Rachael Grinham rolls back the years 
By ELLIE MAWSON in Shanghai

Egypt’s world junior champion Mostafa Asal ended home interest after he despatched Chinese wildcard Zhitao Zhou at Shanghai’s SECA Academy on the opening day of the J.P. Morgan China Squash Open, PSA World Tour Gold tournament.

The 18-year-old Asal – who claimed his second World Junior title during the summer – showed he was in strong form as he comfortably overcame World No.580 Zhou, who was competing at the tournament for the third time.

Asal will now face England’s Tom Richards for a place in the quarter finals tomorrow. “I was really pleased with my performance today,” said 18-year-old Asal afterwards.

“Playing the wildcard is never easy, especially at his home club. It’s difficult to manage the first game, I just played my own game and that worked well today. He is playing well and I’m looking forward to my next match.

“Tom is a good player and I hope we have a good match. Our head-to-head is 1-1 and we will see what tomorrow brings.

“To balance a junior and professional career is tough, but I’m happy to finish my junior career with a double World Junior Championship. This tournament is amazing and I hope it continues for me.”

Joining him in the second round are compatriots Mazen Hesham and Youssef Soliman after they defeated Malaysia’s Eain Yow Ng and Ivan Yuen, respectively.

“I started really well, which is good,” said Hesham, who will face England’s Adrian Waller in round two tomorrow.

“He started to play better as well, in the third, as he got used to the court and then it became a bit scrappy. I’m really glad that I held my nerve and started to get back to the tie-break to win the game.

“Adrian and I played last season at the World Championships and I played him a few times in the summer. I like him, he is a nice guy off court and hopefully it is a good match and I manage to get the win.”

Meanwhile, Soliman has set up an encounter with compatriot and World No.1 Ali Farag tomorrow on the glass court atop the Peninsula Shanghai, which overlooks Shanghai’s famous Bund.

Elsewhere in the men’s draw, Asian interest comes in the form of Hong Kong duo Tsz Fung Yip and Leo Au after they both secured round one wins on the opening day of action in Shanghai.

Yip defeated Egypt’s Mohamed ElSherbini, while Au prevailed in a tough encounter with France’s Baptiste Masotti to reach the last 16, where they will face India’s World No.10 Saurav Ghosal and Mexico’s No.6 seed Cesar Salazar.

Spain’s Iker Pajares Bernabeu, Qatar’s Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi and France’s Lucas Serme completed the men’s round one winners.

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Meanwhile in the women’s draw, Netherlands’ Milou van der Heijden and Canada’s Danielle Letourneau both secured wins against higher seeded opposition after they defeated Malaysia’s Low Wee Wern and Hong Kong’s Joey Chan, respectively.

Van der Heijden put in a strong performance to down Malaysia’s Low and has set up a thrilling encounter with defending champion and World No.1 Raneem El Welily tomorrow.

“That first game, I think I was leading all the way, and then she kept coming back,” said 28-year-old van der Heijden.

“There were a few game balls on both sides, so to actually squeeze it in the end was a positive start. I think that first game was really important for me [to win].

“It’s very exciting, who doesn’t want to play on the glass overlooking the Bund in Shanghai. It’s a great opportunity and experience to play Raneem and I’m looking forward to it.”

Meanwhile, Letourneau – who is situated at the opposite side of the draw – will face No.2 seed and 2019 British Open champion Nouran Gohar for a spot in the quarter finals.

They will be joined in the last 16 by Australia’s former World No.1 Rachael Grinham, who once again defied her age as she overcame Liu Tsz-Ling by an 11-6, 11-4, 6-11, 11-6 scoreline in 34 minutes.

The 42-year-old Australian, who has won all of the sport’s biggest titles, will take on Egypt’s World No.5 Nour El Tayeb in the next round.

“I’m really happy with my performance today,” said the Grinham. “For me, these days, I don’t have any real ambitions to make a certain rank or anything. I just want to play well and be in shape. I’m over 40, so I just got off court and said to someone it’s good for me if I’ve had a match and I’m still in one piece! To win the first match in a tournament this size is really good for me and a good start for the season.

“It’s always fun playing Nour [El Tayeb]. She grew up around me in Egypt, when I lived there for eight years and I played at her club. I’ve known Nour since she was about nine years old and watching her play squash. She varies it a lot and mixes it up, which I admire about her game and I’m looking forward to having another match.”

