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TODAY in Herentals
Fram on the keyboard, Steve behind
the shutter
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Thursday 14th, Day TWO:
Two rounds to play today as the
quarter-finalists were decided in Herentals. Four Egyptians, two
Englishmen and two Indians will play for the right to be
declared World Champion.
You can watch the matches on the showcourt (C9) live, and get
involved via facebook and twitter on our
LIVE page. Or you can just follow the results on Twitter
(@squashsite) and the reports and photos here ...
Round Three:
[1] Amr Khaled Khalifa (Egy) bt [9/16] Fares Dessouki (Egy)
11/4, 10/12, 11/5, 7/11, 11/5 (55m)
[5/8] Mohamed Abouelghar (Egy) bt Oliver Holland (Eng)
3/11, 12/10, 11/2, 15/13 (41m)
[5/8] Ramit Tandon (Ind) bt Abhishek Pradhan (Ind)
11/6, 8/11, 11/3, 11/8 (33m)
[5/8] James Earles (Eng) bt Alexandre Cogno (Fra)
11/2, 11/9, 11/4 (28m)
[5/8] Declan James (Eng) bt Dylan Murray (Usa)
11/9, 11/9, 11/5 (38m)
[9/16] Mazen Ga Sabry (Egy) bt Alfonso Marroquin (Col)
11/5, 11/0, 11/0 (19m)
[9/16] Mahesh Mangaonkar (Ind) bt [9/16] Nick
Hopcroft (Eng)
11/8, 11/5, 11/4 (32m)
[2] Marwan El Shorbagy (Egy) bt [9/16] Tyler Osborne
(Can)
11/2, 11/7, 11/2 (20m)
no, we haven't had upsets, there just aren't any 3/4 seeds in
the draw
Round
Two results and reports |
Gallery
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 Round
Three roundup:
Two expected Egyptian winners to
open proceedings in the third round, but neither had it all
their own way. Top seed and defending champion Amr Khaled
Khalifa looked to be cruising through at a game and 10-5 up,
but Fares Dessouki fought back to force a deciding game, in
which Khalifa was dominant.
Mohamed Abouelgar made too many mistakes in the first
game and a half against Oliver Holland, but the Englishman
couldn't close out the second. The Egyptian dominated the next
two games, but then struggled to close out an 8-3 advantage,
eventually taking it 15/13 on his 7th match ball.
 England
and India claimed their first quarter-final places as James
Earles beat Alex Congo in three, holding off a spirited
challenge from the Frenchman in the second, and Ramit Tandon
underlined the Indian pecking order with a 3/1 win over
compatriot Abhishek Pradhan.
Declan James made it two Englishmen in the last eight,
but had to work hard to quell the lively American Dylan Murray
in three, while his quarter-final opponent Mazen Ga Sabry
despatched his Colombian opponent with increasing authority to
make it a trio of Egyptians through.
The final two places were claimed by India's Mahesh
Mangoankar, who beat a tiring fellow 9/16 seed Nick Hopcroft
in straight games, while second seed Marwan El Shorbagy
made sure Egypt had a full 50% of the quarter-finalists with a
quick despatch of Tyler Osborne.
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[1] Amr Khaled
Khalifa (Egy) bt [9/16] Fares Dessouki (Egy)
11/4, 10/12, 11/5, 7/11, 11/5 (55m)
IN & OUT, OUT & IN…
Again of those funny matches, with the tide changing one way and
the other!
First, we had Amr giving Fares a squash lesson for one and a
half game. To the point that at 10/5, Fares thinks the game is
over, and leaves the court! Amr is surprised, thinks he won the
point, and focus goes straight out of the window.
Of course, from that point on, Fares, no pressure, just plays
superb squash, and ends up taking the game, 12/10…
Khalifa puts the clock at the right time in the 3rd again, being
dominant and accurate, but in the 4th, Faresh founds the perfect
game and upset the favourite yet again! But experience and maybe
fitness make the difference in the 5th, with Amr running away
with the game…
After Fares got
off court at 10/5, I just lost concentration, couldn’t push…
Fares had nothing to lose, and played great squash, he is one of
the best juniors in Egypt.
And tomorrow, I really got to concentrate on the squash, not of
the expectations, nor the pressure. But in a way, I’m happy to
play 5 games, to get use to the court…
[5/8] Mohamed
Abouelghar (Egy) bt Oliver Holland (Eng)
3/11, 12/10, 11/2, 15/13 (41m)
MOHAMED IMPROVING…
It’s one of those matches where you start looking thinking that
one player is going to win easy, and you come back 15mn later,
and you realise that you don’t know much about squash after all.
