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09-Apr, Final:
 Home
joy for Raneem
in Heliopolis ...
Dr Samiha reports
The Final match had Raneem El Weleily, the third seed who
plays for Heliopolis club, so the gallery was full, on the stairs
and even on the floor people came to cheer for their player.
The first game went to Engy Kheirallah, the fourth seed,
though they leveled at 6/6 but from then on Engy was more focused,
sharp and went for every ball but Raneem did some unforced errors so
Engy took this game 11/7. The second game started with silence in
the gallery, but Raneem took the lead in the second then Engy
levelled at 5/5, and again at 10/10 but Raneem managed to take the
second 12/10.
In the third they kept playing conservative till 6/6 then Raneem
starting her winning shots and started to take control of the game,
so the third went to her 11/6.
In the fourth game Raneem managed to take the lead till 9/4 where
she started playing drops and lobs and made Engy out of balance, it
was certain that the third seed is determined and she took the
fourth and last game 11/5 in 60 min, and went out of court found her
way between spectators to hug her mother and father
 "It’s
my first wispa title," said the winner of the On the Run Heliopolis
Open, "I am so happy to take the title in my home club."
While her eyes full of tears from joy she said, "I want to thank my
mother, father and brother, and my coach Cherin Adel and Ahmed
Mataany.
"Want to thank you for holding the event as I remember the last
Heliopolis open was in 2003, I played in it I was almost 14 years
old, and now winning in my club that is great," said the winner.
 "I
am happy its my first wispa title and in my club though I wouldn’t
have liked to beat Rachael after she was injured."
The winner added, "I am also happy I returned in a week's time,
thanks to Engy as she is the one that got me back to serious
training."
 Engy
said "the first two games I played very good, but she played
excellent. Today I was more focused in the first two games then went
out of concentration and I started thinking about the second game
and how I lost it, Raneem was excellent, had sharp shots and she
took the title," said the runner up.
The match was live on tv, on two channels and a third channel is
going to broadcast the matches tomorrow and the day after
The prize giving was on court just after the match, Mr Ali el Essawy
treasurer was on behalf of the board of directors of the Heliopolis
club, gave a short word thanking everyone and wished that the
players would come next year.
The sponsor Mr Ahraf Tawfik from exon mobile gave the silver
plate to the runner up Engy Kheiralla, Mr Ali el Essawy gave
the winner her silver plate prize, the sponsor gave ipods to the
quarter finalists,
And Mr Sayed ElKamash, member of the Egyptian squash
association gave them the prize money.
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  On
the Run
Heliopolis Open 2009
04-09 Apr, Cairo, $20k |
Round One
06 Apr |
Quarters
07 Apr |
Semis
08 Apr |
Final
09 Apr |
[1] Rachael Grinham (Aus)
11/4, 9/11, 11/6, 11/6 (38m)
Dipika Pallikal (Ind) |
[1] Rachael Grinham
11/5, 11/3, 11/9 (18m)
[7] Orla Noom |
[1] Rachael Grinham
8/11, 13/11 rtd
[3] Raneem El Weleily |
[3] Raneem El Weleily
7/11, 12/10, 11/6, 11/5 (60m)
[4] Engy Kheirallah |
[7] Orla Noom (Ned)
11/7, 11/6, 1/11, 11/5 (20m)
Joey Chan (Hkg) |
[3] Raneem El Weleily (Egy)
11/4, 11/8, 11/6 (18m)
Elise Ng (Hkg) |
[3] Raneem El Weleily
11/7, 11/5, 9/11, 11/8 (41m)
Heba El Torky |
[6] Tenille Swartz (Rsa)
3/11, 11/5, 11/9, 11/5 (36m)
Heba El Torky (Egy) |
[Q] Nour El Tayeb (Egy)
11/9, 9/11, 11/4, 2/11, 11/6 (37m)
[5] Manuela Manetta (Ita) |
[Q] Nour El Tayeb
11/7, 11/7, 11/4 (33m)
[4] Engy Kheirallah |
[4] Engy Kheirallah
11/6, 3/11, 11/8, 11/4
[2] Rebecca Chiu |
[Q] Nour El Sherbeny (Egy)
11/5, 5/11, 11/8, 11/7 (38m)
[4] Engy Kheirallah (Egy) |
[Q] Lucie Fialova (Cze)
12/14, 11/7, 12/10, 11/8 (49m)
[8] Christina Mak (Hkg) |
[8] Christina Mak
11/6, 11/6, 11/0 (19m)
[2] Rebecca Chiu |
[Q] Kanzy El Defrawy (Egy)
11/9, 11/3, 11/3 (22m)
[2] Rebecca Chiu (Hkg) |
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05-Apr, Qualifying Finals:
Nour El Tayeb (egy) bt Farah
Abdel Meguid (egy)
11/8, 10/12, 11/3, 9/11, 11/3
Kanzy El Defrawy (egy) bt Salma Hani (egy)
11/6 rtd
Nour El Sherbini (egy)
bt
Nouran El Torky (egy)
11/5, 7/11, 11/6, 13/11
Lucie Fialova (cze) bt Salma Nassar (egy)