It was also a strong day for Egypt in the women’s draw as Yathreb Adel, Nadine Shahin, Nada Abbas, Zeina Mickawy and World Junior champion Hania El Hammamy all claimed victories to advance to the last 16 of the PSA World Tour Gold tournament.

“Julianne has been playing really well,” said Adel following her win over England’s Julianne Courtice. “We saw her play last season and from her results I knew that I had to focus from the start, try to push her into the back and find my shots. I’m glad it worked.

“I was thinking ‘I have to push and win this game’ because it’s either going to be 2-0 or 1-1 and then it’s tight again. You never know what’s going to happen next, but I think after the second game I felt more confident and I sort of knew what was going to happen. I was trying to eliminate my errors and just keep going.

“I had a good pre-season and always when you have some time off and come back to tournaments you’re like ‘how did I used to warm up’ as if you forget everything, but then you start to get into it and it feels good to be playing again. Hopefully it will be another good season for me.” 

J.P. Morgan China Open, Shanghai, China.

Men’s Round One:
Youssef Soliman (EGY) bt Ivan Yuen (MAS) 3-2: 8-11, 11-8, 7-11, 11-9, 11-8 (76m)
Mostafa Asal (EGY) bt [WC] Zhitao Zhou (CHN) 3-0: 11-3, 11-4, 11-4 (23m)
Mazen Hesham (EGY) bt Eain Yow Ng (MAS) 3-1: 11-8, 11-7, 5-11, 13-11 (56m)
Tsz Fung Yip (HKG) bt Mohamed ElSherbini (EGY) 3-1: 8-11, 11-7, 11-1, 11-9 (50m)
Iker Pajares Bernabeu (ESP) bt Greg Lobban (SCO) 3-1: 11-9, 11-6, 1-11, 11-6 (59m)
Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi (QAT) bt Alan Clyne (SCO) 3-0: 5-1 retired (4m)
Leo Au (HKG) bt Baptiste Masotti (FRA) 3-1: 13-11, 11-8, 6-11, 11-8 (62m)
Lucas Serme (FRA) bt Karim Ali Fathi (EGY) 3-1: 12-10, 8-11, 11-4, 11-2 (51m)

Women’s Round One:
Milou van der Heijden (NED) bt Low Wee Wern (MAS) 3-0: 16-14, 11-9, 11-3 (31m)
Nada Abbas (EGY) bt Donna Lobban (AUS) 3-0: 11-9, 11-5, 11-9 (28m)
Hania El Hammamy (EGY) bt Ho Tze-Lok (HKG) 3-0: 11-2, 11-6, 11-6 (24m)
Zeina Mickawy (EGY) bt Hollie Naughton (CAN) 3-0: 12-10, 14-12, 11-6 (30m)
Rachael Grinham (AUS) bt Liu Tsz-Ling (HKG) 3-1: 11-6, 11-4, 6-11, 11-6 (34m)
Nadine Shahin (EGY) bt Haley Mendez (USA) 3-0: 11-8, 11-5, 11-5 (23m)
Yathreb Adel (EGY) bt Julianne Courtice (ENG) 3-0: 11-7, 12-10, 11-4 (30m)
Danielle Letourneau (CAN) bt Joey Chan (HKG) 3-0: 11-7, 11-7, 11-3 (22m)

Men’s Round Two (September 5):
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) v Youssef Soliman (EGY)
Mostafa Asal (EGY) v [8] Tom Richards (ENG)
[7] Adrian Waller (ENG) v Mazen Hesham (EGY)
Tsz Fung Yip (HKG) v [3] Saurav Ghosal (IND)
[4] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) v Iker Pajares Bernabeu (ESP)
Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi (QAT) v [5] Omar Mosaad (EGY)
[6] Cesar Salazar (MEX) v Leo Au (HKG)
Lucas Serme (FRA) v [2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY)

Women’s Round Two (September 5):
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v Milou van der Heijden (NED)
Nada Abbas (EGY) v [8] Salma Hany (EGY)
[5] Annie Au (HKG) v Hania El Hammamy (EGY)
Zeina Mickawy (EGY) v [4] Joelle King (NZL)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) v Rachael Grinham (AUS)
Nadine Shahin (EGY) v [6] Alison Waters (ENG)
[7] Victoria Lust (ENG) v Yathreb Adel (EGY)
Danielle Letourneau (CAN) v [2] Nouran Gohar (EGY)
 

Report by ELLIE MAWSON (PSA). Edited by ALAN THATCHER.

