciting for
me to play in front of a great crowd. I’m looking forward to tomorrow
and I’m really going to give it a good go.
“Whoever is in the final is going to be a contender and I’m up for the
battle.”
Live coverage from the final of the Oracle NetSuite Open begins from
19:30 local time (PDT) on Saturday September 30 and all of the action
will be shown live on SQUASHTV (rest of world) and Eurosport Player
(Europe only).
Peruvian
World No.17 Diego Elias and England’s World No.6 Sarah-Jane Perry upset
the seedings on the day three of the 2017 Oracle NetSuite Open main draw
after they achieved respective victories over English duo Nick Matthew
and Laura Massaro at the stunning glass showcourt on Justin Herman
Plaza, San Francisco.
Elias, 20, and Matthew, 37 were the youngest and oldest players,
respectively, in the main draw of the men’s event and the pair played
out an incredible opening game which saw Matthew prevail 19-17 after an
incredible 32 minutes of play.
But the brutal nature of that game took its toll on the Yorkshireman as
Elias claimed wins in the final three games to take reach the
semi-finals courtesy of a 17-19, 11-6, 11-3, 11-6 victory in 68 minutes,
bringing an end to Matthew’s last ever Oracle NetSuite Open after last
week’s announcement that he will retire from the sport at the end of the
season.
“I just wanted to do my best today, although I knew it was his last year
and I didn’t want to beat him,” said Elias, who also reached the last
four last year.
“I was playing my best but he’s an idol for me and I’ve always looked up
to him ever since I was a little kid, so playing him here and having the
opportunity to play this amazing game with him was very special for me
and I’m really happy to win.
“This is my lucky tournament, I was in the semis last year and I love
playing here. The crowd are amazing, I’ve had an amazing tournament and
I want to keep playing like this, I hope I can keep winning here.”
Elias
will take on World Champion Karim Abdel Gawad for a place in the final
after the World No.2 defeated fellow Egyptian Tarek Momen in four games.
Gawad looked out of sorts in the opening stages and struggled to deal
with the cold conditions on a dead court, making lots of errors as Momen
took the opener for the loss of four points.
He completely changed things around in the second game though as he
dropped five points en route to victory in the second game, while he
capitalised on a loss of focus from Momen in the third to come back from
7-3 down before closing out the fourth to seal an 4-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-8
triumph.
"It’s harder to play one of your best mates and he’s [Tarek] like a
brother to me," said Gawad.
"I grew up watching him and I remember him playing one of the other
Egyptian guys and I was so impressed and now we’re here playing and
competing together. We had been playing at the same club for 10 years,
I’ve moved to another club now but we still train together and are very
close.
"It’s always to tough to play such a physical and gifted opponent."
The
first semi-final from the women’s tournament took place today and saw
Perry claim her first ever win over defending champion and England
teammate Massaro on the PSA World Tour to reach the final of the Oracle
NetSuite Open for the second time in three years.
Perry and World No.4 Massaro were partners in the WSF World Doubles
Championships earlier this year but were going head-to-head for the
fourth time on the Tour with Perry failing to take more than a game in
all of their previous meetings.
But she held off the World No.4 in San Francisco to take an 11-9, 9-11,
11-8, 9-11, 11-7 victory which will see her take on either Malaysia’s
eight-time World Champion Nicol David or India’s World No.21 Dipika
Pallikal Karthik in the final.
"I have beaten her once before but it wasn’t on the Tour, so it’s the
first time I’ve beaten her on the Tour," said Perry, who also reached
the final in 2015.
"I probably had a bit of a mental block against Laura over the last few
matches and she’s had a really good game plan against me, executed it
perfectly and left me very, very frustrated.
"I played some really good squash, Laura played some really fantastic
squash, so I’m really happy to come out with a win against a really
tough opponent."
