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31-Oct, Finals:

[1] Nicol David (Mas) bt [3] Natalie Grinham (Ned)               11/7, 11/3, 11/9 (29m)

[6] Karim Darwish (Egy) bt [1] Amr Shabana (Egy)              11/4, 11/5, 11/3 (27m)
 

Nicol David claimed her third successive Qatar Classic title in Doha with a comprehensive victory over world number two Natalie Grinham, to the delight of the many Malaysian supporters in the Khalifa Squash Complex in Doha.

Natalie took the first point of the match, but Nicol quickly rallied to take a 7/1 lead, looking ominously in control. A few errors from Nicol and some determined play from Natalie closed the gap, but Nicol took the lead on her second game ball as Natalie fired a loose shot down the middle for a stroke.

Another quick start for the Malaysian in the second, 4/1, 7/2, and she was well in control, again taking the game on her second opportunity, 11/3.

The third was a repeat of the first - Nicol tinned to give away the opening point, then stormed into a 6/2 lead. Natalie was being forced to do all the retrieving and she would eventually, inevitably, throw up a loose shot for Nicol to put away.

But, as in the opening game, she fought back, throwing in some lovely winners as she reduced the deficit to 7/5. She could never quite close the gap though as Nicol reached championship ball at 10/7. A dropshot and a stroke brought Natalie back to within one point, but there was nothing she could do with Nicol's long dropshot as the crowd erupted.

That's a third world title and a third consecutive Qatar Classic title for Nicol David inside a fortnight, ten titles already this year, and her unbeaten run now stretches to 53 matches, there's just no stopping her ...

He's been world junior champion and world university champion, and today in Doha Karim Darwish claimed his first major title as a senior with a devastating performance to depose Amr Shabana as Qatar Classic champion.

The world number one could never get into the match - the closest he came to level terms was at 3-all in the second, but for the rest of the match Karim was in complete control, playing patient, virtually error-free squash, as Shabana's impatience saw him trying to finish rallies too soon and paying the price.

Shabana played a few trademark winners, but by the time a stroke put Darwish 7/2 up in the third he knew the game was up and the ending was a formality.

"I had done my homework. I know him well, come what may, he will give his best. It was just that I was greedier for this title.

"This is the greatest win of my career. I was very focused during the match. That helped me win the title. It is a great win. And to win against a great player like Shabana, who has been world number one for more than two and half years, makes me happy."

   to the Gulf Times & Peninsula

So Darwish joins Shabana on one big win this year, and tomorrow's rankings will surely see him rise to very close behind his victim of tonight in Doha.
   

"I took my chances earlier and kept the pressure on. I just didn’t want to repeat the mistake of the semis and then stage a comeback. I wanted to nail her from the start which I did.

"It’s great to win the title for the third time in a row. I was fully focused today and didn’t make any errors. I want to keep working on my shots for the coming tournaments."



"She was in an awesome form and never allowed me to settle down. She was more determined to retain her crown here. I was struggling to keep pace with her game all through."

Darwish ends Shabana’s reign, Nicol completes Doha hat-trick  Gulf Times

11/8, 11/6, 11/6 (35m)

[10] Peter Barker

8/11, 11/7, 11/6, 11/5 (52m)

[5] Thierry Lincou

11/4, 11/5, 11/3 (27m)

[6] Karim Darwish

6/11, 12/10, 11/6, 10/12, 11/3 (59m)

[5] Thierry Lincou

11/3, 11/9, 10/12, 13/15, 11/6 (111m)

[4] David Palmer

9/11, 11/3, 11/7, 11/6 (56m)

[6] Karim Darwish

5/11, 11/5, 8/11, 12/10, 11/5 (65m)

[2] Gregory Gaultier

26 Oct, Qualifying finals:

Alister Walker (Eng) bt Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (Mas)            11/7, 11/9, 11/5 (44m)
Kashif Shuja (Nzl) bt Campbell Grayson (Nzl)      11/6, 9/11, 11/7, 6/11, 11/5 (59m)
Mansoor Zaman (Pak) bt Martin Knight (Nzl)                        11/2, 11/6, 11/5 (28m)
Chris Ryder (Eng) bt Shahid Zaman (Pak)                           11/4, 11/5, 11/6 (34m)
Mohamed El Shorbagy (Egy) bt Amr Swelim (Egy)            11/8, 12/10, 11/9 (32m)
Daryl Selby (Eng) bt Adil Maqbool (Pak)                     11/8, 9/11, 11/2, 11/4 (37m)
Chris Simpson (Eng) bt Ali Anwar Reda (Egy)                  11/8, 14/12, 13/11 (56m)
Tarek Momen (Egy) bt Wade Johnstone (Aus)                     11/7, 11/5, 11/2 (31m)

