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TODAY in Hurghada
Daily reports from the Hurghada International |
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Wed
16th, Day FIVE |
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We're down to the quarter-finals,
with two men's and two women's matches tonight ...
[2] Jenny Duncalf
(Eng) bt [5]
Sharon Wee (Mas)
3/9, 9/5, 9/2, 9/2 (37m)
[2] Ramy Ashour (Egy) bt [Q] Omar Abdel Aziz (Egy)
11/5, 11/4, 11/5 (27m)
[6] Raneem El Weleily (Egy)
[4] Engy Kheirallah (Egy)
9/3, 9/4, 7/9, 5/9, 9/6 (74m)
[4] Wael El Hindi (Egy) bt Omar Mosaad (Egy)
13/11, 11/5, 11/9 (52m) |
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[2] Jenny Duncalf
(Eng) bt [5]
Sharon Wee (Mas)
3/9,
9/5, 9/2, 9/2 (37m)
WINDY START…
It was nice feel, that breeze that comes on the court, for us,
as in the ones that don’t have to run after the ball. But for
the players, it meant having to adapt to yet another element!
And we had another slow start from Jenny, which allowed Sharon
to place her famous drop shot/redrop and play her lovely lobs.
But soon Jenny found her marks, and kept on surprising her
opponent with her backhand volley boast, that forced Sharon to
get low on her legs, and ended up tiring her a lot.
But honestly, we had some great rallies, and the crowd, numerous
despite the absence of Egyptians on the court, cheered both
players with knowledge…
 "At
the start I was a bit unsure of the court, I guess it was the
same for both players, it took me a while to get used to it.
Also, I couldn’t pass the service line, which made my game a bit
scrappy.
"I like the feeling of the wind on your face, but it moves the
ball a bit, especially in the back corners, you’ve got to be
careful as it just stops sometimes…
"Once I got comfortable on there, and found my length, she had
more problems reading my shots, in particular the backhand
volley boast. Then I was in control. We hadn’t play for a while,
but I can’t remember losing against her.
"It was nice to get on court finally, after yesterday’s day
rest, especially as there is another day of rest tomorrow! But I
love the event, I love the atmosphere, all the people dancing
between the games…"
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 "In
the beginning her length was not good, so I was able to volley
the ball and to finish the point. But soon, she realised that
she needed to lengthen her shots, and from that point, Jenny was
Jenny, and anything I would play in the middle, she would put
away, with volley drop shot, or volley boast.
"In the third I sped up the pace a bit, and was able to get a
few points from her there. But overall, I’m happy with my
performance, I came all the way from Malaysia to Egypt, and I’m
glad I stayed on court a bit more…
"Looking forward to the next tournament…"
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 "It
took me so long to get used to the conditions, it’s so windy,
and I’ve got the feeling that the outside conditions prevented
me from getting 100% in the game tonight.
"And Ramy adapted so quickly, so much better than I did. He is
more confident, he moves so well in particular to the front, so
fast with the racquet…
"But I’m happy I got to play in front of such a great crowd,
next time, I’ll try and do better."
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[2] Ramy Ashour (Egy)
bt [Q] Omar Abdel Aziz (Egy)
11/5, 11/4, 11/5 (27m)
GREAT SHOW
Omar was a bit nervous today, and was trying to take Ramy out of
position for most of the game, but was unfortunately ending the
rallies with unforced errors, hence the score that seems much
more punishing than the match those two gave us tonight.
Ramy had to run a hell of a lot to contain Omar, who got
frustrated with himself a few times, aware that he was not
playing his normal straight and tight game. Still, he found some
pretty nice rollers, that got Ramy applauding…
 "I
think he knows my game a bit too well, that’s the problem! But
normally, Omar does the basic game to perfection, and tonight,
he just kept on attacking, attacking.
"I’m not sure if it’s because he was a bit nervous, or because I
was attacking a lot, and that he couldn’t play his normal game,
I’m not sure. Still, I had to make sure I found the right
balance between attacking and defending, because if I was
attacking too much, he was able to take it to the front too
much, and put me under a lot of pressure.
