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02-Mar, Final:
Gary Wheadon (Rsa) bt [1] Sherif Moustafa Kamel (Egy)  
         9/11, 11/9, 6/11, 11/9, 11/9 (78m)

Wheadon wins on tour debut

South Africa's Gary Wheadon concluded a remarkable run in the FAJR Squash International when he triumphed in five games over Egypt's top seed Sherif Moustafa Kamel in the final of the PSA Tour event in its second year at Kish Island in Iran to claim the title in his maiden appearance on the Tour.

Competing in the event in his first month as a member of the Professional Squash Association, Wheadon made his Kish Island breakthrough in the second round when he defeated Kuwait's second seed Bader Al Hussaini.

Victory over 15th seed Jonas Laursen, of Denmark, in the quarter-finals took the 26-year-old from Cape Town into the last four - where he beat the out-of-sorts Englishman Robbie Temple, seeded six, in 33 minutes.

In the final, Wheadon twice had to come from behind before recording his sensational 78-minute victory over Kamel, the 22-year-old from Alexandria appearing in his third PSA Tour final.

Wheadon is in good company: the last player to storm through a PSA Tour field as a debutant did so in November 2004, in the Athens Open in Greece. The then 17-year-old had just won the first of his record two World Junior Championship titles, and this week enthralled the Grand Central Terminal crowds in New York to reach the semi-finals of the Tournament of Champions. His name: Ramy Ashour, the 19-year-old Egyptian now ranked five in the world.

More details on tournament site

Tournament Site

"He is a very disruptive player, so I knew I just had to keep focused. I knew physically I was strong enough to match a lot of player, so I just had to stick to my game plan and it worked! uIn the forth he made a lot of mistakes…early on I was playing good length but I lost my concentration which took me to 9/8 down, but I just forced myself to be focused and concentrate on hitting good length which forced him into a few errors and I was able to close it up at the end…

"I wished that my family and friends were here to share this with me…To play top level Squash is hard enough at the best of time and for them to stick by me through ups and downs is very difficult on them as well…So I just thank my family, friends and sponsors for their support and wished they were here to enjoy one of the greatest highlights of my career today…hopefully many more to come."

01-Mar-07, Semis:

[1] Sherif Moustafa Kamel (Egy) bt
[16] Omar Tarek Mahm Aly (Egy)
             9/11, 11/5, 11/5, 11/9 (38m)
Gary Wheadon (Rsa) bt [6] Robbie Temple (Eng)
            11/9, 11/8, 11/8 (33m)

Surprise final for Wheadon

Competing in his first PSA event, South Africa's Gary Wheadon has surprised everyone - including himself - in  reaching the final in Kish Island in Iran.

Wheadon overcame England's Robbie Temple in the semi-finals and now meets Egyptian top seed Sherif Moustafa Kamel.
 

"Quite a good first event. I didn't quite expect to reach the final of my first PSA tour. I'm quite excited about that!...

"I definitely will give it 100% effort tomorrow...it should be quite a good game."

More reports,
photos and quotes

28-Feb, Quarters:
Kamel Keeps Order In FAJR International Opener

Event favourite Sherif Moustafa Kamel became the only top four seed to reach the semi-finals of the FAJR Squash International - but the Egyptian had to battle for 92 minutes before overcoming South Africa's Stephen Coppinger in the quarter-finals of the event in its second year at Kish Island in Iran.

The 22-year-old from Alexandria defeated fifth-seeded Coppinger and will now meet fellow Egyptian Omar Tarek Mahm Aly in the semi-finals.  16th 6seed Ay upset Pakistan's No4 seed Khawaja Adil Maqbool.

Ahmed Gamal Swaify's bid to reach the final for the second year in a row failed in the quarter-finals.  The No3 seed from Egypt crashed out in five games to Robbie Temple, the sixth seed from England winning in 52 minutes.

Temple will face Gary Wheadon, the unseeded South African who followed his upset of Kuwait's second seed Bader Al Hussaini in the second round by defeating 15th seed Jonas Laursen, of Denmark in the quarter-finals.
 

Tournament Site

2006 Event

Omar Tarek Mahm Aly

Gary Wheadon

Omar Tarek Mahm Aly

9/11, 11/9, 4/11, 12/10, 11/4 (52m)

Ahmed Gamal Swaify

Gary Wheadon

11/9, 11/3, 4/11, 11/8 (42m)

Gary Wheadon

Qualifying:
 

"Today, Sport is the means to reach various social and individual goals. Squash, is indeed one of the most complete sports which covers a wide range of these goals.
Fajr International Squash Tournament, is a highlight in the Iranian Squash development.

"Thus the efforts and endeavours of all the parties involved in this event, from the esteemed officials at PSA to organizers and all the players, would highly be appreciated and would be proudly marked in the Iranian Squash history.

"I hope this event could create unforgettable memories for everyone and could also pace the rhythm of promotion and development of Squash in Iran. In the hope of seeing Squash at the very best position it truly deserves to be, at national levels as well as at high international standards."

Hamid Ghassemi

Tournament Site

2006 Event