Ollie Holland started extremely well in the first game, and to
the middle of the second, but gradually, he got probably a bit
tired as his opponent made him work very hard indeed, and as
this morning, Ollie played a hard 4 setter against mate Arthur
Moineau, I guess he just run out of gas in the end…
I was so nervous
to start with, I don’t think I’ve ever been that nervous in my
life really. And at 6/1 down in the second, I told myself, it’s
not going to end like this, I’m going to fight for it…
He did surprise me, although we’ve played in the juniors
already, he beat me in the BJO U15. But today, he really played
well, attacked a lot, volleyed too, and forced a lot of unforced
errors out of me.
Then, I settled and he helped me by doing 5, 6 errors per game
after that.
This was a good game, I hope I can play like that in my next
match…
I got off to a good start, and he helped me by playing a few
mistakes. I tried to relax as much as I could, it’s not that
often that you get a good lead against somebody of that level.
And I still took a good start in the second, but then, he cut
the mistakes, and my legs got tired from all the hard work he
made me do.
In the 3rd and 4th, I started making a few errors, and just
couldn’t finish the point. I guess it’s just the legs that got
tired…
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[5/8] Declan
James (Eng) bt Dylan Murray (Usa)
11/9, 11/9, 11/5 (38m)
INSTINCT VERSUS EXPERIENCE
Well, yet another good match, and another player that impresses
me, although he logically loses….
“Is Dylan playing often on the glass court”, I asked a member of
the US team? “No, he doesn’t play for a team, he actually plays
more basket ball than squash”….
We are dreaming…
Let me tell you that this boy has got some stunning instinct,
great retrieving abilities, a fitness as good as it comes, and
stunning mental strength, that allowed him to come back each
game from as bad as 6/0 down and equalise systematically.
Declan, what was he doing in all that you may ask? Well, he was
being the great professional and mature player he is really. He
kept his calm even when he was not playing at his best, played
with grace and fair play, precise, accurate and relentless.
Dylan deserved to win a game I thought, as he literally flung
himself to the four corners to try and get the ball back, even
finding some “Egyptian style nicks” on the way. But Declan had
the experience and the technical ability to stop the American in
three.
Still, I know that Dylan doesn’t really think about making a
career out of squash. That’s a bit of shame if you ask me.
 At
the start of each game, I was playing high intensity squash, and
when I was a few points ahead, I seem to drop it a bit, which
allowed him back in the game each time, especially thanks to his
great racquet skills.
David [Campion] told me to keep the intensity as high as
possible which I really succeed to do in the third.
I didn’t put any kind of pressure on myself coming here, I want
to play the best I can, and if I play well, I’ll be happy. For
the past 6 to 12 months, I’ve tried to improve, to get more
mature, more professional. Because I really want to reach my
full potential and become a top squash player…
[5/8] James
Earles (Eng) bt Alexandre Cogno (Fra)
11/2, 11/9, 11/4 (28m)
 In
the first game, I played rather well, took it 11/3. then he got
better in the second, and led 4/0 before I started clawing back,
to finally take it 11/9! That was probably the turning point of
the match…
In that second, we had a very very long rally, that took a lot
out of both of us, and he gave me a few unforced errors, then I
gave him a few unforced errors!! I think I sometimes lost
concentration, and went for the shots too early…
 I
think that technically, he was superior today. I don’t mean that
I was hunky dory physically, he made me run so much at the end,
I was knackered, but I just couldn’t counter his game,
especially in the 1st and 3rd, I just didn’t find solution to
the problems he proposed me!
In the 2nd, I was a bit better, I was able to delayed my shots
better, didn’t make too many errors, was able to play on his
backhand better, which led him to open the court a bit more for
me, creating more opportunities.
Physically, he was stronger at the end of the match, but still,
I really enjoyed myself on there, and I’m happy to be here…
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[9/16] Mahesh
Mangaonkar bt [9/16] Nick Hopcroft (Eng)
11/8, 11/5, 11/4 (32m)
[2] Marwan El Shorbagy (Egy) bt
[9/16] Tyler Osborne (Can)
11/2, 11/7, 11/2 (20m)
I didn’t see the match people at
all, but I was told that 17 year old Indian guy’s squash was
just too intense for Nick today, he was playing too fast, taking
the ball too early. Nick was trying to slow the pace down, to
control the ball, but he just couldn’t impose his game…
 I
was pretty confident. I’ve studied Nick’s game since I was 11.
And although I never played him before, I really worked on how
to play him. Also, I told myself that I’ve got to go and do it!