"Tonight, I really enjoyed the game, tonight was the first match
here, and a bit of a test, to see how I react under pressure…"
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[6]
Raneem El Weleily (Egy)
[4] Engy Kheirallah (Egy)
9/3, 9/4, 7/9, 5/9, 9/6 (74m)
Raneem
makes the semis
Marwan reports
They were in the same club last year and they are a good friends
so they know each other very well. The match was very close,
Engy started very badly and nervous and then she got back and
Raneem was playing very well and lots of good shots from her and
she was up 7/4 in the third,
First game was very quick, Engy started nervously and she hit
the tin a lot and Raneem was controlling the rallies. In the
second Engy was completely out of concentration and Raneem was
playing very well especially with her backhand volley, but from
everywhere she made lots of drops and nicks.
The third Engy tried at the start of the game but Raneem didn't
giver her the chance to play and she took the lead 7/4. We
thought that the match was finished, but now Raneem started to
hit the tin and Engy began to focus and focus and from that game
maybe she took a bit of confidence. Raneem started the fourth
Raneem with four unforced errors, thinking about the third game,
and Engy was playing more basic, waiting for the mistakes from
her opponent and she started to play well at the end of this
game.
In the last game Raneem had a good start, helped by from Engy
which gave the lead to Raneem 5/2. Engy came back to 5/5 and the
match was really close now, but Raneem made some good shots and
she was moving well at the end, she won the game 9/6.
So now the double world junior champion will play against Jenny
in the semis, so she have a good chance to get to the final and
she has a good team behind her, her family and her coach Sherine
Adel.
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 "I
am really very happy to win today and to get to the semi-finals.
"She didn't play well at the start of the match and I was
playing really very well because I was concentrating for this
match. I was up 7/4 in the third and I lost my concentration so
I had to play five games.
"Anyway I am happy to have my coach here Sherine Adel and my
family as well ..."
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 "She
always gives me a heart attack, even when she wins 3/0. I thank
God that I have one boy and one girl, and that the boy doesn’t
play serious squash anymore…
"They play against each other a lot, and know each other’s game
so well…
"Still, I think that Engy was not focusing at the start of the
match, but she’s got a lot of experience, and self confidence
coming from a lot of time on the circuit, whereas Raneem is a
bit naïve, and sometimes, she doesn’t realise that she is there,
that she only has to push…
"She is concentrating more on her squash now, and has got more
training now she plays with the boys at the Heliopolis Club. And
I hope her game will evolve from junior squash and get a bit
more into the senior style…
"But the beginning and the end of the game, it’s God’s gift, as
it is every time she wins…"
Raneem's mum |
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 "Unlucky
today…
"It was the first time we played on the PSA tour. Today, I lost
my concentration, and started to make a lot of unforced errors
in the second.
"Wael played very well, he played nice shots on the forehand in
particular. And he’s got much more experience than me…
"I hope that now I’ve seen the way he plays, I can play better
next time, and not make so many mistakes…
"And I would really like to thank the organisation for putting
on this tournament…"
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[4] Wael El Hindi (Egy)
bt Omar Mosaad (Egy)
13/11,
11/5, 11/9 (52m)
WAEL ENDS ON TOP…
It was never going to be a walk in the park for the world number
nine, against a youngster who didn’t come to make up the
numbers, and certainly not to make him look good.
The just-turned-20 Omar attacked well, and was smashing volleys
on the forehand as if there was no tomorrow. Still, Wael was
able to take a good lead, to set up game ball in the first,
10/8. But he would need four of those to get the game…
A bit tired, both mentally and physically, Omar let Wael run
away with the second, 10/1, to start coming back into it, but
finally losing it 11/5.
The third was very close, 4/3, 5/4, 7/6. Again Wael will find a
good acceleration and excellent shots to force Mosaad to the
unforced error again and again. At 10/6, it seemed all over, but
yet again Omar clawed back to threaten his elder, 9/10. Still,
with a last gorgeous backhand drop shot nick, Wael closed it out
at last…
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"I was not too happy with several
decisions from the ref [that comes as a shock to us, Wael, FG], but
I’m happy I was still able to close it down in three.
"Against these youngsters, you can’t give them the luxury of giving
them a game, because if you do, it’s a different planet, it’s a
different game, and it’s a different match altogether. I didn’t want
to give him that momentum…
"Today I was happy with my movement, I think I was moving well, but
then again, that court suits me fine. So now, a day of rest, and
getting ready for the “vicious round!”
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