All-Egyptian finals line-up in San Francisco
By MATT COLES – Squash Mad Correspondent

An Egyptian quartet will feature in the finals of the Oracle NetSuite Open 2019, as Raneem El Welily, Nour El Tayeb, Mohamed ElShorbagy and Tarek Momen were all victorious in their semi final clashes in San Francisco.

El Welily and her husband Tarek Momen will be looking for their first joint title success to follow the example set by Ali Farag and his wife Nour El Tayeb in the US Open two years ago.

World No.2 Mohamed ElShorbagy was the victor over his younger brother, Marwan ElShorbagy, in the most anticipated match of the night, advancing to the final for the third consecutive year.

The siblings had met 16 times on the PSA World Tour, with the older brother Mohamed holding the 13-3 advantage, and he continued that momentum into the first game, as he restricted the World No.11 to just four points.

The second game had more ups-and-downs in it, as Mohamed took a 3-0 lead, before Marwan reeled off five straight points to lead 5-3. Mohamed then did the same to lead 8-5, before the pair became deadlocked at 10-10 as Marwan saved two match balls.

The tie-break would go all the way to 17-15, with neither player giving an inch to their sibling on court. Mohamed eventually took the victory with his seventh match ball, booking his place in the final against compatriot Tarek Momen on Monday evening.

“I am really happy to reach the final for a third consecutive year. It is not easy and it is a very different tournament this year with the best-of-three,” Mohamed ElShorbagy admitted.

“You have to play with a very different tactic for each match. Matches are short and sharp, especially in the colder conditions. I am really happy with how I played and I always think the top guys have a way of adapting and here we are, myself and Tarek, the top two seeds are in the final together.

“Tarek is one of the most inspiring players I have ever come across because he has worked on himself year on year. He was a very good junior, you expect things to happen once you go to the pro tour. That did not happen with him, but he kept working hard until it started happening for him and I respect that a lot about him.

“We are good friends off court, but we go hard at each other on the court and that is what everyone will want us to do tomorrow and hopefully we can give everyone a good match.”

Momen completed his path to the final with a polished performance against the spirited Colombian Miguel Rodriguez, winning 11-6, 11-3 in just 23 minutes, meaning he will have plenty of energy left for tonight’s showdown.

In the women’s draw, World No.5 Nour El Tayeb caused the only upset on the glass court at Embarcadero Plaza, as she defeated World No.3 Camille Serme in three games to reach the final of the Oracle NetSuite Open.

The pair had met 11 times on the PSA World Tour prior to this clash, with El Tayeb holding the 6-5 advantage coming into San Francisco, after winning their last encounter at the Tournament of Champions in New York in 2018.

This battle between the pair started off in a very tight fashion, with neither player able to break away. However, it was the Egyptian that eventually broke loose, winning the last four points of the game to take it 11-7.

Serme came back fighting in the second game, moving out into a quick-fire 6-2 lead. El Tayeb managed pull herself back to within a point, but the Frenchwoman had enough firepower to take it 11-7, forcing a decider.

The third game was always under control for the Egyptian, though, as she got an early lead and never looked like relinquishing it. The World No.5 secured the victory in just over half an hour, booking her spot in a second consecutive final to start the 2019-2020 campaign.

“First of all, it is nice to win a match on this court. I haven’t been here for the last three years, so I am happy to come out with a win in the semi finals,” El Tayeb admitted.

“I have played a lot of squash over the last couple of days. I played for an hour this morning. I just wanted to have a little bit of soreness, like Camille, who was probably feeling a little bit sore from yesterday.

“I wanted to feel a little bit of that soreness this morning and to feel like I have muscles, you know. I have been resting for over 48 hours without a match but it was worth the wait.”

El Tayeb will face World No.1 Raneem El Welily in the final of the Oracle NetSuite Open after she defeated India’s Joshna Chinappa in just 14 minutes games in the last match of the evening’s action.

The Egyptian won 10 of the first 12 points and although Chinappa saved three game balls, El Welily took it 11-5. She found herself trailing in the second at several points, but the World No.1 was able to fight back to take it 11-7 to finish the match off in quick time.

El Welily will face compatriot Nour El Tayeb in a repeat of the China Open final form earlier this month. The World No.1 will be looking for revenge after El Tayeb took victory in Shanghai.

She admitted: “I am happy to be in the final again. I have had good results so far and hopefully I can go one further tomorrow. It is still too early to think about that but I am happy with how I played today.