Pictures courtesy of China Open and PSA

‘Our goal is to build 100 of these centers’
Interview by ALAN THATCHER (Squash Mad Editor)

The Manhattan Community Squash Center is planning to open its doors at the end of this month. With a number of New York squash clubs closing in the past decade or more, this is a much-needed addition to the Big Apple squash community. We caught up with James Green, one of the founding partners, to discuss the project.

1: How did your project first come about?
Courts have been closing in NYC for about 20 years. In Manhattan we are now down to only one location (Equinox on 61st street) which has regulation squash courts available to the general public. (There are other courts, but they are either all private or part of private clubs who limit access or require references etc.). Our club (The Printing House) closed its doors in 2010 and a group of us has been working on putting it back together ever since.

2: Who are the main people driving it forward?
We are a group of enthusiastic squash players who were devastated when The Printing House (where we used to play squash) was bought by Equinox, who demolished our five courts in December 2010. Ever since then, we’ve been trying to launch a new center to call home. Fitting multiple squash courts into existing buildings in New York City has proved much harder than we ever imagined – but we are finally here! Our group has grown and shrunk and grown again over the years and currently includes David Ellen, David Puchkoff, Terry Talerman, Peter Nicol and myself, with many more who have supported us overtly and covertly over the years.

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3: What are your squash backgrounds?
Most of us are mediocre, middle-aged men who play squash for joy and fitness. Not the most desirable or inspired demographic. For example, I took up squash because I was overweight at the age of 39 and my wife told me to “go to the gym”. And then there’s Peter Nicol, who doesn’t really have much in common with the rest of us when it comes to squash skills.

4: It seems you have identified a location to build a new club. How did you choose the spot?
We’ve been looking for eight years and although we found a couple of other spots at various other times, we were never able to close them. This is the first spot that met our criteria of being located in Manhattan and able to house more than four courts.

5: How is the building process progressing?
It’s late! But it’s progressing. Once demolition was complete, building commenced earlier this year. We’d hoped to open by May but then we aimed for August. We are now planning to open on the last day of September.

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6: How have you raised the necessary funding?
We ended up raising most of the funds from within the team. We are raising funds in small chunks of $10-$50K or getting people to sign up which will help us reduce our debt burden and make sure we are able to generate positive cash flow after we open.

7: Do you have a vision for how the club should operate?
We are a non-profit and our mission is to make squash more accessible to the general public. The center (We prefer to use the phrase “squash center” vs “squash club” because of the plethora of private clubs in the city and we think center makes it sound less exclusive.  But to answer your question, here are some of the things we will do:):
We aim to make sure that the facility is in use every hour of the day.
We provide discounts so that most people can afford to join no matter their financial situation
We will provide juniors with time after school where they can train (from 3-5:45pm)
We will provide lessons and clinics for adults on most days of the week
The bulk of the remaining time will be available for recreational play
We have a women’s committee to make sure that more women join and play than we see in most other facilities.

8: Have you lined up any coaching staff?
Peter Nicol and his organization are running the junior programs and John Musto will run all of the adult programs. There will of course be other pros working at the Center but these are not yet announced.

9: Have you looked at installing any Interactive courts?
Yes. We will have the ability to do that after we open. They will not be installed before opening.

10: What kind of membership numbers do you need to make it viable?
325

11: What about future plans?
Our goal (at The Squash Center) is to build 100 of these centers…. the Manhattan Community Squash Center is our first.
 

The Manhattan Community Squash Center is at 25 West 39th Street. Here is the Floor Plan: 

Pictures courtesy of  The Squash Center

‘Lucas and I used to train together; I’m so glad to see him reaching his potential’
By ELLIE MAWSON – Squash Mad Correspondent

Egypt’s World No.2 Mohamed ElShorbagy survived a scare against France’s World No.35 Lucas Serme after he was forced to come from 2-0 down to book his place in the quarter finals of the J.P. Morgan China Squash Open PSA World Tour Gold tournament.

ElShorbagy, who won the China Open title back in 2016, found himself staring down the barrel of defeat as Serme started strongly on the glass court atop the Peninsula Shanghai to take a surprise lead.

