Local heroes are halted as top seeds stamp their authority
By NATHAN CLARKE – Squash Mad PSA Correspondent
Top seeds Adrian Grant and Omar Abdel Meguid moved into the semi-finals of the 2014 Lagos International Squash Classic, PSA International 25 event in Nigeria, as balance was restored on day two of action.
After earning surprise berths in the quarter-finals after the retirement of both their opponents on day one of the tournament, local Nigerian hopefuls Babatunde Ajagbe and Adewale Amao bowed out of the competition at the hands of Pakistan’s Farhan Zaman and Egyptian Karim Ali Fathi, respectively.
Wildcard Ajagbe, the World No.177, got off to a promising start in his encounter with Zaman, taking the first game 11-7, but the Pakistani, ranked World No.69, showed his class to bounce back and race away to the take the next three games, including a comprehensive 11-1 victory in the fourth to seal the match.
Amao, the World No.467, has no such joy against Fathi, with the World No.47 putting him to the sword, completing an emphatic 3-0 victory in just 28-minutes.
Grant and Meguid both ensured they remain in contention to contest the final with both players come through hard-fought encounters against Danish Atlas Khan and Peter Creed, respectively, with both men completing 3-1 victories in just over an hour of play.
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PSA Lagos International Squash Classic 2014, Lagos, Nigeria
First Round:
[1] Adrian Grant (ENG) bt [Q] Jonas Daehler (SUI) 11-7, 11-7, 11-6 (3-0) (30m)
[7] Danish Atlas Khan (PAK) bt [Q] Moses Durosinmi (NGR) 11-5, 11-6, 11-5 (3-0) (30m)
[6] Farhan Zaman (PAK) bt Ahmad Al-Saraj (JOR) 12-10, 11-8, 11-3 (3-0) (35m)
[WC] Babatunde Ajagbe (NGR) bt [4] Shaun Le Roux (RSA) 7-3 Retired (5m)
[Q] Adewale Amao (NGR) bt [3] Nasir Iqbal (PAK) 11-7, 3-5 Retired (60m)
[5] Karim Ali Fathi (EGY) bt Muhammad Saqib Yousaf (PAK) 11-5, 11-6, 11-9 (3-0) (38m)
[8] Peter Creed (WAL) bt Tayyab Aslam (PAK) 11-8, 11-8, 12-10 (3-0) (59m)
[2] Omar Abdel Meguid (EGY) bt [Q] Idowu Enimakure (NGR) 11-3, 11-2, 11-7 (3-0) (20m)
Quarter-finals:
[1] Adrian Grant (ENG) bt [7] Danish Atlas Khan (PAK) 4-11, 11-2, 12-10, 11-6 (3-1) (61m)
[6] Farhan Zaman (PAK) bt [WC] Babatunde Ajagbe (NGR) 7-11, 11-4, 11-7, 11-1 (3-1) (40m)
[5] Karim Ali Fathi (EGY) bt [Q] Adewale Amao (NGR) 11-5, 11-5, 11-9 (3-0) (28m)
[2] Omar Abdel Meguid (EGY) bt [8] Peter Creed (WAL) 10-12, 11-5, 11-2, 11-6 (3-1) (66m)
Semi-final Draw:
[1] Adrian Grant (ENG) v [6] Farhan Zaman (PAK)
[5] Karim Ali Fathi (EGY) v [2] Omar Abdel Meguid (EGY)
Picture from Squash Mad archives