“I have been playing with Joshna since we were kids, we go way back. She has always had those killing shots out of nowhere and she can play them at any time. Obviously, I was prepared for a strong opponent, but I just had to be sharp today.”

As for her hopes of a double success for husband Tarek and herself, she added: “It feels good. We are just enjoying our time, trying to give our best on court. It is not about making it to finals, just trying to give it your best.

“Nour is playing well so far this season and she has had good results to start it, so obviously it will be a tough match, but I am going to be prepared for sure.” 

PSA World Tour Gold Oracle NetSuite Open 2019, Embarcadero Plaza, San Francisco, USA.

Men’s Semi Finals:
[1] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) bt [5] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) 2-0: 11-4, 17-15 (41m)
[2] Tarek Momen (EGY) bt [6] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) 2-0: 11-6, 11-3 (23m)
Final:
[1] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) v [2] Tarek Momen (EGY)

Women’s Semi Finals:
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) bt [8] Joshna Chinappa (IND) 2-0: 11-5, 11-7 (14m)
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) bt [2] Camille Serme (FRA) 2-1: 11-7, 7-11, 11-6 (32m)
Final:
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v [3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) 

Report by MATT COLES (PSA). Edited by ALAN THATCHER.

Pictures courtesy of PSA

It was one balmy night in Tokyo.

Welsh rugby has had many defining days over the years but this World Cup extravaganza takes some beating.

And Wales are now starting to believe. Not just the players and coaches, maybe the nation. Believe that Warren Gatland's side can actually win the World Cup.

It is an ambition that has been talked about over the past 18 months, especially during the record 14-match unbeaten run of 2018-19.

That led to Grand Slam glory and Wales were even ranked number one in the world for a couple of weeks in August.

Those hopes of World Cup success may have been still exactly that. Hope rather than expectation.

Now this one magical game in Japan has changed all that. After a 13-match losing sequence against the Wallabies, Wales have beaten Australia for a second successive game. And they have won the match that mattered.

Plaudits and comparisons will flow. Wales' greatest World Cup win? Most impressive Wales performance under Warren Gatland?

What is not in doubt is Wales are now in the driving seat to win Pool D and on a potentially easier path to the final in Yokohama on 2 November.

In front of interested England coach Eddie Jones, Wales' victory means they have maybe have avoided a quarter-final with his side, with France or Argentina lying in wait.

Magical match

First the match. And what a match. A World Cup group game should not evoke such intensity and passion especially in such humid conditions. That is meant to ramp up later in the tournament. But what the crowd of just under 50,000 witnessed in Japan's capital city will prove unforgettable.

Wales defence coach Shaun Edwards said before the match the players would remember this game for the rest of their lives. He was right.

A promising tournament had come alive when hosts Japan defeated Ireland. A day later Wales and Australia, two of the big beasts of this competition, produced this sensational spectacular in the match of the tournament so far.

For Welsh fans it was excruciating at times. Especially towards the end. For 45 minutes Wales were tactically peerless as they built up a 26-8 lead before the relentless inevitable Australia response.

Wales were reminiscent of a 400m runner who charged out of the blocks and hoped to hold onto victory by coping with the lactic acid.

Australia came up on the shoulder of Wales in the final straight but never passed them.

Gatland's side produced that decisive final flourish to provide spectacular celebration scenes from the Welsh supporters. Those fans might have been outnumbered in the stadium but they made themselves heard.

Manic Street Peachers anthems boomed around outside the stadium in Tokyo. The Welsh band held a couple of concerts in the Japan capital and there was a performance just before the match at the ground by lead singer James Dean Bradfield.

There was even some late floodlight failure to add to the drama. Wales' World Cup hopes are still shining bright though.

Statistics sometimes lie

Wales are heroic under Gatland. Their defence is resilient. These two factors are just accepted now and this Wales side once more belied the statistics.

Australia enjoyed more possession and territory, had double the amount of defenders beaten, made more clean breaks and won more penalties.

Yet they lost. Statistics can't demonstrate passion and pride and Wales delivered this when it mattered most.

There were so many key moments to dissect. Tries from Hadleigh Parkes and Gareth Davies' interception were supplemented by the boots of Dan Biggar and Rhys Patchell to set the tone.

Who knew the drop goal was back in fashion? Wales demonstrated that was the case with Biggar and Patchell slotting over three points at the beginning of each half after patient attacking build-up.

Before their second-half recovery, Australia were rattled and fortunate captain Michael Hooper was not yellow-carded for a late high shoulder charge on the unfortunate Biggar.

Hooper was also riled by French referee Romain Poite when Samu Kerevi was penalised for a forearm smash into Patchell when the Australian centre was carrying the ball.

