Abbas Reaches Maiden Major Semi-Final With Win Over Ibrahim at CIB Egyptian Open

Unseeded Nada Abbas’ spectacular CIB Egyptian Open campaign continued as the World No.17 reached the semi-finals of a major event for the first time after beating compatriot Sana Ibrahim at Club O West, Cairo.

Abbas’ campaign looked all but over in the third round of the event when she was 0-2 and 8-9 down to Sivasangari Subramaniam, only for the 24-year-old to mount a heroic fightback to reach today’s clash.

With confidence flowing after that comeback, Abbas put in an assured display on the traditional court, where play had moved after damage to the glass court.

Roared on by family, friends and fans, here in numbers with Abbas’ home club located just a 15-minute drive from Club O West, the Cairo-native clinched the opener 11-9 to give herself a platform.

In the second game, interrupted by a lengthy injury to Ibrahim’s left hand, Abbas doubled her lead with an 11-4 win.

The 24-year-old looked to have one foot in the semi-final when she took a 6-2 lead in game three, only for Ibrahim to rally, digging in to take eight of the next nine points and earn three game balls at 10-7.

Abbas saved two, but could not save the last, with Ibrahim finishing with aplomb at the front to take the match into a fourth game.

Despite the setback, Abbas returned to court a composed figure, resuming her best squash as she took a 7-2 lead before finishing things 11-4.

Abbas’ opponent in the semi-finals will be reigning world champion Nouran Gohar, who defeated Egyptian compatriot Rowan Elaraby in straight games.

“I’m out of words, I’m speechless.  I mean I’ve worked really hard to be in this stage of a major tournament, me and Sana deserve to be in this position.” Abbas said.

“The past two years have been a nightmare for me. I’ve been struggling from so many things because of squash, I’ve been struggling from depression and anxiety and insomnia because of squash, so it’s it’s a really nice reward to to feel that everything is paying off and I’m actually winning and reaching very far in big tournaments and prestigious tournaments like this.”

“At 6-2, I started to feel the finish line. I also had a flashback of how I turned my match against Siva [Sivasangari Subramaniam] so I was a bit overthinking about other things rather than focusing on what to do during the next few points.”

Result: CIB Egyptian Open Women’s Quarter-Final
Nada Abbas (EGY) bt Sana Ibrahim (EGY) 3-1: 11-9, 11-4, 9-11, 11-4 (61m)

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