Open De France – Day Three: Player Reaction

We’re down to the quarter finals in Nantes at the Open De France De Squash with eight players in the top half of the draws looking to book their place in the final four.

Belgium’s Tinne Gilis and Canada’s Nicole Bunyan open the night’s play followed by the men’s top seed Marwan ElShorbagy against England’s Declan James. The third match of the night is an all Egyptian clash between Nour Aboulmakarim and Fayrouz Aboelhkeir and closing out the night is an entertaining affair between Saurav Ghosal and Iker Pajares Bernabeu.

All the action from the glass court will be shown live on SQUASHTV, and you can also keep up to date with the live scores from the event.

We will bring you all the reaction from those in action on the glass court in Nantes throughout the evening right here.

Order Of Play – Glass Court

Gilis Beats Bunyan To Reach The Semis

Belgium’s No.2 seed Tinne Gilis opened up the night’s play with a convincing 2-0 win over the No.7 seed Nicole Bunyan from Canada.

Gilis found a solid length from the outset, setting up numerous attacking opportunities to put Bunyan under pressure. This continued for the majority of the opening game and despite Bunyan finding a few winners it was Gilis who secured the opening game.

The Belgian’s dominance continued in the second, she moved the ball around at a strong pace, giving her opponent no time to relax and impose her own game. Gilis wasn’t surrendering her lead and gave herself five match balls to book her semi-final place. As Bunyan’s ball flew out of court at 10-7, Gilis advanced.

The Belgian No.1 had this to say after her win:

“Every match is different. I don’t think I’ve played Nicole recently and I know she’s been playing well lately so I had to start well and she took every opportunity I gave her so I’m glad I found a way to win. I wouldn’t say I’m completely comfortable on this court yet but hopefully I will as the week goes on but I love Nantes and the crowd are amazing.

“I would love to be in the top 10, Im going to take it step by step but the season is long so I’m going to work hard for it and hopefully I can achieve it this season.”

Result:

 [2] Tinne Gilis (BEL) bt [7] Nicole Bunyan (CAN): 2-0  11-6, 11-7 (19m)

ElShorbagy Holds Off James To Reach Final Four

Next onto court was an exciting encounter between the No.1 seed Marwan ElShorbagy and former champion Declan James. The pair met recently at the QTerminals Qatar Classic, where the Egyptian took the match in a close five setter.

The match held a high quality throughout with both players finding their lines to the back court with great accuracy. ElShorbagy managed to pull ahead in the later stages of the game, keeping the ball tight then leaving the ball far up the court to stretch the movement of the tall Englishman.

After taking the first game 11-8, ElShorbagy continued to press James in all areas of the court, making it hard for the Englishman to unleash his monstrous forehand kill. Despite James finding more range at the front of the court, the street-wise ElShorbagy was able to close the game out 11-9 Abe move into the semi-finals.

“I played Dec last week in Qatar and it was very close, I’m really happy to get through today,” said ElShorbagy.

“I think he’s back playing at his best today which is good to see, he’s had a few seasons where it’s not gone well so I’m happy to see him back. I really enjoy watching him play.

“Playing in a venue like this and with a crowd like this, it’s just amazing. I’ve been playing PSA for the past 10 years and I’ve never played in a venue like this. It’s my first time here and I just have to thank all the sponsors and people who got this event on and I’ll be back for sure.”

Result

[1] Marwan ElShorbagy (EGY) bt Declan James (ENG) 2-0: 11-8, 11-9 (41m)

16-Year-Old Aboelkhier Wins All-Egyptian Battle To Reach Her Biggest Semi-Final

It was an-all Egyptian battle in the third match of the night as two teenagers Nour Aboulmakarim and Fayrouz Aboelkhier went head to head for a huge opportunity to make the semi-finals of the Bronze event.

The rallies were short and harp between the two with not much attritional squash taking place between the two. In typical Egyptian style, the winners and errors were flowing from both rackets but it was Aboulmakarim who took the lead in the match, closing out the game 11-8 in just eight minutes showcasing her incredible finishing abilities.

The second game followed the same pattern as the first with both players firing the ball in short from the start of the game, looking to find winners at any opportunity. Aboulmakarim managed to pull ahead in the middle of the game to earn a two point lead and set herself up with three match balls. But back came the 16-year-old, she turned her aggressive play up a notch and thanks to some errors from Aboulmakarim, she equalised.

Aboelkhier managed to keep her focus in the crucial third game with the mental strength of her older opponent being put under stress. Aboulmakarim tried her best to battle her way back into the match and with every bit of contact and decision from the referee, the more her concentration faded. The 16-year-old kept a lead throughout the third game and closed it out 11-5 to move into the biggest semi-final of her career to date.

The teenager had this to say after her win:

“In the second game when she was 10-7 up I just said to myself that I had nothing to lose. I tried to organise the way I was playing at the front and all credit to Nour, we’ve been training together back in Egypt and I know its not going to be easy. Thanks to the crowd and my team back in Egypt.”

Result:

Fayrouz Aboelkheir (EGY) bt Nour Aboulmakarim (EGY) 2-1: 8-11, 12-10, 11-5 (33m)

Ghosal Overcomes Spirited Pajares To Advance

The final match of the evening was a close encounter between World No.18 Saurav Ghosal and World No.26 Iker Pajares Bernabeu for a semi-final spot to face Marwan ElShorbagy.

The Indian No.1 came fast out the traps in the opening game showcasing his amazing touch at the front of the court to drag the frame of the Spanish No.1 far up the court and making him cover a lot of ground. Ghosal was unstoppable in the opener and placed one foot in the next round taking the first game 11-4.

In typical Iker Pajares style, he battled back. The determined Spaniard never goes down without a fight and continued to chase every ball down but with the accuracy of Ghosal off slightly in the second game, Pajares was able to get himself in front and impose his own game. The Spanish No.1 earned himself three game balls to equalise but Ghosal had other ideas. The Indian refocused and after forcing a tie-break managed to sneak the game 16-14 in a 25 minute game to book his semi-final place.

“I think I got a good start today, I was quite solid but In the second game credit to Iker, he put me under pressure and I made some wrong shot choices and that makes you think twice because of the balls he gets back. I just wanted to focus on each point and play each point to the best of my ability and Iker is a good player so I’m just happy to win 2-0.

“I’ve been working a lot with David Palmer, I’ve been trying to use my speed to attack, but you still need structure at the back and to pick your moments. That was the difference in the first and the second, as I say, Iker put me under pressure and I think I improved today from yesterday and that’s the aim, to try and improve every day I step on court.”

Result

[3] Saurav Ghosal (IND bt [6] Iker Pajares Bernabeu (ESP) 2-0: 11-4, 16-14 (42m)