The Egyptian, however, showcased just how he climbed to the top of the World Rankings as he showed his mental fortitude to come back and claim an 8-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-2 victory.

“Lucas played so well today,” said former World No.1 ElShorbagy afterwards. “We used to train together back in Bristol and have played together for so many years. I’m really happy for him to be raising his level that way. He has so much potential and I’m glad that he’s living up to that now.

“For me, that was the first match of the season and it’s always a tricky one. We had a tough battle at the beginning of the third game and from that moment I pulled through and had control of the match after, but all credit to him. I had to dig in deep to win this match and I’m very happy to live another day here.”

The Egyptian will face World No.23 Leo Au in the next round after the Hong Kong player secured a surprise victory over No.6 seed Mexico’s Cesar Salazar to advance at the tournament.

Like ElShorbagy, Au was two games down but bravely rallied on to secure an 11-13, 9-11, 13-11, 12-10, 11-9 victory in a mammoth 90 minute match played out on the side courts at the SECA Academy.

World No.1 Ali Farag secured a last eight berth after he defeated compatriot and World No.31 Youssef Soliman 3-1 to take another step in the tournament in Shanghai.

“I’m very happy,” said the 27-year-old from Cairo. “First match of the season is never easy, especially when it comes against someone like Youssef. We know each other’s games pretty well, we grew up in the same club and now I play for Wadi Degla, but we still play together a lot. I’m very happy to get away with a 3-1 win here.

“Our sport is beautiful, we get to put it anywhere in the world and to put it on top the Shanghai Bund is amazing. I’m really happy that fingers crossed the rain stays out of the area and we can keep playing on this venue.”

He will take on England’s Tom Richards in the next round after the former World No.12 defeated Egypt’s World Junior champion Mostafa Asal to reach the quarter finals.

“I’m expecting a lot of firey shots [from Tom Richards],” continued Farag. “I wouldn’t say he has a traditional English game, he likes to go for it and I’ll try to keep my discipline and not get too erratic with him and we will see how it goes.”

Elsewhere in the men’s draw, Farag’s compatriot Mazen Hesham upset the seedings after he defeated England’s World No.22 Adrian Waller on the side courts.

The Egyptian shot maker has shown that he is getting back to his best after being plagued with injury throughout the last few years as he displayed another strong performance in China.

“Today was really good,” said Hesham following his win. “He was pushing me really hard and I have never seen him play this well against me before. It was very tough, I just kept strong mentally and I think that made the difference.

“Today I pushed a lot harder than I do in training. I just go day by day and hopefully I have done enough work to push this hard and this week will show with how my body deals with it.”

Next up for Hesham is India’s World No.10 Saurav Ghosal after his controlled performance saw him down Hong Kong’s Tsz Fung Yip to reach the last eight of the PSA World Tour Gold tournament.

The other quarter final men’s match will see Egyptian pair Marwan ElShorbagy and Omar Mosaad face each other after they claimed respective wins over Spain’s Iker Pajares Bernanbeu and Qatar’s Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi.

In the women’s draw, top seeds Raneem El Welily and Nouran Gohar both prevailed to reach the last eight after they secured 3-0 wins over the Netherlands’ Milou van der Heijden and Canada’s Danielle Letourneau, respectively.

El Welily, who is the defending champion, got her title defence off to the perfect start as she smoothly despatched World No.32 van der Heijden in straight games and will now face compatriot and World No.14 Salma Hany in the next round after she defeated Nada Abbas on the side courts.

“I’m definitely happy to start the tournament with a 3-0 win against Milou,” said El Welily afterwards.

“She’s skilled with the racket and has such great technique and you could see she has got different plans and tactics on court. She definitely worked me on court and I’m hoping that I can continue that form on here tomorrow.

“I’ve had good memories here and bad ones, I’m just going with the flow and seeing what happens but hopefully it will be a good memory.”

No.2 seed and 2019 British Open champion Gohar also picked up from where she left off last season with her good form as she comfortably claimed a 3-0 victory over Canada’s Letourneau to reach the quarter finals.

The three-time China Open runner-up will face compatriot Yathreb Adel in the next round after she came from 2-0 down to upset the seedings and knock out England’s Victoria Lust.

“I’m always looking forward to this tournament,” said World No.4 Gohar. “You don’t get a lot of chances to stay in such a beautiful hotel and such a prestigious one. The venue is one of the best in the world and I have great memories here.

