Egypt players dominate China Squash Open
Egyptian players dominated the 2017 China Squash Open finals which were held in a transparent glass court on the roof of The Peninsula Shanghai on Sunday.
Top-ranked Nour El Sherbini eased past compatriot Nouran Gohar 3-0 (12-10, 11-7, 11-9) in the women’s final on Sunday, while the men’s title went to world No. 14 Ramy Ashour, also from Egypt, who overcame compatriot Ali Farag 3-2 (11-3, 11-8, 10-12, 2-11, 11-5) in a hard-fought clash.
The men's final at least bore out Farag's pre-final comments about the world rankings hardly being representative of the competitiveness among the top 15 players, who are virtually neck-and-neck with each other on points. Ashour took a 2-0 lead in the final before Farag pulled two sets back to drag the game into a deciding set during which Ashour took the upper hand.
Egypt has been a traditional powerhouse in squash. Six of the world’s top-10 ranked male players and three top-10 ranked female players are from the north African country.
It’s the fourth year for Shanghai to host the PSA series event, which featured 56 players from 12 countries and regions, including 12 world’s top 10 ranked male and female players.
The glass court with the view of the Bund and Lujiazui area has been the signature of the Shanghai event.
“We have followed the venue requirement of top squash tournaments by taking advantage of the unique location of the Peninsula Shanghai, so that the audience can watch the matches while enjoying the enchanting night view of the Bund,” said Li Sheng, CEO of local co-organizer SECA. “By creating the ‘Venue in the Air’ we want to grow the popularity of squash in China through the charms shown from the top-level tournament.”