PHOTOS
Finals
[1] Nouran Gohar3-0 [3] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) 11-5, 11-5, 11-4 (38m)
[1] Mostafa Asal 3-1 [3] Karim Abdel Gawad 10-12, 11-5, 11-9, 11-6 (73m)
After the match, Asal said: “Yeah, it’s very special for me to be honest, playing in front of my home crowd, playing in my club.“[Karim] is an absolute legend, on and off court, he’s just an amazing guy, amazing personality, I want to thank him for everything he has done for me, since I was very, very young.“I remember he was the first one, when my mother and father were asking every pro to come and play with Mostafa, since I was 10 or 11 years old. Karim was the first one, all credit for Karim, he is a legend for our sport, so yeah it was just an amazing battle today.”
“I mean it’s my home crowd, right! I felt extremely happy to be competing, seriously, I have played many finals, over 60 finals, but today felt very special.“Thank you, Palm Hills, for everything. They do an incredible job, it’s on the highest level, you see this, this is a Gold event, and this should be a World Championship, so Palm Hills keep bringing the high standard. I am just lucky to be a part of this and hopefully I can keep going and playing like this”
Semis
[3] Karim Gawad 3-0 [2] Tarek Momen 11-9, 11-8, 11-6 (45m)
[1] Mostafa Asal(EGY) 3-0 [4] Youssef Soliman 11-3, 11-1, 7-0 ret. (29m)[3] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) 3-1 [2] Amina Orfi 7-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-8 (54m)
[1] Nouran Gohar 3-0 [6] Fayrouz Aboelkheir 11-9, 11-4, 11-5 (35m)
World No.9 Karim Abdel Gawad advanced to the final of the Palm Hills Squash Open after defeating long-time rival and friend Tarek Momen in three games in Cairo.
Gawad and Momen, the respective 2016 and 2019 World Champions, were facing off for the 15th time on the PSA Squash Tour, with Gawad having won 12 of these matches. And the No.3 seed continued this impressive record over Momen with an 11-9, 11-8, 11-6 victory on the all-glass court at Golf Central Mall.
Just 24 hours after his 106-minute clash with Mohamad Zakaria, Momen was understandably a little slow to get into full gear in the first game, with Gawad racing into an early lead and holding off a late-game comeback to move 1-0 up.
Gawad continued to showcase his sublime skillset early in the second with a string of sublime winners, but Momen managed to pull his way back to 8-8. However, a costly error into the tin from ‘The Viper’ opened the door for Gawad, and he took full advantage of it to double his advantage after 30 minutes of play.
A similar-looking third game followed, with Gawad getting ahead on the scoreboard early and holding on strong to reach his 47th final on the PSA Squash Tour.
After the match, Gawad said: “I played a 40-minute match yesterday and he [Tarek Momen] played a 106-minute match and he came up today firing and moving like a 17-year-old. He’s a great legend, on and off court, all respect to him.
“I’ve learned a lot from him and I can’t say how much experience I’ve gained from him since I was watching him as a young kid playing in tournaments at juniors. I feel honoured to share the court with him today and he’s a great friend of mine, on and off court. We’ve been training partners since 2007. Glad to get through to the finals and I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s match.
“Getting to the semi-finals and focusing not to lose any games and try to win as quickly as possible, feeling your length on court and taking your time to recover well. That makes a huge difference in your performance and I just tried not to drop any games this tournament because we just finished the World Champs last week and then we have the British Open. Just trying to keep your recovery level as high as possible.”
Quarters
[4] Youssef Soliman 3-0 Karim El Hammamy 11-7, 11-5, 11-5 (50m)
[1] Mostafa Asal 3-1 [8] Mohamed Abouelghar 11-7, 10-12, 13-11, 11-4 (78m)
[3] Karim Gawad 3-0 [6] Dimitri Steinmann (SUI) 11-7, 11-8, 11-7 (39m)
[2] Tarek Momen 3-2 [7] Mohamad Zakaria 11-8, 13-15, 11-3, 6-11, 11-8 (106m)[6] Fayrouz Aboelkheir 3-2 [4] Nele Gilis-Coll (BEL) 9-11, 11-5, 5-11, 11-3, 11-8 (73m)
[1] Nouran Gohar 3-1 [5] Nada Abbas 9-11, 11-9, 11-5, 11-8 (60m)
[3] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) 3-0 [8] Farida Mohamed 11-6, 14-12, 11-5 (33m)
[2] Amina Orfi 3-0 [7] Salma Hany 12-10, 11-9, 5-2 ret. (49m)
World No.1 Nouran Gohar overcame a flying start from World No.12 Nada Abbas to advance to the semi-finals of the Palm Hills Squash Open 2025 in a tough four-game encounter.
Abbas, who last week impressed when reaching the quarter-finals of the PSA World Championships, started in strong fashion on the lively all-glass court at Golf Central Mall, keeping up with the rapid pace of Gohar with some high-level squash.
In particular, Abbas’ use of the backhand boast when showing for the drop troubled Gohar as the No.5 seed moved into a one-game lead.
Top seed Gohar bounced back in a tight second game, playing with much more patience and with straighter lines down both wings. In a second game, which required multiple refereeing decisions, it was Gohar who levelled proceedings by an 11-9 scoreline.
Gohar continued to up the intensity in the sweltering conditions in Cairo, racing into an early lead in the third game and not allowing Abbas a route back in.
The top seed moved through a one-sided third game, but saw the momentum swing back in Abbas’ favour, with the latter moving into a 7-5 lead.
However, Gohar’s experience came to the fore just at the right time, with the 2024 World Champion winning six of the next seven points to seal her spot in the semi-finals.