After all, I’ve been training for a year for this event…
I’m passionate about my squash, and I just admire Jonathan Power
so much, I want to do everything he’s done! I’ve started to play
PSA events, five up to now.
I’m blessed with being sponsored by Kingfisher Airlines, which
helps me with my travelling, and also, I’m managed by a Sports
Endorsement Company. And yes, I was to be world number one…
[2] Marwan El
Shorbagy (Egy) bt
[9/16] Tyler Osborne (Can)
11/2, 11/7, 11/2 (20m)
 I’m
trying to get used to the court, and tried a few shots, which
led to a few errors, but I only did that when I was up score
wise.
This morning, my opponent played really well, whereas I probably
didn’t. But I’m not going to beat myself about it, I just get on
with it.
This evening, I already played Tyler in the British, he is a
nice guy, and really fair. I played better than I did this
morning, but he played better last time we played.
Tomorrow, I’m playing Mahesh, he is playing well at the moment,
and hopefully, we’ll play a good match…
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Round TWO
 The
morning session went pretty much as expected, with just a couple
of minor upsets as Dylan Murray and Abhishek Pradhan
took out 9/16 seeds Jerome Dedat and Mike McCue respectively.
For the USA's Murray it was 'the best I've played for a long
time', while Indian manager Major Maniam was pleased, but not
surpised at Pradhan's result as 'he'd beaten Mike a couple of
times recently'.
Elsewhere the favoured Egyptians and English progressed
comfortably enough, and some of them will need the energy
they've saved for tough matches tonight ...
Round TWO:
[1] Amr Khaled Khalifa (Egy) bt Kush Kumar (Ind)
11/4, 11/3, 11/1 (22m)
[9/16] Fares Dessouki (Egy) bt Damien Volland (Fra)
11/3, 11/7, 11/0 (29m)
[5/8] Mohamed Abouelghar (Egy) bt Juan Vargas (Col)
11/5, 11/1, 11/7 (20m)
Oliver Holland (Eng) bt Arthur Moineau (Fra)
11/9, 8/11, 11/3, 11/2 (46m)
[5/8] Ramit Tandon (Ind) bt Abdulla Al-Tamimi (Qat)
11/5, 11/8, 11/9 (31m)
Abhishek Pradhan (Ind) bt [9/16] Mike McCue (Can)
9/11, 11/9, 11/1, 11/7 (38m)
[5/8] James Earles (Eng) bt Quint Mandil (Fra)
11/3, 11/5, 11/6 (21m)
Alexandre Cogno (Fra) bt Valentin Rapp (Ger)
11/9, 11/6, 7/11, 11/6 (44m)
[9/16] Mazen Hesham Ga Sabry (Egy) bt Greg Lobban (Sco)
11/6, 5/11, 11/8, 11/5 (31m)
Dylan Murray (Usa) bt [9/16] Jerome Dadot (Fra)
11/6, 11/9, 11/6 (40m)
[5/8] Declan James (Eng) bt Ernesto Davila (Ecu)
11/6, 5/11, 11/2, 11/9 (40m)
Alfonso Marroquin (Col) bt Yousef Saleh (Kuw)
12/10, 11/8, 7/11, 6/11, 11/9 (60m)
[9/16] Mahesh Mangaonkar (Ind) bt Cedric Kuchen (Sui)
11/2, 11/4, 11/5 (24m)
[9/16] Nick Hopcroft (Eng) bt Durandt Martin (Rsa)
11/7, 11/5, 11/5 (30m)
[9/16] Tyler Osborne (Can) bt Andres de Frutos (Col)
11/6, 11/2, 11/4 (20m)
[2] Marwan El Shorbagy (Egy) bt Martin Svec (Cze)
11/4, 11/7, 11/13, 11/3 (38m)
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Holland tested as Egyptian trio ease through
Oliver Holland (Eng) bt
Arthur Moineau (Fra)
11/9, 8/11, 11/3, 11/2 (46m)
 A
very interesting match between two players with a bit of the
same kind of game, patient at the back, and taking the
opportunity when it arises… Add to that Arthur trains in
Nottingham, where Olli is based, and you have two players that
know each others’ game rather well…
Olli was a bit nervous I thought, making a few uncharacteristic
errors in the first game, looking insecure to be honest. Arthur
surprised me, with an excellent physical presence, a good court
coverage, and some delicate backhand volley drops that found the
spot times and times again….
