 |
| |
WEEKLY
SECTIONS |
 |
|
 |
| Willstrop stuns top seed to enter quarters |
|
|
|
Thursday, November 05, 2009
KUWAIT: Top-seeded Egyptian Karim Darwish crashed out of the Kuwait Men's World Open 2009 after losing to England's 11th seed James Willstrop in a tight four-game third round match on an all-glass squash court in open-air at the Green Island Resort here.
It was a double blow for the 28-year-old, from Cairo, on the day as his ten-month reign as world number one officially came to an end - and further celebration for the Englishman who rose to sixth in the new world rankings.
On paper, the last sixteen clash in the premier event on the PSA World Tour was an upset - but Willstrop had not lost to the Egyptian since November 2006, and went into the match 8-6 up on a career head-to-head count.
There was further confusion before the match when forecast of rain and thunder threatened to move the session back to the conventional indoor Salmiya Club courts.
The second match was also an Anglo-Egyptian clash in which three-time former champion Amr Shabana, the fourth seed, avenged his country's defeat in the opening match by beating Englishman Daryl Selby, seeded 22 in 48 minutes.
There was further English success when both Nick Matthew and Peter Barker made the last eight.
Fifth seed Matthew maintained his unbeaten game record in the event earlier at the Salmiya Club with a clinical third round display against Cameron Pilley, the last remaining Australian in the championship.
Hisham, the 21st seed and the older brother of the reigning champion Ramy Ashour, earned his surprise place in the last sixteen after upsetting 10th seed Adrian Grant, also from England, in the previous round.
Egypt will also boast three players in the quarter-finals as former champion Amr Shabana will be joined by title-holder Ramy Ashour and ninth seed Wael El Hindi.
Eighth seed Thierry Lincou became the first Frenchman to reserve a place in the quarters. The World Open champion in 2004 survived a hard-fought 53-minute clash with Alister Walker, beating the 15th seed in four games.
Results: (11) James Willstrop (ENG) bt (1) Karim Darwish (EGY) 11-7, 11-7, 3-11, 11-9 (58m); (8) Thierry Lincou (FRA) bt (15) Alister Walker (ENG) 11-2, 11-8, 4-11, 11-6 (53m); (4) Amr Shabana (EGY) bt (22) Daryl Selby (ENG) 11-9, 11-6, 11-8 (48m); (9) Wael El Hindi (EGY) bt (25) Tarek Momen (EGY) 10-12, 11-6, 11-7, 11-6 (61m); (7) Peter Barker (ENG) bt (21) Hisham Mohd Ashour (EGY) 11-6, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9 (57m); (3) Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt (14) Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) 11-5, 7-11, 11-5, 11-7 (48m); (5) Nick Matthew (ENG) bt (20) Cameron Pilley (AUS) 11-6, 11-3, 11-2 (35m); (2) Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt (13) Ong Beng Hee (MAS) 11-4, 11-5, 11-9 (42m).
|
|
|
| Back
| Send
this story to Friend | Print
Version |
|
|
|
ISSN 1563-9479 