Hooper blamed Patchell's poor tackling technique, Poite disagreed, while Australia coach Michael Cheika moaned about the tackle laws afterwards. Wales just got on with business.

Perfect 10s

Wales overcame plenty of their own adversity. They lost Biggar whose brave but poor technical tackle on Australia giant Kerevi resulted in the Wales fly-half stopping a try but failing a head injury assessment.

Patchell has suffered concussions of his own in the last two years but his level-headed composed performance belied his relative international inexperience.

Other new heroes emerged. Dragons back-rower Aaron Wainwright set the tone with a counter-rucking turnover from the kick-off. Against Hooper and David Pocock, the 22-year-old tackled everything in green and gold and ran like a banshee for the 49 minutes he was on the field.

There was also a notable late intervention from replacement scrum-half Tomos Williams when he acrobatically kept a Matt Toomua kick to touch in play in the final minutes in the Welsh 22. Small moments, huge implications.

Williams had come on for man-of-the-match Gareth Davies. How that Wales scrum-half loves World Cups.

Davies scored the decisive try against England in Twickenham four years ago and here showed jet-heeled speed to pick off Will Genia's pass and sprint away to score.

His pace off the mark even made former Australia centre Stirling Mortlock question whether the Wales scrum-half was offside.

Captain Marvel

Old heroes proved themselves again. Hooker Ken Owens and Justin Tipuric were immense in defence in the face of the Australian onslaught inspired by the second-half introduction of Toomua at outside-half for the ineffective Bernard Foley.

Tipuric's fellow back-rower Josh Navidi continued to defy the odds with some brutal tackles.

Then there was Alun Wyn Jones. The inspirational captain commemorated becoming Wales' most capped player on his 130th Test appearance for his country by topping the tackle charts. 25 in all. A remarkable figure for a lock but this 34-year-old second-row is no ordinary player.

His record-breaking achievement was recognised after the game by an affectionate kiss from Wales wing George North.

Gatland did say afterwards Wales must celebrate the victory for the skipper. I am not sure this is exactly what Jones had in mind but even the steely skipper can get caught up in the emotion sometimes.

Wales now deserve to rest up. Fiji await on 9 October in Oita. As World Cup recesses go the recovery period is significant.

So was this remarkable result in Japan's capital city. How significant we will have wait to see. But Wales can just start believing in that World Cup dream.

CANANDAIGUA, N.Y. – Kevin Root bested Matt Janczuk in a duel for the ages as the DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series kicked off its Fall Championship Sunday at Land of Legends Raceway.

Janczuk and Land of Legends Raceway regular Kane Bristol lead the field to the green flag on the half-mile. Bristol jumped to an early lead but Janczuk battled back to retake the top spot on a restart. From all the way back in the ninth starting position, Root made big gains in the early going.

Root made his way into the top-three and then passed Bristol for second. The DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series Central Region champion and reigning Land of Legends Raceway track champion then set his sites on Janczuk. Root tried everything, going high and low on the Utica-Rome regular and made the pass only to lose it again with six laps to go.

The pair continued to duel and with two laps to go with Root taking the position in the midst of heavy lapped traffic. He went on to win the 40-lap, $2,000-to-win feature.

After a rooftop celebration with his son, Kevin Root took a moment to remember why we were all there.

“Tonight is not about me. It’s about a guy [Gerald Haers] that touched me when I grew up and I’m grateful to the family. This one is for Gerry. He did a lot for me in my life and for my family,” Root said.

Root and Janczuk put on a fantastic show that Gerald Haers would have been proud of.

“If the fans did not enjoy that, I don’t know what you are doing right now. That was one amazing race,” Root exclaimed. “We had an amazing, amazing car.”

Root lost the lead on a late-race restart, but managed to get the lead back.

“I didn’t think we were going green, I didn’t see the lights out, I think my one-way-radio was messed up and he [Janczuk] took off and I thought, ‘Oh shoot!’

“I came down the front stretch behind him and just about hit the wall. I told myself to calm down and get my stuff together, you got the best car. Get your composure, hit your marks, slow down, don’t overdrive it, and lapped traffic played a key role.”

Janczuk impressed the crowd with his second-place finish on a track he rarely sees.

“This track was challenging. It was only my second start ever so I’ll take a second to Kevin [Root]. He’s a hell of a competitor. With him having all that experience here, I’m just happy to have run as well as we did going into the rest of these Fall Championship races,” Janczuk said.