The 2017 Oracle NetSuite Open continues tomorrow (September 29) with
both semi-final matches from the men’s tournament, while the semi-final
match from the bottom half of the women’s event will also take place
tomorrow - all of the action will be shown live on SQUASHTV (Rest of
World) and Eurosport Player (Europe only).
Former
World No.1s Mohamed ElShorbagy and James Willstrop will meet for the
21st time on the PSA World Tour after they both claimed wins to reach
the semi-finals of the 2017 Oracle NetSuite Open, PSA M100 tournament
held in San Francisco.
Spectators at the Oracle NetSuite Challenge Court on Justin Herman Plaza
witnessed ElShorbagy advance to the last four of this tournament for the
first time after he overcame England’s World No.12 Daryl Selby by an
11-5, 13-11, 11-6 scoreline.
“At the beginning of the match I struggled a little bit,” said
ElShorbagy.
“We both played a really high quality match in a good spirit like
always, it was a good battle. It’s my first year here and I’m absolutely
loving it.
“The goal for me this season is to get my World No.1 spot back. I didn’t
play very well last season and I want to prove to myself that I can
still get the wins when I play well.”
Willstrop,
the 2016 runner-up, advanced to the semi-finals of the Oracle NetSuite
Open for the second successive year courtesy of a 3-0 triumph against
Australia’s World No.15 Ryan Cuskelly.
The match was much closer than the scoreline would suggest, with
Cuskelly pushing Willstrop hard and not giving ‘The Marksman’ any room
to breath as he narrowly went down 11-9, 12-10, 11-9 in 59 minutes.
Willstrop currently leads the head-to-head record against ElShorbagy
11-9, although the Egyptian has won the last four meetings between the
two.
“You’ve got to try not to forget that, even though you’re down on
points, you’ve still hopefully put him through some work and played the
rallies well,” said Willstrop, who came from behind to win both the
second and third games against Cuskelly.
“There’s pressure that might accumulate but I try not think about it
because the more you think about the scoreline the worse it will be. You
have to concentrate and forget about the scoreboard.”
The other men’s quarter-final matches will take place tomorrow
(September 28) as Karim Abdel Gawad, Nick Matthew, Tarek Momen and Diego
Elias aim to join ElShorbagy and Willstrop in the semi-finals.
In
the women’s event, which features $50k in prize money, England’s top two
players Laura Massaro and Sarah-Jane Perry will go head-to-head in a
repeat of March’s British Open final after they managed respective wins
over Egypt’s Salma Hany Ibrahim and Australia’s Donna Urquhart.
Preston-based Massaro, the defending champion and World No.4, had lost
out to Ibrahim the last time they met on the PSA World Tour two years
ago but she eased to victory in the first game before a resurgent
Ibrahim levelled in the second.
But the lacklustre Ibrahim of the opening game reared her head again in
the third as Massaro marched into a 10-1 lead - ultimately seeing it out
11-4 - and the Englishwoman used that momentum to come out on top in a
high quality fourth game to seal her place in a second consecutive
Oracle NetSuite Open semi-final fixture by an 11-5, 12-14, 11-4, 11-7
scoreline.
"I had to keep myself really upbeat and had to have a lot of positive
body language," said Massaro.
"I had to be really alert, had to keep my body language up and had to be
100 per cent respectful of a player with that talent and I’m really
happy to get off with a win.
"It’s a lively court, we’ve played on it a few times in other cities.
For me personally, it’s just about trying to stay positive at the front
of the court. It’s not natural for me to want to do that but once I’ve
hit on a court that’s as cold as this I want to be positive when I go
short and I think I had that balance towards the end."
Birmingham-based
Perry, meanwhile, surged into the semi-finals after beating Urquhart in
straight games at the Bay Club San Francisco.
The World No.6 was dominant for the majority the match and didn’t drop a
single point in the second game as she powered to an 11-9, 11-0, 11-9
victory to earn her place in the last four.
“Donna’s such a tough opponent, last time we played it was really close
and we’ve had some epic matches so I know how dangerous she is,” said
2015 runner-up Perry.
