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13/04/2018
El Gouna International News
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El Sherbini and El Welily on Course to Meet in Final
of First Women’s El Gouna International
 World
No.1 Nour El Sherbini and World Champion Raneem El Welily are seeded to
meet in the final of the first ever women’s El Gouna International
between April 20-27 after the draw for the PSA World Series tournament -
which takes place at the El Gouna Marina - was released today.
El Sherbini and El Welily contested the final of the women’s PSA World
Championships at this venue 12 months ago, with the former prevailing on
the banks of Egypt’s Red Sea to claim a second World Championship
triumph.
This year’s tournament features a women’s World Series tournament
alongside the men’s event for the first time in history, with a total
prize fund of $330,000 split equally between both draws.
El Sherbini and El Welily are joined in a top-class draw that also
features the likes of Windy City Open champion Nour El Tayeb, the
in-form New Zealander Joelle King, former World No.1 Laura Massaro and
eight-time World Champion Nicol David.
El Sherbini gets her tournament under way against England’s Emily
Whitlock in round one, while El Welily, El Tayeb, King, Massaro and
David all face qualifiers.
Should the tournament go to seeding, El Sherbini will line up against
Massaro in the semi-finals, while the other last four fixture will be
contested between El Welily and El Tayeb.
Meanwhile, there is a return to action for former World No.4 Omneya
Abdel Kawy, who makes her first PSA World Tour appearance since January
2017 after taking time off the tour due the birth of her son, Selim, in
September.
The 32-year-old will play Hong Kong’s World No.22 Joey Chan in round one
and could come up against Massaro in the second round.
World No.1 Mohamed ElShorbagy heads up the men’s draw opposite number
two seed and defending champion Gregory Gaultier, who faces Egyptian
maverick Mazen Hesham in the opening round, while ElShorbagy will line
up against a qualifier.
ElShorbagy is set to meet younger brother Marwan in the semi-finals as
he looks to improve on last year’s quarter-final finish, where he lost
out to Marwan in what was only the younger ElShorbagy’s second win over
his older sibling.
World No.2 Ali Farag is seeded to meet Gaultier in the other semi-final,
with the 25-year-old Harvard-graduate playing Switzerland’s Nicolas
Mueller in round one.
Last year’s runner-up Karim Abdel Gawad also features and he plays Hong
Kong’s Leo Au in the opening round of action.
The qualifying rounds take place between April 18-19 at the El Gouna
Squash Complex, while the main draw will be staged between April 20-27,
with matches split between the glass court situated at El Gouna Marina
and the qualification venue.
Points for the PSA World Series Standings are also up for grabs as
players aim to join the ElShorbagy brothers, Farag, Tarek Momen, Simon
Rösner, El Sherbini, El Tayeb, El Welily and King in guaranteeing a top
eight berth on the standings, which brings with it qualification for
June's PSA World Series Finals.
Glass court action from the main draw will be shown live on SQUASHTV
(Rest of World) and Eurosport Player (Europe only), while matches from
the semi-finals and finals will be broadcast live on mainstream channels
around the world, including BT Sport, beIN Sports, Fox Sports Australia
and Astro.
Stay up to date with the El Gouna International by visiting
www.elgounasquashopen.com, while squash fans can also follow the
tournament on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Main Draw – 2018 Men’s El Gouna International
[1] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) v [Qualifier]
Paul Coll (NZL) v Omar Mosaad (EGY)
Zahed Mohamed (EGY) v Declan James (ENG)
Tom Richards (ENG) v [7] Simon Rösner (GER)
[5] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) v Leo Au (HKG)
Diego Elias (PER) v [Qualifier]
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) v [Qualifier]
[Qualifier] v [4] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY)
[3] Ali Farag (EGY) v Nicolas Mueller (SUI)
Borja Golan (ESP) v [Qualifier]
Max Lee (HKG) v [Qualifier]
[WC] Mostafa Asal (EGY) v [6] Tarek Momen (EGY)
[8] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) v Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Cesar Salazar (EGY) v [Qualifier]
Gregoire Marche (FRA) v [Qualifier]
Mazen Hesham (EGY) v [2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Main Draw – 2018 Women’s El Gouna International
[1] Nour El Sherbini (EGY) v Emily Whitlock (EGY)
Amanda Sobhy (USA) v [12] Tesni Evans (WAL)
[15] Victoria Lust (ENG) v Salma Hany (EGY)
Dipika Pallikal Karthik (IND) v [6] Camille Serme (FRA)
[8] Nicol David (MAS) v [Qualifier]
[WC] Rowan Elaraby (EGY) v [16] Joshna Chinappa (IND)
[14] Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY) v Joey Chan (HKG)
[Qualifier] v [4] Laura Massaro (ENG)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) v [Qualifier]
Hania El Hammamy (EGY) v [13] Olivia Blatchford (USA)
[10] Alison Waters (ENG) v Mariam Metwally (EGY)
[Qualifier] v [5] Nouran Gohar (EGY)
[7] Joelle King (NZL) v [Qualifier]
[Qualifier] v [11] Annie Au (HKG)
[9] Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG) v [Qualifier]
[Qualifier] v [2] Raneem El Welily (EGY)
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