Squash: Egypt's Gohar and Asal secure 2024 British Open titles

Egyptian squash players Nouran Gohar and Mostafa Asal emerged victorious in the 2024 British Open, triumphing over their compatriots Nour El-Sherbini and Ali Farag in the final matches held on Sunday.

Ahram Online , Sunday 9 Jun 2024,

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Ranking second in the world, Gohar clinched her second British Open title by defeating defending champion El-Sherbini in a thrilling five-set match, with a final score of 3-2 (11-6, 17-15, 3-11, 7-11, 11-4).

Reflecting on her performance, Gohar remarked, "It felt like a never-ending story today, although I was 2-0 up."

She acknowledged El-Sherbini's resilience, saying, "El-Sherbini won her first World Championships title from 2-0 down, so if anyone can come back, it is her. She played better when she was down, and I tried to prepare for that, but it was very difficult to stop."

Gohar expressed confidence in her physicality, stating, "I can trust my physicality right now. I can go out there and play for 100 minutes, I'm injury-free, I can hit whatever shot whenever I want, so why not win every match I can?"

She emphasized the relief and enjoyment she experienced after winning the World Championships, adding, "This week it was more about enjoying myself, proving to myself before anyone else that I am the best right now."

The 26-year old Gohar won her first ever World Championship title in May after beating El Sherbini 3-1.

In another captivating match, ranked fourth in the world, Mostafa Asal claimed his first British Open title by defeating top-ranked player Ali Farag in a gripping encounter that lasted 79 minutes.

Asal triumphed with a score of 3-2 (11-5, 2-11, 13-11, 4-11, 12-10). Overwhelmed with emotion, Asal expressed his joy, saying, "It's unbelievable. I'm almost running out of words, I'm almost crying! To win against Paul [Coll] and Ali [Farag], it's amazing."

Asal also acknowledged the challenges he faced earlier in the season, noting, "At the beginning of the season, I had no structure until I went to Pontefract to work with James [Willstrop]. To play the squash that I'm winning at the moment is all credit to them."

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