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Kuwait
Challenger 5 Open,
Kuwait City, Kuwait
Khalifa
Crowned Kuwait Challenger Champion
Amr Khaled
Khalifa
clinched the Kuwait Challenger 5 Open crown in style in Kuwait City
- but the Egyptian teenager had to fight off stiff resistance from unseeded
local hero Bader Al Hussaini before winning the PSA World Tour
squash title at the South Surrah Ministries Complex.
Khalifa, the
18-year-old world junior champion from Cairo, reached the final after victories
over three Pakistanis in a row.
After beating
local rivals Nasser B Al-Ramzi and Ammar Al-Tamimi, Al Hussaini
made his breakthrough in the semi-finals where he rallied to a five-game upset
over third-seeded Egyptian Karim AGA Samy in exactly an hour.
But the
27-year-old Kuwaiti, ranked 167 in the world, met his match in the final, where
Khalifa needed just 25 minutes to record his title-winning 11-4, 11-3, 11-7
victory.
The triumph
marks the fifth PSA Tour title of world No90 Khalifa's career.
1st round:
[Q] Ammar Al-Tamimi (KUW) bt [1] Yasir Butt (PAK) 11-6, 4-11,
12-10, 5-11, 11-9 (55m)
Bader Al Hussaini (KUW) bt Nasser B Al-Ramzi (KUW) 11-9, 10-12,
11-3, 11-7 (25m)
[Q] Ali Al-Ramzi (KUW) bt Zeyad Tareq Alowaesh (KUW) 11-1, 11-5,
12-10 (25m)
[3] Karim AGA Samy (EGY) bt [Q] Ahmad Alzabidi (JOR) 11-9, 4-11,
11-9, 19-17 (44m)
[4] Wael Farag (EGY) bt Ondrej Ertl (CZE) 11-6, 11-3, 11-3 (25m)
Farhan Zaman (PAK) bt Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) 11-3, 11-8, 11-6
(27m)
[Q] Waqas Mehboob (PAK) bt Basem Makram (EGY) 11-8, 8-11, 11-7
ret.
[2] Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) bt Waqar Mehboob (PAK) 11-3, 6-11,
11-2, 11-7 (37m)
Quarter-finals:
Bader Al Hussaini (KUW) bt [Q] Ammar Al-Tamimi (KUW) 11-9, 9-11,
11-13, 11-6, 11-3 (73m)
[3] Karim AGA Samy (EGY) bt [Q] Ali Al-Ramzi (KUW) 6-11, 11-6,
11-7, 11-6 (39m)
Farhan Zaman (PAK) bt [4] Wael Farag (EGY) 11-8, 11-8, 9-11, 9-11,
11-3 (69m)
[2] Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) bt [Q] Waqas Mehboob (PAK) 11-3,
11-7, 11-7 (30m)
Semi-finals:
Bader Al Hussaini (KUW) bt [3] Karim AGA Samy (EGY) 11-9, 11-9,
10-12, 11-13, 11-1 (60m)
[2] Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) bt Farhan Zaman (PAK) 11-1, 11-6,
11-7 (30m)
Final:
[2] Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) bt Bader Al Hussaini (KUW) 11-4,
11-3, 11-7 (25m)
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