After the match, Gohar said: “All credit to Nada [Abbas], she played really amazingly, she’s been playing really well.
“I wasn’t really feeling myself on court today but what I’m happy about is that even if I’m not playing great, I still find a way. In the past, maybe I’d fade away, but today it was like even with the worst squash I’m playing, I was still trying to find some solutions.
“Obviously, she was firing everything really well, so it was a bit of both, but I’m happy I got through it all.
“I’m happy I’ve got a rest day tomorrow, I think I really needed that. I’m not really thinking about the negatives today. I’ll just try to find some positives and take it for the next match and try to improve because I definitely need that for the next match.”
World No.1 Nouran Gohar overcame a flying start from World No.12 Nada Abbas to advance to the semi-finals of the Palm Hills Squash Open 2025 in a tough four-game encounter.
Abbas, who last week impressed when reaching the quarter-finals of the PSA World Championships, started in strong fashion on the lively all-glass court at Golf Central Mall, keeping up with the rapid pace of Gohar with some high-level squash.
In particular, Abbas’ use of the backhand boast when showing for the drop troubled Gohar as the No.5 seed moved into a one-game lead.
Top seed Gohar bounced back in a tight second game, playing with much more patience and with straighter lines down both wings. In a second game, which required multiple refereeing decisions, it was Gohar who levelled proceedings by an 11-9 scoreline.
Gohar continued to up the intensity in the sweltering conditions in Cairo, racing into an early lead in the third game and not allowing Abbas a route back in.
The top seed moved through a one-sided third game, but saw the momentum swing back in Abbas’ favour, with the latter moving into a 7-5 lead.
However, Gohar’s experience came to the fore just at the right time, with the 2024 World Champion winning six of the next seven points to seal her spot in the semi-finals.
After the match, Gohar said: “All credit to Nada, she played really amazingly, she’s been playing really well.
“I wasn’t really feeling myself on court today but what I’m happy about is that even if I’m not playing great, I still find a way. In the past, maybe I’d fade away, but today it was like even with the worst squash I’m playing, I was still trying to find some solutions.
“Obviously, she was firing everything really well, so it was a bit of both, but I’m happy I got through it all.
“I’m happy I’ve got a rest day tomorrow, I think I really needed that. I’m not really thinking about the negatives today. I’ll just try to find some positives and take it for the next match and try to improve because I definitely need that for the next match.”
Round Two
[2] Tarek Momen 3-1 Bernat Jaume (ESP) 6-11, 11-8, 11-7, 12-10 (51m)[1] Mostafa Asal 3-0 Ramit Tandon (IND) 11-2, 11-5, 11-2 (34m)
[7] Mohamad Zakaria 3-0 Mohamed ElSherbini 11-9, 11-6, 11-6 (46m)
[3] Karim Gawad 3-1 Adrian Waller (ENG) 11-5, 11-5, 7-11, 11-6 (33m)
[8] Mohamed Abouelghar 3-0 Raphael Kandra (GER) 11-6, 11-7, 11-6 (32m)
Karim El Hammamy 3-1 [5] Fares Dessouky 11-8, 3-11, 11-3, 11-5 (64m)
[4] Youssef Soliman 3-0 Yahya Elnawasany 11-4, 11-8, 11-8 (40m)
[2] Amina Orfi 3-0 Mariam Metwally 11-6, 11-2, 11-7 (33m)[1] Nouran Gohar 3-0 Malak Khafagy 11-8, 11-2, 11-5 (33m)[3] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) 3-0 Hana Ramadan 11-9, 11-3, 11-4 (26m)[6] Fayrouz Aboelkheir 3-0 Melissa Alves (FRA) 11-7, 11-6, 11-3 (25m)[4] Nele Gilis-Coll (BEL) 3-0 Kenzy Ayman 12-10, 11-5, 12-10 (46m)[7] Salma Hany 3-1 Zeina Mickawy 11-8, 11-5, 9-11, 11-6 (49m)[8] Farida Mohamed 3-2 Hana Moataz 11-5, 4-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-5 (45m)
[5] Nada Abbas 3-0 Tomato Ho (HKG) 11-4, 11-2, 11-6 (23m)
Round One
Karim El Hammamy 3-1 Iker Pajares (ESP) 7-11, 11-6, 11-3, 3-0 ret. (56m)
Yahya Elnawasany 3-0 Balazs Farkas (HUN) 13-11, 11-8, 11-5 (34m)
Adrian Waller (ENG) 3-0 Omar Mosaad 11-7, 11-5, 11-3 (29m)
Raphael Kandra (GER) 3-0 Eiad Daoud 11-8, 11-3, 11-8 (34m)
Mohamed ElSherbini v Mohamed Gohar
Melissa Alves (FRA) 3-0 Ruqayya Salem 13-11, 11-6, 11-7 (35m)
Malak Khafagy 3-1 Habiba Hani 7-11, 11-5, 11-6, 11-7 (38m)
Hana Ramadan 3-1 Emily Whitlock (WAL) 11-6, 12-10, 10-12, 12-10 (57m)
Mariam Metwally 3-0 Marie Stephan (FRA)11-4, 11-8, 11-5 (29m)
Kenzy Ayman 3-0 Salma Eltayeb 12-10, 11-7, 11-6 (23m)
Zeina Mickawy 3-2 Nadine Shahin 11-6, 8-11, 6-11, 11-4, 11-6 (43m)
Hana Moataz 3-1 Nour Aboulmakarim 11-5, 7-11, 11-7, 11-6 (42m)
Tomato Ho (HKG) 3-0 Menna Hamed 11-7, 11-6, 11-2 (27m)