14/12, 11/5, 11/5
04-Apr, Qualifying Round One:
Nour El Tayeb (Egy) bye
Farah Abdelmeguid bt Merehan Amr
10/12-9/11- 11/8-11/7-11/3
Kanzy Eldefrawy bt Sherouk Omar
11/4- 11/4 -11/4
Salma Hany bt Yathreb Adel
13/11-11/6-11/0
Nour El Sherbini bt Sara El Noamany
11/3- 14/16- 11/3-11/3
Nourn El Torky bt Hidi Essam
11/7 -7/11- 11/6-11/8
Salma Nassar bt Farida Dahab
w/o
Lucie Fialova (Cze) bye
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08-Apr, Semis:
Top seeds dismissed in Heliopolis semis
Dr Samiha reports
The first match was between the second seed Rebecca Chiu
from Hong Kong and the fourth seed Engy Kheirallah from
Egypt. Engy was nervous and so was Rebecca, both were playing a
conservative game till 6/6 when the referee denied a let to Rebecca
so she went out of focus and lost two balls in the tin and Engy won
the game 11/6.
Keeping Engy behind her at the beginning of the second game gave
Rebecca 2/0 start, Engy lost a lot of rallies as a result of
unforced errors giving Rebecca a chance to level the match as she
took the game 11/3. The third game went like the first, a point for
each till 9/7 when Rebecca fell and a stroke was given in Engy's
favour and another stroke that ended the game to Kheirallah 11/8.
The fourth game saw lots of unforced errors from Rebecca, on the
other hand Engy showed accuracy and tight balls and the game went to
Engy 11/4, that secured a place for an Egyptian in the final of the
Heliopolis open for the first time since the event started in 1995.
 "It’s
the first or second time I play Rebecca that’s why I didn’t know how
to play her at the beginning, but I became more confident later and
in the fourth I became aggressive, and managed to take the game. I
am still fresh and hope it will be an all Egyptian final" said the
triumphant Engy.
 "I
didn’t play well today, lots of errors and I was impatient, I am not
happy," said Rebecca after the match.
The second match was between the first seed Rachael Grinham,
who played for the Heliopolis club for eight years, and Raneem El
Weleily the third seed who is currently playing for the
Heliopolis club. Rachael took the lead and won the first game 11/8,
in the second game Rachael took the lead 6/3 and Raneem gave her a
ball on her wrong foot and while Rachael was trying to change her
direction to reach the ball she fell and injured the tibialis
posterior tendon.
 She
tried to continue the play after been given the three minutes to
recover, though Raneem was not playing at her full and Rachael was
still injured, the game went to Raneem 13/11.
Before going out of court Rachael told the referee that she would
not be able to continue the match and thus Raneem passed through to
an all-Egyptian final. |
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07-Apr, Quarters:
Top four through to semis
Dr Samiha reports
The first match was between team mates Rebecca Chiu and
Christina Mak from Hongkong. Rebecca dismissed Christina in
straight games in 19 min.
"We know each others' game, we are team mates, as we train and play
a lot against each other almost a hundred times so I don’t like to
play her, but I am happy to pass to the semis," said Rebecca after
the match.
 Faheem
Khan was relaxed watching his players play against each other, as
there is no coaching for either of them, they had to do it on their
own.
A relaxed Fahim said "everything is good, girls are having a nice
time, we have been here for two weeks we are having a great time,
the hotel is nice too, we are looking forward for the final.”
The second match was between Raneem el Weilely from the
heliopolis club and Heba el Torky from Alexandria, both from
Egypt, and members of the world team champions 2008. So it was a
difficult match as they know each others game and train together,
but what added to the difficulty is that Heba beat Raneem twice in
the past month, during the nationals and in Hurghada.
 Raneem
won the first and second games with ease 11/7 and 11/5 proving she
is the best, and that her skills are variety of dops, lobs, boasts
and cross courts. She was stable and confident but it seems that she
remembered that Heba beat her last week and the game changed with
lots of unforced errors and she gave way to Heba to take the third
game 11/9. Raneem, the third seed, started the fourth game with
doubt till they reached 8/8 but from then she took the last three
points to win the match.
