Brilliant El Sherbini Downs Rival Gohar To Win CIB Egyptian Open

World No.1 Nour El Sherbini ended a four-match losing run against in-form World No.2 Nouran Gohar as she captured the first ever Diamond-level title on the PSA Squash Tour with victory in the final of the 2024 CIB Egyptian Open.

Tonight’s match was the 35th instalment of a spectacular rivalry between the pair, and the 22nd in a final, with the two engaged in a fascinating wrestle for the honour of being World No.1 in recent seasons.

Cairo native Gohar went into the match with a fantastic recent record against the Alexandrian, winning their last four contests, with all four of those coming in major finals, including a spectacular performance on this court four months ago as Gohar denied El Sherbini an eighth world championship to win the title for the first time. 

Watched by a capacity crowd at Cairo’s Club O West, it was Gohar, who had won 29 matches in a row ahead of today’s clash, who made the first move in the contest.

Proceedings were initially even, with Gohar’s power hitting matched by El Sherbini’s deceptive racket skills. From 6-5, though, Gohar pulled away, taking time from the World No.1 with aggressive volleying and showing some great soft touches to wrong-foot her opponent as she scored five consecutive points to take the first game.

In a tense second game, El Sherbini was able to subdue Gohar’s aggression, adapting to her opponent as she flipped the story of the first game to move from 8-8 to 11-8.

The Alexandrian made a roaring start to the third game as she played some of her best squash of the night to take a 5-1 lead, before Gohar steadied the ship to reduce El Sherbini’s lead to just one point.

As she did in the second game, El Sherbini went on another scoring run, with Gohar unable to react quickly enough to some brilliant holds from the 28-year-old as El Sherbini converted her second game ball to move into the lead with another 11-8 win.

After sensing El Sherbini’s success with the softening ball in game three, Gohar requested a new ball for the fourth.

The change of ball did not alter ‘the Terminator’s’ fortunes though, with El Sherbini showing a burst of energy and fitness not yet seen this tournament as she chased every ball around court, clinching the game 11-8 yet again in a frenetic finish to close out 3-1.

Afterwards, she said: “It’s very special of course, the first event of the season, the first Diamond event, and of course in Egypt. It’s always special playing in front of this amazing crowd and in front of your team, family and everyone coming all this way to watch.

“I’m glad we had a good match for the crowd to watch.

“She’d got me the last four times and was the best player to be honest in the second half of last season.

“I turned the page and I just wanted a new plan and a new way on court. I wanted to relax and play my shots more and I think it worked today!

“It’s my first championship after getting married, winning it means a lot for both of us and I’m so happy he was here watching this!”

Result: CIB Egyptian Open 2024 Women’s Final
[1] Nour ElSherbini (EGY) bt [2] Nouran Gohar (EGY) 3-1: 5-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-8 (70m)

The men’s final between Ali Farag and Mostafa Asal is underway now live on SQUASHTV and on the channels of the PSA Squash Tour’s broadcast partners. For more information on the CIB Egyptian Open 2024, follow the PSA on X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.