(updated 3-jul-09 0:01 ) 

Darwish Heads Egyptian Trio In World Top Four Rankings

Karim Darwish maintains his grip on the world number one ranking – and still heads a trio of fellow Egyptians in the top four of the Dunlop PSA Men's World Squash Rankings, according to the new July list published today (Thursday) by the Professional Squash Association.

The 27-year-old from Cairo moves into his seventh month at the top of the world, ahead of Frenchman Gregory Gaultier who holds onto his career-best position of number two.

Ramy Ashour, the 21-year-old World Open champion from Cairo, is in third place - with former world number one and three-time world champion Amr Shabana at No4.

Frenchman Thierry Lincou, the highest-ranked player in action on the PSA World Tour in June, celebrated his return to the Indian Ocean island of his birth when he won the Internationaux de la Reunion on Reunion Island, thereby strengthening his hold on eighth place in the world rankings.

The highest riser in the new top 20 is Laurens Jan Anjema, the Dutchman who leaps three places to No15 after reaching the 3-star Reunion Island event final.

But Egyptian teenager Mohamed El Shorbagy is the only player to record a career-high ranking in the top 20 – moving up two places to a best-ever No17. 

The Pakistan 'pecking order' also changes in the new list as Farhan Mehboob, a 20-year-old from Peshawar, overtakes his cousin Aamir Atlas Khan to claim 18th position – thus becoming the country's highest-ranked player.

July top 20 (inc. points average):

1             [1]           Karim Darwish     EGY         1079
2             [2]           Gregory Gaultier   FRA         873
3             [3]           Ramy Ashour        EGY         741
4             [4]           Amr Shabana       EGY         735
5             [5]           Nick Matthew      ENG        667
6             [6]           David Palmer        AUS         576
7             [7]           Peter Barker         ENG        487
8             [8]           Thierry Lincou       FRA         473
9             [9]           Wael El Hindi        EGY         431
10           [10]        Adrian Grant         ENG        417
11           [11]        Borja Golan           ESP         385
12           [12]        James Willstrop   ENG        374
13           [13]        Mohd Azlan Iskandar         MAS        314
14           [14]        Ong Beng Hee      MAS        296
15           [18]        Laurens Jan Anjema           NED        283
16           [17]        Alister Walker       ENG        274
17           [19]        Mohamed El Shorbagy       EGY         254
18           [16]        Farhan Mehboob                PAK         251
19           [15]        Aamir Atlas Khan PAK         251
20           [20]        Stewart Boswell   AUS         240