CIB Black Ball Open: Sobhy Dismantles Shahin

US No.1 Amanda Sobhy is into the quarter-finals of the CIB Black Ball Open after spending just 21 minutes on court in her second round match, downing Egypt’s Nadine Shahin in straight games.

The pair had faced just twice before on the PSA World Tour and had just an average match time of 29 minutes, but this one was much quicker, as ‘Southpaw’ Sobhy showed her class throughout, dominating on her forehand side.

She restricted the Egyptian to just nine points across the entire contest, winning out 11-5, 11-3, 11-1 in 21 minutes, putting in the most comprehensive performance of the tournament so far.

She will feature in the last match of quarter-finals day on Thursday, where she could face younger sister Sabrina Sobhy, who actually beat her in practice last week, prior to the tournament.

“It felt good, finally! I think I have been waiting for a good performance for a while and just getting that win in the first round eased my nerves a little bit,” Sobhy said.

That combined with the fact I am playing after noon, a little bit later, it helped me feel a bit more relaxed and in control. I am pretty happy with my performance. Technically, I felt my shots were working a lot better and also mentally, I felt a lot more dialled in.

“I am a morning person but playing a match before noon, is a bit much, especially as.. I don’t want to say that I am old, but I am on the way up into the older generation. I am no spring chicken anymore, the body is like a diesel engine to get going. I prefer a match that is later in the afternoon.

“She [younger sister Sabrina] plays Nour El Sherbini, the top seed so there is no pressure on her. She had a fantastic win, I was screaming from my hotel room watching it because I was so excited that she got that top ten win. I truly believe that her ranking does not affect her playing ability.

“She chopped me up in practice last week so the fact she beat Salma [Hany] last week made me feel a little better. Its not just me, it wasn’t my performance, she is just really good! The main thing is just to see if she can recover physically because it was a brutal match.

Result
[6] Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt [15] Nadine Shahin (EGY) 3-0: 11-5, 11-3, 11-1 (21m)