Hong Kong Squash Open 2022: Semi-Finals – Player Reaction

We’re down to the semi-finals of the Hong Kong Squash Open 2022, with four entertaining battles coming up from the Hong Kong Squash Centre.

World No.1 Nouran Gohar takes on her Egyptian compatriot and World No.3 Hania El Hammamy go head-to-head first up, before Diego Elias and Mohamed ElShorbagy lock horns.

The 2018 champion Joelle King takes on Nour El Sherbini with Mostafa Asal against Paul Coll closing out the penultimate day of the tournament.

All four matches are available to watch live on SQUASHTV, and you can stay up to date with anything related to the event by following the PSA on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.

Everbright Securities International Hong Kong Squash Open 2022: Glass court – Order of play

We will have reaction from the winners right here.

El Hammamy Battles Back To Reach Final

Hania El Hammamy came from two games down to defeat Nouran Gohar and reach the final of the Hong Kong Open.

The Egyptian duo, who have built up an intense on-court rivalry over recent years, played out an epic 84-minute battle in the opening match of the semi-finals.

El Hammamy, who’s became the first player to deny Gohar a final appearance in 2022, took the first game 11-9 with her terrific accuracy helping her get the better of the World No.1

The second game was played at an electrifying pace from the off as El Hammamy went 5-2 up, only for Gohar to register five unanswered points to edge 7-5 in front.

An error from El Hammamy presented Gohar with two game balls to tie the match, with another mistake from El Hammamy handing the second game to Gohar 11-8.

The pace didn’t let up from either Egyptian as El Hammamy once again opened up a 3-0 buffer in the third before Gohar nudged back in front 6-3, which she eventually won 11-7.

El Hammamy, who defeated Gohar at the CIB Egyptian Open final back in September, surged back, taking a 6-2 lead which soon evaporated as Gohar brought the scores to 8-8. However a Gohar mistake when El Hammamy had two game balls forced the tie into a decider.

Despite the intensity running throughout the previous four matches, the fifth didn’t follow suit as El Hammamy blitzed Gohar 11-2 to book her place in the final.

“I’m over the moon to reach the final,” said El Hammamy.

“Last time I was here was four years ago and I lost in the first or second round. I’m very happy to be back after the long break from Hong Kong to reach the finals. It was a very tough match and I’m happy to come out on top.

“It was very tough coming from behind against Nouran. It was very physical, very mental, and I’m very proud of the way I managed to deal with this.

“What an achievement (on becoming the first player to deny Gohar a final appearance in 2022). She’s reached every final for a season and a half, but I’m just focusing on myself and my game and what I want to achieve. Hopefully I can keep going and get the win tomorrow.”

Result

[3] Hania El Hammamy (EGY) bt [1] Nouran Gohar (EGY) 3-2: 11-9, 8-11, 7-11, 11-8, 11-2 (84m)

Elias Into Maiden Hong Kong Open Final

Diego Elias sealed his place in the Hong Kong Open final for the first time as he battled back from 2-1 down against Mohamed ElShorbagy.

Elias, who reached the last 16 stage when the tournament was last staged four years ago, was one game down when ElShorbagy came out on top to take an 11-7 win.

The Peruvian Puma stepped up to the plate in game two as he raced to a 10-3 advantage, with a combination of ElShorbagy errors and Elias’ accuracy helping him draw level as he took the game comfortably 11-3.

The pendulum swung back in ElShorbagy’s favour in the third, aiming to reach his fifth final of the season, as he regained his match advantage with an 11-6 victory.

4-0 down in the fourth, Elias registered seven unanswered points to put him back in control, and he would clinch the game 11-5 to force a decider.

A three-point gap for Elias at 8-5 up soon closed up as ElShorbagy got to within a point at 8-7, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Elias who bagged four points without response to reach the final in Hong Kong for the first time.

“I think I played very well today after the first game,” said Elias.

