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Egyptians Continue Spanish Run
Two Egyptians in Final Four[draw/results]
By Howard Harding © 2003; all rights of reproduction reserved.
June 28, 2003 

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Shabana continues great run

England qualifier James Willstrop was unable to repeat his recent giant-killing victory over Karim Darwish in the quarter-finals of the Seville Spanish Open Squash Championship, going down as expected to the third-seeded Egyptian in four games on the open-air all-glass court in the market square in Seville.

Willstrop, the 19-year-old World Junior Champion from Pontefract in Yorkshire, upset the Egyptian No1, his World Junior predecessor, in the first round of the Tournament of Champions in New York in February.

However, despite taking the first game, the six-foot-four-inch Yorkshireman was unable to repeat this success as Darwish took control of the match half way through the second game and soon wrapped up his 12-15 15-9 15-7 15-7 victory.

"The match score between us before tonight was one each, but now I am in the lead," said the world No8 from Cairo afterwards. "My match plan was to move him around the court and it worked well. He is a big lad and I don't think he is really fit."

Darwish faces his third successive Englishman in the semi-finals of the $45,000 PSA Tour event - but this time he will be the underdog when he meets top seed Peter Nicol.

The world No1 from London showed no signs of the hip injury which hampered his progress in a non-ranking British event last week as he brushed aside the challenge of fifth-seeded Australian Joseph Kneipp 15-9 15-9 15-4 in just 44 minutes.

"Tomorrow's match will be much harder," conceded the former Scot afterwards. "Darwish is up for it and wants it desperately - but so will I."

The other semi-final will also feature Egyptian interest as Cairo-based Amr Shabana takes on another former World Junior Champion Ong Beng Hee.

Shabana, who toppled Australia's second seed Anthony Ricketts in the opening round, became the only unseeded player to reach the last four when he defeated Malaysian qualifier Mohammed Azlan Iskandar 15-13 15-11 15-9.

Ong Beng Hee, the fourth seed from Malaysia, twice had to fight back from behind before finally overcoming Egypt's Mohammed Abbas 8-15 15-11 15-17 15-13 15-10 in the longest quarter-final match of the night.

RESULTS: Seville Spanish Open Squash Championship, Seville, Spain

Quarter-finals:
[1] Peter Nicol (ENG) bt [5] Joseph Kneipp (AUS) 15-9, 15-9, 15-4
[3] Karim Darwish (EGY) bt [Q] James Willstrop (ENG) 12-15, 15-9, 15-7, 15-7
[4] Ong Beng Hee (MAS) bt Mohammed Abbas (EGY) 8-15, 15-11, 15-17, 15-13, 15-10
Amr Shabana (EGY) bt [Q] Moh'd Azlan Iskandar (MAS) 15-13, 15-11, 15-9

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