25 Oct, Qualifying Round One:

Martin Knight (Nzl) bt Ali Miski (Leb)                                  11/6, 11/2, 11/3 (27m)
Chris Simpson (Eng) bt Mamoon Ur Rashid (Pak)                11/8, 11/1, 11/4 (26m)
 

11/4, 14/12, 11/9 (34m)

[7] Alison Waters

 11/6, 6/11, 11/9, 11/2 (37m)

[4] Natalie Grainger

11/7, 11/3, 11/9 (29m)

[3] Natalie Grinham

 4/11, 11/8, 11/6, 11/7 (36m)

[9] Omneya Abdel Kawy

12/10, 1/11, 11/7, 14/12 (51m)

[3] Natalie Grinham

11/8, 13/15, 8/11, 11/6, 12/10 (61m)

[2] Rachael Grinham

11/7, 11/5, 11/6 (28m)

[2] Rachael Grinham

26 Oct, Qualifying Finals:

Aisling Blake (Irl) bt Nouran El Torky (Egy)                        11/7, 11/6, 11/6 (27m)
Lauren Siddall (Eng) bt Joey Chan (Hkg)                   11/7, 9/11, 11/8, 11/6 (41m)
Emma Beddoes (Eng) bt Heba El Torky (Egy)    11/9, 11/9, 5/11, 8/11, 11/0 (64m)
Alana Miller (Can) bt Kanzy Del Defway (Egy)            4/11, 11/7, 11/8, 11/8 (42m)
Laura Mylotte (Irl) bt Nour El Tayeb (Egy)         5/11, 11/8, 5/11, 11/9, 11/9 (42m)
Orla Noom (Ned) bt Adel Weir (Rsa)                                   11/2, 11/5, 11/7 (27m)

25-Oct, Qualifying Round One:

Kanzy El-Defrawy (Egy) bt Jenna Gates (Eng)                          11/2, 7/1 rtd (11m)
Nour El Tayeb (Egy) bt Eliza Kargioti (Gre)                         11/1, 11/0, 11/3 (11m)
Adel Weir (Rsa) bt Irina Assal (Rus)                                  11/5, 11/8, 11/4 (22m)

30-Oct, Semi-Finals: 

[1] Nicol David (Mas) bt [4] Natalie Grainger (Usa)                  11/6, 6/11, 11/9, 11/2 (37m)
[3] Natalie Grinham (Ned) bt [2] Rachael Grinham (Aus)  11/8,13/15,8/11,11/6,12/10 (61m)

[1] Amr Shabana (Egy) bt [5] Thierry Lincou (Fra)                   8/11, 11/7, 11/6, 11/5 (52m)
[6] Karim Darwish (Egy) bt [7] Nick Matthew (Eng)                  9/11, 11/3, 11/7, 11/6 (56m)
 

After a slow start Alison Waters recovered to have game balls in the second and a 9-6 lead in the third but couldn't capitalise as World Champion Nicol David became the first player into the semis. Another slow starter was Natalie Grainger, but the US champion picked up her game to assert increasing control over Omneya Abdel Kawy, who became frustrated more frustrated as the match progressed.

Natalie Grinham had to work very hard to get past Laura Lengthorn-Massaro. The Englishwoman had game-balls in the first and fourth and a good lead in the third, but the Dutch world number two took all three games. No such troubles for Rachael Grinham, the Cairo-based Australian always one step ahead of Madeline Perry.

"I came out firing in the first game and it worked as she was struggling to get her footing right. In the second, I tried to do too many things in the middle and this allowed her to sneak in a few points. "I reverted back to my game plan of the first game and things were back to normal."



"I just let her slip. Nicol went for her shots and it came out well. Despite leading in the third game, she won some big points. I slowed down a bit once I was leading and that was a wrong move."

   to the Gulf Times

Men's top seed Amr Shabana wasted no time in reaching the semis as he despatched Peter Barker in straight games, where he will meet Thierry Lincou.

The Frenchman ended a run of poor results with a sensational five-game win over world champion Ramy Ashour. Ramy fell at the end of the second game, took an injury timeout and returned with strapping to his knee and ankle, but looked hampered in his movement.

Lincou took control, leading 2/1 and 10/9 matchball in the fourth, but Ramy fought back to level the match - despite having to change his racket three times during its course. Thierry eased through the decider though, and the world champion was out.

"I'm sad about his injury, I know it is hard to stay in focus after that," Lincou told the Gulf Times. "However, I have to cash on to this win now."

Nick Matthew provided a second consecutive upset when he overcame fifth seed David Palmer in the longest match of the tournament.