“It’s the first tournament of the year so that makes it extra special as well because you want to prove yourself and see how the summer training has paid off.

“I’ve been in the final three times so I hope I can break a little bit. It’s just one match at a time, I’m in the quarter finals which I’m really happy about and I’m just looking forward to the next match and we will see what happens next.”

Continuing the good form for the Egyptians in Shanghai were World No.5 Nour El Tayeb, World No.15 Hania El Hammamy and World No.23 Nadine Shahin.

El Tayeb cruised past Australia’s former World No.1 Rachael Grinham in just 19 minutes to book her place in the quarter finals. While El Hammamy and Shahin both overcame higher-ranked opposition to reach the last eight stage.

World Junior champion El Hammamy held her nerve to hold off a comeback from Hong Kong’s World No.10 Annie Au, with the two playing out an entertaining battle on the side courts, which eventually went in the favour of the young Egyptian.

“I’m happy with this win,” said El Hammamy afterwards. “I played Annie once last season and I lost in three in 20 minutes, so I came here today and I wanted to do my best and perform better than last time. I definitely had a game plan compared to last time and I’m happy I managed to stick to that.

“I’m starting the season with confidence. Finishing last season at my highest ranking has just given me more confidence and I’m hungry for more.”

El Hammamy will face the only non-Egyptian left in the women’s draw – New Zealand’s Joelle King – for a place in the semi-finals after the World No.6 battled back from 2-1 down against World No.20 Zeina Mickawy to advance at the tournament.

“First tournament of the season, I think everyone comes in not really knowing where they sit,” said King afterwards.

“Everyone puts in a lot of work over the summer and it’s the first challenge of the season so I’m really pleased. Probably more with my mental performance – Zeina is one of the up and coming players who has such an amazing raw game and I had to dig really deep to come back from 8-4 down in the fourth.

“Over the summer, Laura Massaro has actually come on board, as someone who I work with alongside Hadrian [Stiff] and I actually drew a little bit of inspiration from her. I’ve been on the backend of many matches against her where she has come back and beaten me and I think I just tried to dig out some experience.”

Action from the quarter finals of the J.P. Morgan China Squash Open takes place at 15:00 local time (GMT+8) tomorrow (Friday September 6) at the SECA Academy before play moves to the glass court in the evening at the Peninsula Shanghai.
 

J.P. Morgan China Squash Open, Shanghai, China.

Men’s round two:
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) bt Youssef Soliman (EGY) 3-1: 11-5, 11-4, 7-11, 11-4 (41m)
[8] Tom Richards (ENG) bt Mostafa Asal (EGY) 3-0: 11-9, 11-3, 11-8 (49m)
[3] Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt Tsz Fung Yip (HKG) 3-0: 11-7, 11-4, 11-7 (43m)
Mazen Hesham (EGY) bt [7] Adrian Waller (ENG) 3-1: 9-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-5 (58m)
[4] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) bt Iker Pajares Bernabeu (ESP) 3-1: 11-4, 12-14, 11-9, 11-4 (60m)
[5] Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi (QAT) 3-0: 11-5, 11-3, 11-8 (40m)
Leo Au (HKG) bt [6] Cesar Salazar (MEX) 3-2: 11-13, 9-11, 13-11, 12-10, 11-9 (90m)
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) bt Lucas Serme (FRA) 3-2: 8-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-2 (66m)

Women’s round two:
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) bt Milou van der Heijden (NED) 3-0: 11-5, 11-7, 11-5 (26m)
[8] Salma Hany (EGY) bt Nada Abbas (EGY) 3-0: 11-8, 11-7, 11-7 (35m)
Hania El Hammamy (EGY) bt [5] Annie Au (HKG) 3-2:: 11-6, 11-9, 9-11, 8-11, 11-4 (62m)
[4] Joelle King (NZL) bt Zeina Mickawy (EGY) 3-2: 11-5, 9-11, 12-14, 11-9, 12-10 (56m)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) bt Rachael Grinham (AUS) 3-0: 11-4, 11-3, 11-5 (19m)
Nadine Shahin (EGY) bt [6] Alison Waters (ENG) 3-1: 4-11, 11-6, 11-5, 13-11 (37m)
Yathreb Adel (EGY) bt [7] Victoria Lust (ENG) 3-2: 10-12, 8-11, 11-5, 11-1, 11-7 (44m)
[2] Nouran Gohar (EGY) bt Danielle Letourneau (CAN) 3-0: 11-6, 11-8, 11-2 (22m)

