Veteran Ismaily goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary put in a vintage performance to frustrate Zamalek to a goalless draw and deny them a vital win at Ismailia Stadium on Thursday.
Keeper El-Hadary, who was there between the sticks in Egypt's African Cup of Nations qualifying defeat at Tunisia a few weeks ago, was the most influential figure in a lackluster Ismaily side that looked far from impressive at their home venue.
The draw ended Zamalek's five-match winning streak under Portuguese coach Jaime Pacheco, as they were denied moving to top of the table to lie second with 21 points ,two adrift of leaders ENPPI.
The Cairo giants, who were defeated twice by Ismaily last season, once again failed to overcome their bitter rivals playing under the tutelage of Brazilian coach Ricardo Ferreira.
Morsy keeps Ismaily defense on their toes
Zamalek seemed to be the more determined side from the outset, with midfield duo Tarek Hamed and Ahmed Tawfik pressing Ismaily high inside their own half early on.
Potent Ismaily striker John Antwi was expected to cause Zamalek's rearguard troubles with his pace and runs behind the defense, but the league top-scorer looked far from threatening throughout the game.
On the other end of the pitch, however, it was the other way around, with combative Zamalek striker Bassem Morsy fighting for every ball and managing to pose a threat on numerous occasions.
It didn't take Morsy, who has to his name four league goals so far this season, very long to make an impact, creating two early half chances for Moemen Zakareya and Ali Gabr – capitalising on his excellent ability to hold off defenders and pull wide.
He came close from breaking the deadlock after 20 minutes when he latched onto a poor headed clearance from an Ismaily defender to strike from close range, but veteran keeper El-Hadary, who turns 42 next month, was vigilant to deny him what was a certain opener.
It wasn't the end of Morsy's chances though, as he forced another save from El-Hadary when he headed a long ball from the back from Ahmed Dwidar, but the keeper was there to tip over.
Two minutes from the break, Morsy – who frequently came towards the ball – saw a strike from outside the box go narrowly wide, to end the half nil-nil.
El-Hadary’s heroics continue
Zamalek were again the better side after the restart, and striker Khaled Kamar – who partnered Morsy upfront – saw a strike go wide after two minutes when he had the chance to lay off the ball to the unmarked Zakareya on the left.
But the miss of the half belonged to Zakareya, when he agonisingly saw a shot from a tight angle bounce off the post after touching El-Hadary's hands when almost everyone thought the White Knights had taken the lead.
A few minutes later, Morsy again burst onto the scene, this time heading wide a pin-point cross from Mohamed Shaaban from inside the area.
The visitors remained the dominant side, with their midfielders maintaining the upper hand, as the 69th minute witnessed a glorious chance for Zakareya to give his team the lead.
Former Masry midfielder Zakareya was guilty of a staggering miss when he received an inch-perfect cross from Ayman Hefni, who replaced Shaaban on the right, inside the area before evading a challenger and hitting the ball wide with the goal at this mercy.
At the time Zamalek were thought to pile on pressure in search of the opener, it was the Dervishes who dictated play, albeit without real chances created.
Zamalek then came back to control in the latter stages of the game, yet the hosts managed to hold on as both sides shared spoils.
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