Former World No.1 Nouran Gohar produced a vintage performance to defeat long-time rival Nour ElSherbini and advance to the semi-finals of the Egyptian Open on an interrupted night of action in Cairo.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following adverse weather conditions on the all-glass court at the Great Pyramid of Giza, play was moved to the traditional courts inside O West Sporting Club, where Gohar overcame the eight-time World Champion in their 42nd meeting on the PSA Squash Tour. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gohar, who only returned to competitive squash last month following the birth of her first child, produced a power-packed performance reminiscent of the form that previously took her to the summit of the women\u2019s World Rankings and helped her become World Champion in 2024. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 29-year-old defeated ElSherbini 11-7, 7-11, 11-5, 11-4 to set up a semi-final showdown with newly crowned World No.1 Amina Orfi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the match, Gohar said: \u201cI feel very lucky to have shared this rivalry with ElSherbini. It has made me improve as a player, as a person, everything. And coming back to that familiar person, we have huge respect for each other. It felt very enjoyable to be a part of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf this [the court change] had happened 10 years ago before I got married, I think I wouldn\u2019t have hit a ball because I\u2019m a very structured person. When I got married, I learned how to adapt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBeing a mum, all your plans go out the window. So today was just a funny situation for me, but I think I have really matured as a person and I just saw the positives out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, reigning World Champion Amina Orfi powered past Georgina Kennedy in three games to stretch her unbeaten start to the 2026\/27 season to 12 matches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The match was moved from the glass court to the traditional courts just eight points into the opening game, and following the resumption, Orfi proved a cut above her opponent, securing an 11-7, 11-7, 11-3 victory after 53 minutes of play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the men\u2019s draw, World No.2 Paul Coll continued his faultless Egyptian Open campaign with a supreme three-game victory over World No.5 Victor Crouin. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The No.2 seed, who is chasing his first Egyptian Open title, delivered a statement performance to book a tantalising semi-final match-up with World No.3 Diego Elias, defeating Crouin by an 11-5, 11-6, 11-5 scoreline. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was obviously surprising,\u201d Coll said after the match. \u201cI walked to the glass, and they told me we were basically moving. So I just had to get my head in the right space to compete and just get my tactics right. Some slight adjustments to playing on here rather than outdoors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo I just had to make sure my head was in a good space and yeah, I\u2019m proud of myself for doing that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been enjoying my squash this whole season so far. I think I\u2019m hitting the ball really well. So today was just purely mental and as long as I got my head in a good space, I was confident my squash was going to be good.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elsewhere, 2025 Egyptian Open runner-up Elias advanced to the semi-finals after his opponent Joel Makin withdrew from the tournament earlier in the day due to injury. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
[3] Diego Elias (PER) bt [8] Joel Makin (WAL) 3-0: W\/O
[2] Paul Coll (NZL) bt [5] Victor Crouin (FRA) 3-0: 11-5, 11-6, 11-5 (48m)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
[2] Amina Orfi (EGY) bt [8] Georgina Kennedy (ENG) 3-0: 11-7, 11-7, 11-3 (53m)
[6] Nouran Gohar (EGY) bt [3] Nour ElSherbini (EGY) 3-1: 11-7, 7-11, 11-5, 11-4 (44m)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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