“I’m feeling good and it will be great to play on the glass court, I’ve
got good memories from two years ago. I love playing on the glass court,
it’ll be pretty awesome.”
The
other women’s semi-final will see Malaysian eight-time World Champion
Nicol David line up against Dipika Pallikal Karthik. David came back
from a match ball down to avoid a shock defeat to England’s Victoria
Lust, while Pallikal Karthik overcame United States No.2 Olivia
Blatchford.
The Oracle NetSuite Open continues tomorrow (September 28) on SQUASHTV
(rest of world) and Eurosport Player (Europe only).
The
opening day of main draw action at the 2017 Oracle NetSuite Open saw all
but two of the seeded players across the mens and women’s events make it
through to the quarter-final stage, with last year’s runner-up James
Willstrop avoiding a shock defeat to Qatar’s Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi in
the standout match at the Bay Club San Francisco.
A capacity crowd were treated to a series of fast-paced rallies, with Al
Tamimi’s shot-making talents and incredible retrieval skills seeing him
go 2-1 ahead, only to see Willstrop take control in the final two games
to emerge from the fixture unscathed by an 7-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-5, 11-6
margin.
"He is very fast and very skilful," said Willstrop.
"It’s also the first match of the season for me and it was a bit cloudy
in my head. I have to thank my dad [Malcolm] because I wasn’t calm out
there. There’s no time to think in squash and you’re under quite a lot
of duress with the oxygen debt, so it’s difficult to think clearly and
stay calm.
"It’s that balance about knowing when your shot is on and when not to go
for it when you’re under pressure. He was putting me deep and I was
having to counter him. That’s the brilliant thing about squash, its
about rally construction and choosing the right shots to play at the
right time."
Willstrop will take on Australia’s Ryan Cuskelly in the next round after
he defeated Mexico’s Cesar Salazar, while World No.3 Mohamed ElShorbagy
overcame former World No.4 Miguel Angel Rodriguez in a four-game
thriller.
The
pair engaged in some lengthy rallies, with ElShorbagy coming out on top
more often than not to build up a two-game lead before Rodriguez found
his length in the third to take it and send the match into a fourth game
which saw both players go hell for leather in a bid to establish their
superiority in the match.
As the game went on, the intensity of the matches grew while there were
frequent discussions with the referee as the duo refused to give in.
Rodriguez forced a tie-break where he overturned two match balls but the
gruelling nature of the rallies eventually took its toll on the
‘Colombian Cannonball’ as ElShorbagy’s power won out in the end.
“I thought today was a perfect first match of the season for me,” said
ElShorbagy.
“Today, I was tested physically and mentally playing Miguel on the
bouncy, traditional courts and I passed that test today. You’re playing
probably the best player in these kind of conditions, so it was a
challenge.
“I knew he was going to play well, he didn’t play well last season but
he will have had some good summer training and I haven’t seem him play
that well in a while. I’m really proud with the win."
World Champion Karim Abdel Gawad got his tournament off to a winning
start against tournament wildcard Faraz Khan and he will take on fellow
Egyptian Tarek Momen in the next round.
Two-time runner-up Nick Matthew was also in action as he got the better
of Spain’s Borja Golan with a 3-1 victory in his first tournament
appearance since he announced that he will retire at the end of the
season last week. The World No.4 will meet Peru’s Diego Elias in the
last eight after he got the better of Fares Dessouky.
In
the women’s event, defending champion Laura Massaro took a step closer
to retaining her crown after she dispatched tournament wildcard Aisling
Blake in just 25 minutes.
36-year-old Blake was making her first main draw appearance at a Tour
event since 2015 after retiring from the sport two years ago and
Massaro, the number one seed, ensured that the result went in her favour
after the 33-year-old from Preston surged to an 11-5, 11-9, 11-2
victory.
"I thought Aisling played well considering she's been retired for two
years," said Massaro.
