Seven Egyptians are heading to Dubai next month for the PSA World Series Finals at Dubai Opera from June 6-10.
Only the top eight ranked men and women qualify, after six events in the men’s season and five in the women’s.
Led by men’s world champion and World No. 1 Karim Abdel Gawad, and women’s world champion and World No. 1 Nour El Sherbini, Egypt has four players in the men’s competition and three in the women’s.
Gawad, who this month became the fifth Egyptian male to reach World No. 1, began the season ranked eighth but went on to win five titles in eight months, including the PSA Men’s World Championship.
The 25-year-old from Giza claimed top spot by reaching the final of last month’s El Gouna International Squash Open and, despite losing to defending Dubai champion Gregory Gaultier, he follows in the footsteps of compatriots Amr Shabana, Karim Darwish, Ramy Ashour and Mohammad El Shorbagy, who have all topped the world rankings.
El Shorbagy and Ashour are also off to Dubai. El Shorbagy, who came to Dubai last year as World No. 1, was unable to finish last season with a win in the World Series Finals, but was crowned Player of the Year.
He started this season strongly and in December became only the third Egyptian to spend a whole year at the top of the rankings. But despite 2017 having seen him have his longest title drought in three years, his consistency sees him qualify for Dubai in third.
His brother Marwan, last year’s Young Player of the Year, qualified in fifth, his best finish being runner-up to Gaultier in February’s Windy City Open.
Marwan, at 23 the youngest player in the field, claimed his first ever win over elder brother, Mohammad, during that event, and followed it up with another win over his brother in the semis of the final qualifier, the El Gouna International, in April.
The final Egyptian representative is Ashour. He reached No. 1 for the first time aged just 22 in 2010, and started the season well, winning in Hong Kong, but was left to scrape for an eighth place finish due to injury.
The Egyptian women’s line-up is equally strong. El Sherbini, who at 20 years of age became the youngest ever and first Egyptian to win the World Championships in 2016, defended her title last month, and comes to Dubai as World No. 1 and world champion. She made finals or semi-finals in all five qualification events this season, and despite failing to take a title, she qualified for Dubai in second.
Her world championship victory came over teammate, Raneem El Welily, who was runner-up in last year’s World Series Finals. El Welily made history in 2015 when she dethroned Malaysia’s Nicol David after nine years at the top of the rankings, becoming the first ever female Egyptian World No.1. El Welily claimed one title this year, her third successive Windy City Open crown and qualified in fourth.
The Egyptian team is rounded out by Nouran Gohar, who took her first title this season in Hong Kong. Two quarter-final and one semi finish saw her qualify in fifth.
Tickets are available via www.dubaiopera.com, for further information visit www.worldseriesfinals.com.