 "She
is playing in her club, besides I don’t like to play her as we are
team mates, I was also breathless in the first two games but I
continued. She played very well today, thank God I played well as I
changed my game. N I will take a rest as I played nine matches in
the last month," said the young teenager Heba El Torky.
Third match was between the first seed, world number three
Rachael Grinham, and Orla Noom, the seventh seed from the
Netherlands. Rachael is a former Heliopolis club member, she
played for the club for eight years, so every one knows Rachael. She
played comfortably and beat Orla in straight games in 18min.
The fourth and last match saw the experienced fourth seed Engy
Kheirallah beat the talented young Nour El Tayeb in her
home club, the center court at the Heliopolis club packed with
spectators cheering for their talented player who passed through
from the qualification to the quarters.
 But
the determined, calm, steady Engy gave no chance for the upset to
happen, she played a steady game, error free. On the other hand Nour
played lovely drops but was impatient to end the rally, had many
unforced errors though she flew for every shot, but Engy ended the
match in straight games in 37 min.
"I am happy I won in three, I was very sharp, I played well. Nour is
a very talented player I had to be focused so that I don’t give her
any easy balls as she has very sharp shots,” said the winner.
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06-Apr, Round One:
Heba & Nour in first round upsets
Dr Samiha reports
In the opening match of the main draw Engy Kheirallah
played against Nour el Sherbini, both from Alexandria but from
different clubs. The experienced and calm world champion team member
won the first game 11/5, but the second game was quite different as
the young talented Nour took the game 11/5. The third and fourth
game went to Engy as she controlled most of the game and she won
3/1.
 “It’s
the first time I've played her,” said Engy, "and I heard that she
beat all the other Egyptian players but I had no plan for her, and
she is relaxed as there is no pressure on her, so now I am happy I
won and looking forward for tomorrow's match.
“It was a good match, we both played a good game, I was very happy
to play Engy for the first time,” said Nour El Sherbini.
 Orla
Noom beat Joey Chan, overturning last week's Hurghada result, 3/1 in
20 minutes. Orla commented "last week I lost to Joey 3/0 in Hurghada,
at that time I was impatient and made silly mistakes but I learnt my
lesson and also I watched Tenille and saw how patient she is, and
she works so hard for every point so that is what I did today and it
worked for me. I was happy with my game and she played a very good
game as well."
Joey on the other hand said "I wasn’t good today and I gave her all
the balls and let her play her game, I was not in the game to day, I
don’t know why ...”
 The
first upset of the day was when the non seeded Heba El Torky beat
the sixth seed Tenille Swartz.
“It is difficult to beat Tenille as she beat Engy last week, that
was all what I had on my mind,” said Heba. "She is a very difficult
player as she goes for every point, I had to change my game and be
patient and persistent," added the elder El Torky sister.
The second upset of the day was when unseeded Nour el Tayeb
dismissed Manuela Manetta, the 5th seed 3/2 in 37 minutes. Nour won
the first game 11/9 but lost the second 9/11, came back and took the
third 11/4 then lost the fourth 2/11. In the decider Manuela took
the first four points then Nour levelled 4/4, then 5/5, then Nour
reached 9/5 in one hand, ending the game with two lovely nicks to
secure a place in the quarter-finals.
 "It
is the most difficult match of my life, she is fit and fast," said
the winner. "I was impatient, but I played very well in the third, I
changed my game as my coach Hatem Hassan told me, he told me to keep
her behind me and be patient, which I did. I am happy with the win
as it is in my club."
 Raneem
el Weleily beat Elise NG 3/0. The highly skilled Raneem knows the
art of the game and played drops, lobs, volleys, cross courts,
boasts ... she attacked most of the time, showing the spectators
that she is one of the best players specially as she is playing in
her club.
Christina Mak beat Lucie Fialova, though she lost the first game
12/14 she managed to win the following three games.
 "I
think I played well, she is a very good player. It’s a good
experience, I enjoyed the game and enjoyed the tournament," said
Fialova.
Rachael Grinham, the top seed, beat Depika Pallikal 3/1. The first
game was too easy for Rachael as she took the game in one hand from
5/4. In the next Dipika played drop shots as well as cross courts
that gave her the lead 6/1, then Rachael managed to reach 8/8 and
from there Dipika took the lead by a point and she won 11/9. Rachael
came back with a different plan, lobs was the game and she took the
third and fourth games to six..
 "I
am glad I won, she hits the ball really well and you don’t know
where is it going as I never played her,” said Rachael as she came
out of court. "she is quick and has good shots and flicks, she has
winners," added the number one seed.