"I’m excited to be back, China [the J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions]
didn't go according to plan but I’ve put in a a few changes in training
since then, so hopefully I can do well here ahead of going to the U.S.
Open.
"Being in San Francisco is really relaxing, so I feel at home here."
Massaro
is joined in the last eight by compatriot and World No.6 Sarah-Jane
Perry, who defeated Canadian qualifier Hollie Naughton 11-4, 11-4, 9-11,
11-7 in 37 minutes.
“A few years ago, you used to see a qualifier and think that’s an
alright draw but now they’re really tough,” said Perry.
“My length dropped off a little bit maybe. It was good in the first two
games but then she stepped up a bit and I was trying to hit some shots
that weren’t really on. I had to wrestle back the control and I think I
did that in the last game, although I did switch off for a couple of
rallies and then she was right back in it."
Perry will face Australia’s Donna Urquhart in the quarter-finals, while
Massaro will take on Egyptian number eight seed Salma Hany Ibrahim.
There were also wins for Malaysian eight-time World Champion Nicol David
and Victoria Lust, who will face off in the next round, while United
States No.2 Olivia Blatchford and India’s Dipika Pallikal Karthik will
go head-to-head in the other quarter-final after they beat Millie
Tomlinson and Emily Whitlock, respectively.
Qatar’s World No.42 Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi caused the only major upset
in the final qualifying round of the 2017 Oracle NetSuite Open after he
overcame World No.23 Gregoire Marche to reach the main draw of the men’s
PSA M100 tournament in San Francisco.
The duo were meeting for the first time on the PSA World Tour, with
Marche the man in form after his title triumph at the Open International
de Squash de Nantes earlier this month.
But it was Al Tamimi who prevailed in San Francisco as the 22-year-old
from Doha rose to the win by an 11-8, 3-11, 11-9, 11-6 margin to set up
a main draw meeting with last year’s runner-up James Willstrop in round
one.
Al Tamimi will be joined in the main draw by Colombia’s former World
No.4 Miguel Angel Rodriguez, who came through a nail-biting five-game
encounter with Egyptian maverick Mazen Hesham.
Hesham, the 23-year-old World No.70, twice went a game ahead but the
experience of Rodriguez paid off as he held his nerve to come back into
the clash, winning it 7-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-9, 11-4 to ensure he will
take on World No.3 Mohamed ElShorbagy in a mouthwatering first round
encounter.
World No.27 Alan Clyne is also through after coming out on top in an
all-Scottish fixture with Greg Lobban, while Campbell Grayson beat
Frenchman Lucas Serme in straight games to book his main draw berth.
They will play Tarek Momen and Daryl Selby, respectively in the first
round.
The women’s final round of qualifying saw the matches go to seeding as
2007 World Champion Rachael Grinham joined Canadian trio Samantha
Cornett, Hollie Naughton and Nikki Todd in the main draw of the PSA W50
event.
Grinham dispatched Japan’s Misaki Kobayashi in three games to set up a
first round clash with Victoria Lust, while Naughton was forced all the
way to five games by Kiwi Amanda Landers-Murphy.
After going 2-1 up, Naughton looked to be up against it after taking
just two points from a one-sided fourth game as Landers-Murphy drew
level. But the World No.40 prevailed in the fifth game to take it 11-5,
4-11, 11-9, 2-11, 11-9 and she will face World No.6 Sarah-Jane Perry in
the main draw.
Cornett defeated fellow Canadian Danielle Letourneau to earn her place
in the next round, while Todd ousted Egypt’s Nouran El Torky, who was
unable to back up her surprise win over top qualifying seed Coline
Aumard in the opening round of qualifying.
First round action from the Oracle NetSuite Open will take place on
September 26 at local clubs. Matches from the quarter-finals onwards
will take place on the Oracle NetSuite Challenge court on Justin Herman
Plaza and will be shown live on SQUASHTV (Rest of World) and Eurosport
Player (Europe only) between September 27-30.