Local fan-favorite Bristol rounded out the podium. Kyle Inman and Garrison Krentz completed the top-five.

The finish:

Kevin Root, Matt Janczuk, Kane Bristol, Kyle Inman, Garrison Krentz, Paul Guererri, Jackson Gill, Chris Mackey, Shane Pecore, Nick Guererri, Alan Fink, Tim Baker, Steve Gray, Brad Rouse, Jessica Power, Zach Sobokta, Mark Yorker, Mike Fowler, Kevin Ridley, Bob Henry Jr., Matt Guererri, Sean Beardsley, Alex Payne, Jeff Taylor, Cameron Tuttle, Torry Stoughtenger, Dale Corbett, Matt Steffenhagen, A.J. Lloyd 

SYDNEY, Nova Scotia – Kody Quinn raced to three feature victories on Sunday afternoon at Sydney Speedway as a part of the tuneup to the Thanksgiving Thunder weekend.

Quinn took home twin features for the Mini Stock division while also capturing the first of two Colbourne Auto Group Legend features on Sunday. Dylan Dowe swept the two Steve Lewis Auto Body Bandolero features while Austin MacDonald made good with his first trip to the Cape Breton Island oval with a win in the second Colbourne Auto Group Legend feature.

Quinn made the first feature win in the Mini Stock division look easy after his closest rival Josh Benac blew a tire within five laps to go in the 30-lap feature while running second. Darrell Hulme, who recently took home the Passione Flooring & Interiors East Coast Mini Stock Tour Rookie of the Year Award, came home second in the first feature with Brian Axworthy finishing third.

Quinn had to earn the second feature from Benac after the No. 3 OK Tire Sydney River Honda Civic led the most laps in the feature. After repeated challenges from Quinn, the No. 88 PPM Inc. Civic was able to get by in the closing laps of the 30-lap event. Benac had to settle for third with Axworthy finishing third after a close battle with Hulme in the second half of the race. Thirteen Mini Stock competitors checked in for competition on Sunday afternoon.

MacDonald stopped the parade to victory lane by Quinn in the second Colbourne Auto Group Legend feature. MacDonald got out front early with a couple of quick passes in the opening laps and was able to stretch a lead out on Quinn in the second 25-lap affair.

Quinn attempted to catch the No. 27 King Racing Legend in the final laps but even a last lap charge was not enough to make a bid for the win. Quinn finished second to MacDonald in a role reversal from the finish of the first event. Legend car rookie Devin Wadden was third in both features. Seven Legend competitors answered the call to the green on Sunday.

Dowe took home the pair of Steve Lewis Auto Body Bandolero features after spirited battles with Austin Tanner late in both of the 20-lap features. With Tanner and Dowe splitting the feature events on opening weekend in July, the battle served as a rubber match of sorts between the two Outlaw drivers. Brooke Dowe was third in the second feature. The battle for third in the first feature saw close racing between the younger Dowe and Emily Chisholm, who was making her Sydney Speedway debut. The close racing led to contact late in the event and the pair would not finish the first event due to damage.

Fourteen drivers took to the track for the Bomber 50 event, with Glen Cooke taking home both the 10-lap dash and the feature event.

WHEATLAND, Mo. – Tony Anglin already has a hunting trip scheduled for later this fall in Colorado, but would love the opportunity to cancel it.

That’s because the driver winning the 6th annual Big Buck 50 Presented by Whitetail Trophy Hunt, Oct. 3-5 at Lucas Oil Speedway, not only earns $10,000 but a free entry in mid-Missouri Whitetail Trophy Hunt this November.

Anglin won the 2017 Big Buck 50 and would like another opportunity to participate in the prestigious Whitetail Hunt, perhaps with a different strategy this time.

“I’d take that hunt over Colorado any time,” Anglin said of the potential conflict. “It pretty awesome how they do that Whitetail deal.

“I got a little greedy and should have shot the first buck I saw,” he added of the 2017 hunt. “But I saw those dollar signs, thinking maybe there’s be a bigger one come out. I never did get another opportunity.”

Anglin, of Walnut Ridge, Ark., and a field of O’Reilly Auto Parts Street Stock drivers expected to number near 100, get that opportunity starting Oct. 3 with practice and time trials. Qualifying heat races, along with a full Warsaw Auto Marine & RV ULMA Late Model program is set for Oct. 4 and Street Stock last-chance qualifiers before the 50-lap main event, plus a full ULMA Late Model program, wraps things on Oct. 5.