Men’s quarter finals (September 6):
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) v [8] Tom Richards (ENG)
Mazen Hesham (EGY) v [3] Saurav Ghosal (IND)
[4] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) v [5] Omar Mosaad (EGY)
Leo Au (HKG) v [2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY)

Women’s quarter finals (September 6):
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v [8] Salma Hany (EGY)
Hania El Hammamy (EGY) v [4] Joelle King (NZL)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) v Nadine Shahin (EGY)
Yathreb Adel (EGY) v [2] Nouran Gohar (EGY)  

Report by ELLIE MAWSON (PSA). Edited by ALAN THATCHER.

Pictures courtesy of PSA

ElShorbagy brothers to clash in semi-final
By ELLIE MAWSON in Shanghai

Egypt’s World No.15 Hania El Hammamy stunned New Zealand’s World No.6 Joelle King to reach her first PSA World Tour Gold tournament semi-finals at the J.P. Morgan China Squash Open in Shanghai.

The recently-crowned World Junior champion continued to upset the seedings after knocking out Hong Kong’s Annie Au yesterday as she showed her excellent retrieval skills and shot making to take out experienced King by an 11-9, 11-7, 11-9 margin.

The young Egyptian will take on compatriot and World No.1 Raneem El Welily for a place in the final tomorrow.

“I’m really happy with my performance today,” said 19-year-old El Hammamy. “I played really well and it was a tough match. I knew it was going to be and it’s a very physical game between me and Joelle, so I’m glad to get through it.

“The more I get big wins, the more I gain confidence and I go the next match hoping I can win. It feels outrageous [to be in my first Gold semi-final], I’m really happy and I just want to win the semi-final as well. I’m looking forward to possibly playing the final – I don’t see why I can’t do it. “

El Hammamy will face World No.1 Raneem El Welily in the next round after she defeated compatriot Salma Hany to reach the last four stage, with the evening matches being moved to the SECA Academy due to adverse weather conditions affecting the outdoor glass court.

Defending champion El Welily did not let the change of venue affect her though as she powered past Hany in 25 minutes to book her place in the last four.

“I’m definitely happy to come out of today with a 3-0 win,” said El Welily afterwards. “Salma is not an easy player to face at all. She’s very skilful with the racket and she’s proven over the past few years that she is a very strong contender to be top 10 very soon.

“Hania [El Hammamy] is a very strong player and I’m looking forward to playing against her. We train with the same coach – Haitham Effat – so, I’m sure he will be very pleased to have two players in the semis.”

The other women’s semi-final will see World No.4 Nouran Gohar and World No.5 Nour El Tayeb battle it out for a spot in the final.

Gohar survived a comeback from compatriot Yathreb Adel in a feisty encounter to book her place in the semi-finals of the tournament, while El Tayeb made light work of fellow Egyptian Nadine Shahin, taking just 15 minutes to secure her spot.

“It was more my mental performance today,” said Gohar afterwards. “I felt like I was controlling the game well in the first two. But she’s very experienced and we have had tough battles since we were juniors, it’s never easy when you are playing a good friend and you have had a rivalry since juniors.

“It will be tough tomorrow, me and Nour [El Tayeb] always have really tough battles. I think the last one was the World Tour Finals, but we are both tough fighters on court, so I’m sure tomorrow will be another tough battle.”

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In the men’s draw, brothers Mohamed and Marwan ElShorbagy will face each other in an exciting tie to see who will take their place in the final.

The 2016 China Squash Open champion, Mohamed, was made to work hard by Hong Kong’s unseeded Leo Au to reach the last four. Meanwhile, Marwan overcame compatriot Omar Mosaad in straight games to advance.

“I felt like I played better than yesterday,” said Mohamed afterwards. “I thought Leo Au played so well today, I think that’s one of the best performances he has played against me.

“I’m pleased with how I kept pushing and that I managed to beat him today and really proud of that performance. Sometimes at the start of the season you want some confidence in your physicality and tough matches like these help to prove that you have trained hard and give you confidence.