French
World No.1 Gregory Gaultier has withdrawn from next week’s 2017 Men’s
Oracle NetSuite Open in San Francisco due to an ankle injury.
The 34-year-old, who has won three Oracle NetSuite Open titles, was
seeded first for the PSA M100 tournament but his ankle injury - a
reoccurrence of the one that saw him forced to pull out of last year’s
PSA Men’s World Championship at the semi-final stage - will prevent him
from defending the title he won 12 months ago.
As a result of the injury, Mohamed ElShorbagy moves up from third seed
to number two seed and will take on a qualifier, while Willstrop will
now face a qualifier instead of Australia’s Ryan Cuskelly, who now
becomes the number eight seed..
Mexico’s World No.21 Cesar Salazar moves into the main draw and will
take on Cuskelly for a place in the quarter-finals.
2017 Oracle NetSuite Open - Revised Men's First Round Draw
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) v [Qualifier]
[Qualifier] v [7] Daryl Selby (ENG)
[8] Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) v Cesar Salazar (MEX)
[Qualifier] v [4] James Willstrop (ENG)
[3] Nick Matthew (ENG) v Borja Golan (ESP)
Diego Elias (PER) v [6] Fares Dessouky (EGY)
[5] Tarek Momen (EGY) v [Qualifier]
[WC] Faraz Khan (USA) v [1] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
The qualifying stages and first round of the Oracle NetSuite Open will
be held at local clubs between September 24-26, with matches from the
quarter-finals onwards taking place on the Oracle NetSuite Challenge
court on Justin Herman Plaza between September 27-30.
Action from the Oracle NetSuite Challenge court will be shown live on
SQUASHTV (Rest of World) and Eurosport Player (Europe Only), while
tickets start from $20 and can be purchased at
www.netsuiteopensquash.tix.com
World
No.1 Gregory Gaultier is aiming to make a strong start to the 2017/18
season when he gets his campaign under way at the 2017 Oracle NetSuite
Open, which takes place in San Francisco, United States between
September 26-30.
Gaultier has dominated the PSA World Tour in 2017, winning six titles
and 27 matches in a row en route to becoming the oldest ever World No.1,
male or female.
The Frenchman defeated England’s James Willstrop to lift last year’s
title - his third Oracle NetSuite Open crown - and he is eyeing up
further success as he looks to begin the season in style.
"I’ve
played the event five times and have always enjoyed playing there," said
34-year-old Gaultier.
"It’s the first tournament of the season, so of course it’s important to
have a good start from there and try to build up some confidence for the
rest of the season. We will see what happens.
"[Tournament Promoter] John Nimick always does a good job with
organising events and always tries to set up the glass court in
spectacular places.
"After all these years going there, I know lot of people and friends, so
it's even more pleasant to go somewhere you have already experienced,
spent good time and have a lot of good memories. It’s a great place to
visit for people who come to watch the event also."
Gaultier is part of the strongest ever men’s draw, with World Champion
Karim Abdel Gawad, World No.3 Mohamed ElShorbagy and World No.4 Nick
Matthew all seeded to join him in the semi-finals as they battle it out
for a share of the $100,000 prize fund.
A women’s tournament featuring $50,000 prize money will also be held
alongside the men’s event and sees defending champion Laura Massaro
headline the draw ahead of Malaysia’s eight-time World Champion Nicol
David, World No.6 Sarah-Jane Perry and World No.13 Emily Whitlock.
The qualifying stages and first round of the Oracle NetSuite Open will
be held at local clubs between September 24-26, with matches from the
quarter-finals onwards taking place on the Oracle NetSuite Challenge
court on Justin Herman Plaza between September 27-30.
Action from the Oracle NetSuite Challenge court will be shown live on
SQUASHTV (Rest of World) and Eurosport Player (Europe Only), while
tickets start from $20 and can be purchased at
www.netsuiteopensquash.tix.com