“He started very fast, similar to how he played in Singapore. I had a game plan and it took me a while to start using it. I think by the end I did what I wanted to do and I’m really happy with the win.

“He’s such a great player and he’s so experienced. I’m very happy with how I recovered in the fourth game after being 4-0 down. I played very mature squash.

“We have become very good friends lately. When I’m in the match you don’t think about that though. We both want to win so badly, and I’m just happy I could win this time.”

Result

[2] Diego Elias (PER) bt [3] Mohamed ElShorbagy (ENG) 3-2: 7-11, 11-3, 6-11, 11-5, 11-7 (67m)

2017 Winner El Sherbini Reaches 2022 Decider

2017 Hong Kong Open winner Nour El Sherbini bounced back from one game down to book her place in this year’s final after overcoming Joelle King in four games.

El Sherbini, who defeated Raneem El Welily in the 2017 decider, was 1-0 down when King, who’s been in sparkling form recently, claimed the first game 11-8.

But World No.2 El Sherbini clicked into gear as she roared back in the second game, claiming an emphatic 11-3 in nine minutes.

El Sherbini was well into her groove in the third, going 10-8 up and a stroke decision going in her favour sealing the win and giving her a 2-1 lead.

King, the reigning champion of the event after lifting the title in 2018 when it was last held, stood toe-to-toe with El Sherbini throughout, and got to within a point at 8-7 as she aimed to try to force a decider.

But an error from the New Zealand No.1 gave El Sherbini a crucial two-point cushion, and the Egyptian notched three points without reply to tee up a meeting with her compatriot Hania El Hammamy in the final tomorrow evening.

“Joelle has been on fire this week, especially winning New Zealand and Singapore,” said El Sherbini.

“She’s playing really well and I’m happy with the way I played and to come back after being 1-0 down.

“It was hard to get started, I don’t know why but maybe because there were a lot of long matches before, so I’ve been warming up and cooling down. But I’m definitely happy to come back and it would have been difficult if she had won the second or third.

“It would be amazing to win the Hong Kong Open final, hopefully it goes well and I’ll be ready for it.

“It was very tough [for El Hammamy against Gohar] they had an amazing match and it was 84 minutes or something unbelievable. It’s going to be a tough match, Hania is the No.3 player and has been in good form since last season. I’m looking forward to it and we’ve played a couple of times this season, so hopefully it’s going to be a good match.”

Result

[2] Nour El Sherbini (EGY) bt [4] Joelle King (NZL) 3-1: 8-11, 11-3, 11-8, 11-7 (48m)

Asal Into First Hong Kong Open Final

Mostafa Asal will meet Diego Elias in the Hong Kong Open final after edging past Paul Coll 3-2.

Coll, who was the tournament’s No.1 seed, fended off a resurgence from Asal in the first game to take a 1-0 lead, clinching the game 11-7.

But Asal’s accuracy improved in the second, which paid dividends as he levelled the match with an 11-5 victory.

The Egyptian went up a notch in the third, taking an 8-4 lead, and despite Coll saving two game balls, Asal converted at the third attempt to go up 2-1.

Coll requested a new ball at the end of the third and it came to his aid as the New Zealander went from strength-to-strength, going up 5-0, before he comfortably closed the game out 11-5.

Coll trailed by two points at 6-4 in the decider, but Asal moved through the gears as his deft finishing proved to be too much for the Kiwi as he bagged five unanswered points to make the final where he meets Elias.

“It’s an amazing match between me and Paul,” said Asal.

“He’s a superb player and there is always free-flowing squash. He’s the kind of player who never acts or does stuff on court, so I want to thank him for a great match. It was a tough match for me, it was a 3-2 and one of the best days of squash today.

“Diego and Mohamed played a really tough match today, so did I with Coll. Who will recover well and who will get the trophy tomorrow is a big thing for both of us.”

Result

[4] Mostafa Asal (EGY) bt [1] Paul Coll (NZL) 3-2: 7-11, 11-5, 11-7, 5-11, 11-4 (72m)