The Australian saved five match balls in all as he recovered from two games down to take the match into a decider, and was engaged in frequent discussions with the referee about having the court swept, and frequently being refused.

The upsets continued to the last, as Karim Darwish, fresh from his appearance in the World Open final, stunned second seed Gregory Gaultier. Leading 2/1 the Frenchman had a couple of match balls at 10/8 but Darwish saved those and went on to claim victory in the fifth.
  

28-Oct, Round Two:
Omneya & Madeline   
underline Manchester form

Shabana survives a scare
By N.D. Prashant, Gulf Times

Spain’s Borja Golan put up a strong performance before going down to top seed and World No 1 Amr Shabana in four games in the second round of the Qatar Classic Squash Tournament, yesterday ... more

It was down to one court for each event as the quarter-finalists were decided today, with the men on Centre Court and the women on court three.

It went  strictly to seeding in the men with Thierry Lincou the only seed taken to five games.

Two upsets in the women's draw though, as Omneya Abdel Kawy and Madeline Perry confirmed their form from last week in Manchester as the beat fifth and sixth seeds Jenny Duncalf and Shelley Kitchen respectively.

"He  played well today and it is a clear indication that he is keeping a close watch on the players at the top. Last time we met, I had beaten him convincingly 3-0. Future battles against him are going to get more interesting,”

"He made a good beginning in the third game and the pressure was on me. By the time I tried to get back into the game it was too late. I committed too many errors trying to go in for my shots. This is something that I have to cut down in the coming days."

 

"I had my chances but I lost my cool and made a mess of it.

"You have to forget that he is world No 1 and play, which I did in the third game. However, the four mistakes in a row after being 9-7 up proved costly.

"It is difficult to play him as he is a model of perfection when it comes to game and strategy.

"I achieved the goal that I had set before coming here. I wanted to reach the second round and managed to do so."

      to the Gulf Times

Draws & results

"I played much better today. I’m now looking forward to playing on the glass court. Playing on the glass courts suits my style of game and it gives me a feeling that I’m in a competition."

Adding colour
to squash, the Naude way ...
The Peninsula

Colourful characters add glamour to any sport. Different people take different routes to grab attention. Playing with coloured hair has been Annelize Naude’s obsession ever since she made her appearance on the WISPA Tour in 1996 ... more

The first day of main draw play saw some early upsets as Spain's Borja Golan, a surprise finalist in Paris last month, beat 11th seed Lee Beachill in straight games and Egyptian qualifier Tarek Momen spoiled Cameron Pilley's birthday with a four-game defeat of the 16th-seeded Australian.

No such problems for the top seeds, with Amr Shabana and Nicol David easing through their opening encounters.

"These early matches are also tough as these qualifiers go all out knowing they have nothing to lose. However, a win makes you feel better."


to the Gulf Times

"I would have liked to wrap up the match more convincingly but it is ok. I got a measure of her game once I engaged in long rallies. She went for her shots and I made my move."

to the Gulf Times

Other first round upsets included a marathon comeback from two down for Alister Walker over Wael El Hindi, another top ten scalp for Mohamed El Shorbagy as he downed Ong Beng Hee, and a 12/10 in the fifth win for Aisling Blake over Manchester giant-killer Jaclyn Hawkes.

Newly-crowned world champion Ramy Ashour took on compatriot Omar Mosaad, who won the 'most improved player' award last week in Manchester.

“It’s always hard to tackle your compatriot whom you are used to playing every time. He knows my game well and it’s the same way around. You have to change your tactics all the time and try different things.

"The World Open title is not weighing on me coming into the tournament. Even if I would have won ten world open championships, I would consider this as a new tournament.

"You can’t think about your past achievement every time. You have to go out there and keep performing. There is no pressure whatsoever on me."

   to the Gulf Times

Top seeds
have it easy
N.D. Prashant, Gulf Times

Defending champions and top seeds Amr Shabana of Egypt and Nicol David of Malaysia eased into the second round of the Qatar Classic Squash tournament with convincing wins at the Khalifa Squash Complex yesterday ... more

An all-French matchup saw second seed Gregory Gaultier beat compatriot Renan Lavigne in straight games.

"It's nice to get your eye in early on a glass court.

"Didn’t have to sweat much so will be fresh for tomorrow.

"Now there is very little to choose among the top ten players who are here. Every match is going to be tough. Though I’m second, I will have to win at least five more tournaments in succession to be No 1. It is a huge ask."


to the Gulf Times

Spotlight on
Shabana, David

Gulf Times
DEFENDING champions Amr Shabana of Egypt and Nicol David of Malaysia will be looking to retain their crowns at the Qatar Classic Squash tournament at the Khalifa Squash Complex ...