Anglin remains the reigning Big Buck 50 champion as last year’s event was cancelled due to poor weather. He is the only driver to finish in the top six of all previous editions of the race with a second in 2014, sixth in 2015 and fifth in 2016 before breaking through with the win – despite having to come through the B-Main.

“It was a crazy weekend,” he recalled of his path to the 2017 Big Buck 50 win. “We didn’t qualify good, then ran terrible Friday night. Saturday, I worked all day on the car and changed a bunch of stuff. We started in the back of the B and won it, then started in the back of the A and ended up winning it.

“Coming home on Sunday, I thought, ‘Wow, how could that ever happen for an Arkansas guy, to start that far back and win against that kind of competition?’ It was a big deal. I had led a big race at Batesville two weeks prior to that and broke with four (laps) to go. I went to the Big Buck with the intention that I was going to win, no matter what.”

Anglin said his dad, Wiley Anglin, said he needs to make things easier by qualifying better next week.

“But it seems like I’m always behind the 8-ball starting out. He says I drive better when I get mad,” Anglin added, with a laugh.

Preparation for next week’s race has been business as usual in the shop as Tony and Wiley Anglin prepare the same car that won the race two years ago.

“We put in about 30 hours a week working on it,” Tony Anglin said. “My dad is the tire man and he helps me work on the car every night. He’s 77 years old and he’s out here until I go home. It don’t matter if it’s 10 o’clock or midnight, he’s helping me.”

Along with his past success in the Big Buck 50, Anglin almost always contends at Lucas Oil Speedway when he shows up there. He made the long haul once this season, placing second in a mid-July feature.

“Man, I just like the whole facility itself,” Anglin said. “The racing surface is smooth, the hospitality when you’re there, they treat you the same no matter who you are. I just wish it was closer. We’d be there every week if it was closer. But the hospitality is unreal, how every guy and every lady there is really nice to you.”

The self-described avid hunter would love nothing better than to take another Big Buck 50 trophy back to Arkansas – and then get another shot at the Whitetail Trophy Hunt and maybe test out a different strategy.

“If I had to do it over, if that deer stepped out there … I think it was about 7:15 in the morning (two years ago) … I’d pull the trigger then. I was thinking that big buck can get you another 15 grand (for the biggest buck). But you’re better off taking what you can, I guess.

“They always say go big or go home. I went home after that deal.”

The top 20 finishers in this year’s hunt, in addition to receiving prize money for their corresponding finish (ranging from $15,000 for first to $1,500 for 10th) will receive a spot in next year’s hunt (another $3,000 value).

Those 20 also will be eligible for the Show-Me Showdown in 2020, joining the top 20 from the previous four hunts from 2015-18.

Those 100 not only will compete for the regular purse in next year’s Whitetail Trophy Hunt, they will be eligible for an additional $55,000 in prize money. Tim Brown of Stoutland won the 2016 Big Buck 50 and went on to finish ninth in the Whitetail Hunt, thus making his eligible for the Show-Me Showdown next year.

This year marks the 31st anniversary of the Whitetail Trophy Hunt at Lake of the Ozarks in mid-Missouri with over $4.5 million awarded over the last 30 years. The hunt, set for Nov. 16-18, brings in participants from all over the United States and abroad. Entries are received on a first come, first served basis and limited to a maximum of 230 hunters and this year’s event has been sold out since last December.

MELBOURNE, Australia – Walkinshaw Andretti United has revealed the No. 27 NAPA Auto Parts Holden Commodore that Alexander Rossi and James Hinchcliffe will drive in the Bathurst 1000.

Rossi and Hinchcliffe were announced as a wildcard entry for the Bathurst 1000 in mid-August. The pair, regulars in the NTT IndyCar Series, will both be making their first forays into the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship.

“I think the livery is a real head-turner, it looks fantastic. The NAPA Auto Parts blue and yellow collaborates really well with the Virgin Australia colors, and the rest of the support partners,” said Bruce Stewart, Walkinshaw Andretti United Co-Team Principal. “It’s such an iconic look in U.S. motorsport, it’s instantly recognizable, and it’s going to look amazing over the top of the mountain.

“Thank you to NAPA Auto Parts, Virgin Australia and all the other partners involved. Not the least the wonderful team at Andretti Autosport and our great friend Bill Sandbrook. We are all extremely excited to see how both Alexander and James go, first off at Winton, but more importantly, at Mount Panorama.”

On Tuesday the No. 27 NAPA Auto Parts entry will begin a three-day test at Winton Motor Raceway before heading to Bathurst the following week. On-track activity at Mount Panorama begins on Oct. 10.