“Every summer we always train together, but this summer we didn’t. He [Marwan] actually trained in Egypt, while I was in England, so we haven’t really seen each other at all in a few months. We always have tough battles and mentally, it is hard to deal with for both of us. I watched him a little bit today and he is definitely back stronger.”

“There is no introduction about my brother,” Marwan added after his match. “We are used to playing against each other now, I’ve entered this tournament to play those kind of matches, I want to play those kind of matches against the best of the world.

“I’ve had a good summer, I’ve trained hard and I feel really ready for the new season. I’m very hungry to be back to my best again.”

The other men’s semi-final will see World No.1 Ali Farag pitted against India’s World No.10 Saurav Ghosal.

Farag was pushed all the way to five games by a resilient Tom Richards from England, but the Egyptian was able to ensure he prevailed to move into the semi-finals.

“I felt like he was controlling most of the match. He was playing at his own pace and making all the angles, so full credit to him. I’m extremely proud of myself to get through such a tough match.

“This traditional court is quite different, the straight lines on the backhand side aren’t quite as accurate and I like to play on that side and take advantage of it, but the fact that this wasn’t there meant that I had to find another way and this wasn’t easy against Tom.

“I’m expecting a lot of skilful shots from Saurav, he likes to move opponents deep into the corners and varying the pace. With his height, he is fast and picks up a lot of balls, but I’m glad to hopefully be on the glass.”

Meanwhile, Ghosal displayed an assured performance to defeat talented Egyptian shot-maker Mazen Hesham in four games to reach his second successive semi-final in China.

“He’s so skilful and so talented,” said Ghosal following his win. “He can be so random at times, so it makes it difficult to get into any kind of rhythm when you play against him and it makes it hard to find the groove of your shots and structure your game.

“I think I did most things correctly and executed them correctly, there were patches where I made a few errors and let him back into the game a little bit. Credit to him, he got a lot of balls back which isn’t necessarily his forte and coupled with the fact that he can finish is a lethal combination.”

Action from the semi-finals of the J.P. Morgan China Squash Open takes place at 18:30 local time (GMT+8) tomorrow (Saturday September 7) on the glass court in the evening at the Peninsula Shanghai. 

J.P. Morgan China Squash Open, Shanghai, Cina.

Men’s quarter finals:
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) bt [8] Tom Richards (ENG) 3-2: 14-12, 6-11, 11-4, 9-11, 11-5 (66m)
[3] Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt Mazen Hesham (EGY) 3-1: 12-10, 11-9, 12-14, 11-7 (67m)
[4] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) bt [5] Omar Mosaad (EGY) 3-0: 11-5, 13-11, 15-13 (55m)
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) bt Leo Au (HKG) 3-1: 3-11, 11-8, 15-13, 11-8 (68m)

Women’s quarter finals:
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) bt [8] Salma Hany (EGY) 3-0: 11-5, 11-9, 11-4 (25m)
Hania El Hammamy (EGY) bt [4] Joelle King (NZL) 3-0: 11-9, 11-7, 11-9 (50m)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) bt Nadine Shahin (EGY) 3-0: 11-2, 11-1, 11-5 (15m)
[2] Nouran Gohar (EGY) bt Yathreb Adel (EGY) 3-2: 11-4, 11-5, 9-11, 9-11, 11-6 (54m)

Men’s semi-finals (September 7):
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) v [3] Saurav Ghosal (IND)
[4] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) v [2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY)

Women’s semi-finals (September 7):
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v Hania El Hammamy (EGY)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) v [2] Nouran Gohar (EGY) 

Report by ELLIE MAWSON (PSA). Edited by ALAN THATCHER.

Pictures courtesy of PSA 

Former South Africa international and 1995 World Cup winner Chester Williams has died at the age of 49.

Williams played 27 Tests for the Springboks between 1993 and 2000, scoring 14 tries.

The former wing was was the only black player in the World Cup-winning team that defeated rivals New Zealand 15-12 in South Africa 24 years ago.

"Chester was a true pioneer in South African rugby," said Mark Alexander, the president of SA Rugby.

"His performances at the World Cup in 1995, as a snapshot of his Springbok career, will forever be etched in the hearts and minds of our rugby public.

"The news of Chester's passing is devastating and hard to believe, as he was still young and seemingly in good health."

Williams also played domestically for Western Province in the Currie Cup.

Since retiring as a player in 2001, Williams had spells coaching the Springbok Sevens team, Super Rugby's Cats and the Pumas in South Africa.

