Egyptian teenager Karim Ali Fathi celebrated his fifth PSA
World Tour title of the year - and his second upset in the event -
when he beat second seed Chris Ryder in the final of the
London Open, the PSA Challenger 10 squash event in its fifth
year at Cumberland Lawn Tennis Club in the England capital.
Less
than 48 hours earlier, unseeded Ali Fathi made his London Open
breakthrough by removing top seed Jonathan Kemp, the world No29
from England.
In the
final, the 19-year-old from Cairo faced another experienced Englishman
Chris Ryder, the 32-year-old world No48 from Leamington Spa.
At 2/1
down and 4-7 behind in the fourth, Ryder called up his experience to
draw level and force the match into a fifth game decider.
But
world No70 Ali Fathi, based in the UK and coached by former England
international Phil Whitlock, regained the upper hand before
closing out the match 8-11, 11-8, 11-4, 9-11, 11-6 after 90 minutes.
The
triumph marks the fifth, and biggest, Tour title of Ali Fathi's career -
all of which he has gained in 2012.
"Hopefully this will move Karim into the top 60," commented the
Egyptian's jubilant coach.
Ryder Raises
Home Hopes In London Open
Chris Ryder
raised hopes of the first home winner of the London Open for three years
after reaching the final of the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 squash event
in its fifth year at Cumberland Lawn Tennis Club in the England capital.
The second
seed from Leamington Spa will face unseeded Egyptian Karim Ali Fathi.
Ryder, the
32-year-old world No48, ended the impressive run of Pakistan qualifier Nasir
Iqbal when he beat the 18-year-old from Peshawar 11-4, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9.
Ryder is
celebrating his 17th PSA Tour final since 2001 - but his first for more than a
year.
Fast-rising
Ali Fathi, a 19-year-old from Cairo who is based in the UK and coached by former
England international Phil Whitlock, continued his impressive run by
beating England's Eddie Charlton 11-3, 11-4, 11-3.
The Egyptian
teenager, ranked 70 in the world, is marking his seventh Tour final - and sixth
of the year!
Fathi Floors
Favourite Kemp In London
Unseeded
Egyptian teenager Karim Ali Fathi produced the shock of the tournament
when he ousted top-seeded Englishman Jonathan Kemp in the London Open
to claim a place in the semi-finals of the PSA World Tour Challenger 10
squash event in its fifth year at Cumberland Lawn Tennis Club in the
England capital.
Expected to
make the final for the third time in the last four years, world No29 Kemp - the
2009 champion - was matched point for point by the 19-year-old from Cairo who
was making his maiden appearance in the event.
Based in the
UK and coached by former England international Phil Whitlock, Ali Fathi
showed remarkable maturity to see off the Ipswich-based 29-year-old 11-9, 11-6,
11-8.
The young
Egyptian, ranked 70 in the world, will now face a further home player after
Eddie Charlton, the world No82 from Nottingham, beat qualifier and fellow
Englishman Joel Hinds 11-9, 11-4, 12-10.
But there will
be a qualifier in the other semi-final after Pakistan's Nasir Iqbal
maintained his giant-killing run in the event to put out England's No3 seed
Robbie Temple 11-8, 8-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-8.
The
18-year-old from Peshawar will line up against England's Chris Ryder. Now
the only seed left in the event, second seed Ryder - the world No48 from
Leamington Spa - beat Scottish qualifier Greg Lobban 11-9, 11-4, 20-18.
Quality
Qualifiers Excel In London
In a dramatic
night of first round upsets in the England capital, all but one of the
qualifiers competing in the London Open made it through to the
quarter-finals of the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 squash event in its
fifth year at Cumberland Lawn Tennis Club.
Joel Hinds
gave home interest an unexpected boost when he beat Danish champion Kristian
Frost Olesen 11-8, 7-11, 11-5, 11-9. Birmingham-based Hinds, the
lowest-ranked qualifier, now faces Eddie Charlton in an all-English
quarter-final.
Unseeded
Charlton, 24, from Nottingham, also pulled off a notable upset - beating
Kamran Khan, the No4 seed from Malaysia, 7-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-8.
Pakistan
qualifier Nasir Iqbal put paid to a second all-English last eight clash
when he upset rising Surrey star Charles Sharpes 9-11, 12-14, 11-1, 11-5,
11-4. The 18-year-old from Peshawar now takes on Robbie Temple after the
London-based third seed despatched Germany's Raphael Kandra 11-5, 11-6,
11-5.
It also took
five games to resolve the match between Scotland's Greg Lobban and Dane
Rasmus Nielsen - and again it ended in an upset when qualifier Lobban
triumphed 4-11, 11-9, 5-11, 11-5, 11-6. The Inverness-born 20-year-old now faces
England's second seed Chris Ryder, who defeated German Jens Schoor
11-5, 11-4, 3-11, 11-9.
English
favourite Jonathan Kemp denied a full house of qualifying successes when
he beat UK-based Austrian qualifier Aqeel Rehman 11-5, 5-11, 11-4, 11-8.
The world No29 from Ipswich will now take on rapidly-improving Egyptian teenager
Karim Ali Fathi.
Based in the
UK and coached by former England international Phil Whitlock, 19-year-old
Ali Fathi despatched Pakistan's Abid Ak Khan 11-4, 11-2, 11-2.