But as the match advanced, Olli just got more confident, and
Arthur more tired, with more and more unforced errors for the
Frenchman…
 Arthur
and I know each other quite well, we play a lot of friendly
matches, which I normally win, so I felt a bit of pressure
coming here in a competitive match, as I knew Arthur would me
much more in it than for a simple friendly game.
But in the third, David [Campion] told me to relax and to start
working in the corners instead of only hitting hard from the
back. So I did, and I started to play better, and Arthur got a
bit more tired as well.
I’m happy to win this one, especially as I was playing better at
the end, and hopefully, I can carry that onto the next match…
Oliver Holland
[9/16] Fares
Dessouki (Egy) bt Damien Volland (Fra)
11/3, 11/7, 11/0 (29m)
 Fares
didn’t have too much trouble today against Damien, although the
second one was more disputed. In the first game, the Frenchman
was courtcrossing too much, much to the delight of his opponent
that was cutting every ball with great success.
In the second, Damien played a more length game, and straighten
his shots, putting more pressure onto his opponent. Up to 6/6
that is, when Damien got a few calls that seem to make him lose
a bit of focus, plus a bit of tiredness, and Fares run to 11
rather quickly.
The third, well, 11/0. No comment necessary…
In the first game,
I was not too secure about my drives, so afraid to not be
accurate enough, so I crosscourted far too much. I reassessed in
the second, but at 6/6, two or three strokes against me, lost a
bit of concentration there…
I didn’t do a great match, although he played obviously very
well. And in the third, he was up 2/0, and went for his shots
that went in beautifully. Harsh score though, ending on a
11/0…..
Damien Volland
[1] Amr Khaled
Khalifa (Egy) bt Kush Kumar (Ind)
11/4, 11/3, 11/1 (22m)
I’m feeling good,
but I really don’t have any kind of expectations on this
tournament. What is squash? Drive, cross and drop. Whoever does
that wins. So, I may have a small advantage, but a squash court
doesn’t know who you are…
Amr Khaled Khalifa |
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[9/16] Mazen
Hesham Ga Sabry (Egy) bt
Greg Lobban (Sco)
11/6, 5/11, 11/8, 11/5 (31m)
A STAR IS BORN…
 Well,
you may think, what the heck is she talking about, as I’m about
to salute somebody who lost. But Greg Loban, from Scotland,
played a superb match today against U17 British Open Winner, and
even took a game quite comfortably.
OK, Greg is slightly short fitness-wise, and that was what made
the difference in the end, but boy, did Mohamed Hesham had to
run and fight today!
I’m pretty sure he didn’t expect such resistance from an unknown
Scottish player – not to mention the only one, with no coach,
nobody to support or advise him officially poor mite.
Of course, the Egyptian played some great squash, and deserves
to win, he’s got beautiful hands and all, one doesn’t win a
British title without being a great player, but if that Greg
gets training as he is supposed to next year in Glasgow, I can
tell you that Scotland may soon have an excellent player on the
circuit..
[5/8] James
Earles (Eng) bt Quint Mandil (Fra)
11/3, 11/5, 11/6 (21m)
 I
felt good this morning, had a good warming up, and was confident
going to this match, so I played well.
The court was bouncy and he is a fit player, so the rallies were
long and really tough…
I don’t have any ambition or expectation, just taking one match
at a time…
James Earles
Alexandre Cogno
(Fra) bt Valentin Rapp (Ger)
11/9, 11/6, 7/11, 11/6 (44m)
 We
have a few “brains” in France, and Alex is one of them – along
with Jérôme Dadot, who had in the first exams an average of 20
out of 20 in mathematics bless him. Alex just got his scientific
baccalauréat, and is now in one of the most prestigious schools
in France.
So he is not going to concentrate that much on squash for the
next three years, as the amount of work involved just cannot mix
with a full time squash training….
 I
could feel that at the end of the games, I was getting a bit
tired, and in the 3rd, he played better, more accurate squash,
and I started running all around him….
In the 4th, I was able to reassess, put more pressure onto him
as I was doing in the first two games, and he got tired as he
was the one having to run more…
Alexandre Cogno
Dylan Murray
(Usa) bt [9/16] Jerome Dadot (Fra)
11/6, 11/9, 11/6 (40m)
 This
is the best I’ve played for a very long time. Jérôme was seeded
to beat me, so I had nothing to lose, and just played well.
My goal this tournament was to reach the third round, and
although I’m going to give it my hardest, I may not stand much
chance in the next round!
It’s the 6th year I come to Europe to play on the junior
circuit, Pioneer and Dutch. This year, I got injured in the
semis of the Pioneer. I like coming here to get the experience,
although I want to privilege my studies in the near future…
Dylan Murray |
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