Alexander added: "He was passionate about rugby and South Africa and as coach, at various levels, selflessly gave back to the game after he hung up his boots. He played with courage and was a beacon of light in his community and in the broader South African context.

"Chester Williams had so much more to give. Our thoughts and condolences are with his wife, Maria, his children, family and friends during this very sad time."

South Africa has now lost four members of its iconic World Cup winning team.

Williams' death comes just two months after fellow winger James Small died of a heart attack aged 50.

Two years ago scrum-half Joost van der Westhuizen died after battling motor neurone disease while flanker Ruben Kruger died in 2010 from brain cancer.

Sammy Sessions came along a decade too late to make the impact on the Indianapolis 500 that was indicative of his talent.

One who excelled in every form of racing he attempted, Sessions followed the traditional route to Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He shot through the USAC short-track ladder but stepped into the speedway scene just as car owners were turning to road course racers because of the rear-engine revolution.

He struggled to find rides and settled for spots with under-funded teams. Characteristic of the short-budgeted teams he drove for, Sessions started in the last row three times and his best starting spot was 23rd.

Nevertheless, he qualified for seven Indianapolis 500s and managed two top-10 finishes — a ninth in 1968 and fourth in 1972. In 1972, he also raced to top-five finishes at Ontario (Calif.) Motor Speedway and Michigan Int’l Speedway.

Unquestionably, Sammy Sessions knew how to get around a race track.

Born Allen Dale Sessions in Nashville, Mich., in 1935, his first taste of speed came racing powerboats when he was 14. He eventually made his way into the jalopies at Hastings Speedway.

It was when he graduated to supermodifieds, however, that his talent became obvious. He claimed the Grand Rapids Speedrome track championship in 1962 and won a series of prominent national supermodified events.

In 1964, he jumped into the furiously competitive supermodified racing at Oswego (N.Y.) Speedway and won three consecutive features. Racing toward a fourth consecutive win, he suffered a horrendous crash that hospitalized him for a month. It was during that sheet time that Sessions decided to move to USAC for 1965.

He succeeded in all three USAC major open-wheel divisions. He won 22 USAC sprint car features and the 1972 USAC National Sprint Car championship. That performance put him in the Sprint Car Hall of Fame. In midgets, he won the prestigious Turkey Night Grand Prix in 1968. Sessions earned 21 top-10 finishes racing championship dirt cars.

In addition to his canny driving talent, Session’s fierce determination and calculating desire to race at all costs also fueled his success.

Fellow driver and friend Gary Irwin recalls a humorous incident during a USAC midget race in Davenport, Iowa, that illustrates that well. Driving the Shannon Brothers midget, Sessions experienced a nasty flip during a heat race.

“He had a bad cut above his right eye,” Irwin recalled. “So they loaded him in the ambulance and headed to the hospital with the sirens screaming.”

With only one ambulance at the track, all the action halted until it returned. Officials, competitors and fans expected a rapid turn around. They waited and waited. No ambulance.

As it turned out, Sessions knew they couldn’t run the feature without the ambulance in place and convinced the driver to wait until he was examined, treated and released before returning. He even insisted the doctor sew him up without pain medication. He didn’t want to be impaired. He planned to race.

By the time Sessions got back to the track, his eye was swollen completely shut. He ducked officials so they wouldn’t notice and climbed quickly in his car. Bob Higman, serving as chief mechanic, had the car repaired. Sessions started fourth and was quickly leading.

“He must’ve passed a hundred cars that night,” laughed Irwin. “With his eye swollen shut, he had no depth perception. He was OK as long as he was following someone, but when he took the lead, he’d slide off the track and have to restart in the back. He’d pass everyone again and spin off. He must’ve done that three or four times. He finally finished second.”

By 1976, Sessions had returned to his supermodified roots, running with the TRI-Sac series. TRI-Sac competed throughout Michigan and neighboring states. Drivers had to race both supermodifieds and winged sprint cars to score points. It fit Sessions perfectly and he won the series championship in 1976.

Continually searching for ways to satisfy his competitive urges, Sessions turned to snowmobile racing with the SnoPro series. As a surprise to no one, he won on them.

But they also proved tragic.

At a meet in Alexandria, Minn., on Dec. 17, 1977, Sessions suffered a heart attack and his snowmobile pounded off course and into a tree. He died instantly.