 "I
am happy with my game, I played well but I had some tins, I was
tired too. The aim of the match is to get experience and prepare for
the world juniors in July," said Dipika.
The last match was between the second seed Rebecca Chiu and the
under 15 Kanzy el Defrawy from the Heliopolis club, Rebecca won in
straight games 3/0.
 Kanzy
took the lead in the first game till she reached 9/6 after that
Rebecca in one hand ended the game 11/9. The two last games went to
Rebecca as well as she dominated the games and played with finesse.
"Happy to win in three, she is tough and has good shots so I had to
focus, she is a talented player for her age," said Rebecca.
Overall a good day for the hosts, and with two all-Egyptian
quarter-finals both the semi-finals are guaranteed to feature
Egyptian players ...
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05-Apr, Qualifying Finals:
Qualifying Complete in Heliopolis
Dr Samiha reports
Lucie Fialova beat Salma Nassar 3/0 in the opening match,
though Salma tried in the first game as point by point was won by
both players but Lucie won the game 14/12 and took the next two games
11/5 and 11/5.
Kanzy El Defrawy, playing in her country and in her club, was in
very good shape today, she beat Salma Hani in the first game 11/6
and then Salma retired as she was injured since the previous
tournament and didn’t continue her recovery.
"I'm disappointed for my injury but I need to rest so that it heals
as I played on it in Hurghada," said Salma.
Nour El Tayeb beat Farah Abdelmeguid 3/2 but it took Nour 45
minutes. The first game both players were nervous and there were a
lot of unforced errors and they scored point by point till 8/8, then
Farah was so nervous that she hit the tin in the last three points
and Nour won the game 11/8. The second game was exactly like the
first, but from 8-all this time it was Farah who managed to win the
game, 12/10. Farah made eight unforced errors in a row to lose the
third 3/11, the fourth again was a repeat of the first two games
till they levelled 8/8 but again Farah managed to win the game.
11/9. In the decider Nour was a little more sharp in her shots and
won this game 11/3 to secure a place in the main draw.
 "Farah
played very good to-night," said Nour, "but I was not at my best.
All I am thinking about now is to have a good place in the main
draw."
Farah said after the match, "Well I played very well at the
beginning but I didn’t practice since last week after my match in
Hurghada, but I am satisfied with the result and I hope I play
better next time."
 The
last match was the young rising star Nour El Sherbini, in
full power and mature game again her straight that is so tight and
her volley and cross court she won the first game 11/5, but the
second game went to Nouran El Torky as she changed her game and
played a lot of boasts to take the game 11/7. Nour came back in full
power and reached 10/3, then was injured and took time to put a
plaster on her knee, went back and managed to take the game 11/3. In
the fourth game Nouran tried hard to level the match but the skilled
El Sherbini managed to win the game 13/11 and won the match to reach
the main draw in her first wispa event.
"We both played well today," said the victor. "I was a little
nervous when I was injured then I forgot all about it. I am very
happy that I managed to reach the main draw in my first wispa event,
I wished that if I reached the main draw that I play against Engy
Kheirallah and fortunately I will do that tomorrow in the main
draw."
Main draw matches starts Monday 6 April at 6:00pm
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04-Apr, Qualifying Round One:
Qualifying under way in Heliopolis
 The
first match started at 5:00pm on the centre court between Salma Hani
and Yathreb Adel, the under 13 british winner. The first game was
dominated by the youngster Yathreb, she played consistently and was
leading 8/6 but the more experienced Salma Hani took her in her game
of straight strong shots and she saved two match balls before she
ended the first game 13/11 and dominated the other two games and won
3/0.
On the side court there was another match between two Egyptians,
Farah Abdelmeguid and Merihan Amr.That was the first match for
Merihan Amr after a series of injuries the last of which is
inflammation of the tendon Achiullis, but she made an excellent
start and played her very precise drop shots as well as tight balls
and she took the first game 12/10 and also the second game 11/9.
After that Farah dominated the following two games 11/8, 11/7, the
last and final game was one sided as Farah took the game 11/3, and
won the match 3/2.
 The
third match saw the rising egyptian star Nour El Sherbini, the
british under 15 winner, who beat Sarah El Noemani 3/1. Though Nour
El Sherbini is just 13 and a half years old, she plays with ease and
has dall the correct shots as she manages to control the game most
of the time.
The other match on the side court saw Nouran El Tourky beat Hidi
Essam 3/1. Kanzy El Defrawi dismissed Sherouk Omar 3/0. Kanzy
dominated her egyptian opponent and ended the match 11/4-11/4-11/4
in 17 min, as for the last match there was a no show from farida
Dahab and Salma Nassar won the match W/O.
Qualifying finals start at 5pm Sunday ...
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