Resurgent Egyptian Karim Abdel Gawad turned from an evening entertainer to matinee villain as home hope Mohamed ElShorbagy was ousted in a thriller at the 2023 British Open on Tuesday.
Is there a better setting than a theatre stage for the sport when the squash is as good as the one served up here?
In front of an engrossed first day crowd at the superb Birmingham Rep venue, Gawad put in a second five-game performance to savour in just 18 hours as England were left with just one player in the third round.
- READ MORE: Our British Open coverage
Nathan Lake will now come up against Diego Elias on Wednesday, with the Peruvian set to be installed as South America’s first World No.1 male on Monday, after ElShorbagy fell agonisingly short of a quarter-final place in a high-octane contest. He went down 7-11, 11-6, 11-8, 7-11, 11-9 to a player rejuvenated after 10 months out of the game, four of those spent in a wheelchair.
The drama on Tuesday started when ElShorbagy went missing back stage with referee Jason Foster having announced time and play set to begin. The Englishman came back moments later before Foster briefly turned pantomime villain to laughs from the Rep crowd when he mistook ElShorbagy ‘from Egypt’, his former country.
Little matter for ElShorbagy who carved out 5-2 and 8-6 leads to take the opener. It was edgy squash and that continued in the second; three tins to start, a stroke and unforced error underlining the nerves on show.
BRUTAL rally! 🤯
Superb stuff from @karimabdelgawad and @MoElshorbagy as we head into a fifth game! 👀
Watch it now on https://t.co/HrGBbZL0A7 📺#BritOpen23 #WhereLegendsAreMade pic.twitter.com/6nFTQ8He4q
— British Open (@BritOpenSquash) April 11, 2023
But the big game quality from the pair soon came to fruition; Gawad’s cool backhand drops, ElShorbagy’s furiously clean forehands. Yet the quick rallies were helping Gawad as he edged to within one game of the last eight after four 10-odd minute games.
We saw a deceptive cross court volley winner by ElShorbagy, followed up by a forehand tin. Gawad produced a super double fake and cross court winner which rooted ElShorbagy to the spot. Yet, the Englishman let out a roar in the next point after a backhand drop. There was nothing in it.
To the fifth and ElShorbagy increased the tempo as both traded backhand winners. At 8-8, the point of the match, one controlled by ElShorbagy in a backhand battle before Gawad’s low kill winner.
With two match balls, Gawad seemed to be let off the hook as a double bounce call went to video review and came back ‘inconclusive’. Moments later – the fifth was now nearing the 30-minute mark – the Egyptian crossed the line and stopped a run of seven successive defeats.
It was a match where both should really have taken a bow in this two-man show.
“Thank you for reminding he had won the last seven times!” joked Gawad afterwards. “That’s so bad! I am enjoying every moment on court now, I found my game again, moving well again after two years.
“I am just enjoying it, and I just keep saying the same to my coaches. I am not thinking about results, winning or losing, I am just enjoying every moment, play my best squash and to give it my all on court!”
Gawad will now play Mazen Hesham, who came into his element as the match wore on against France’s in-form and unseeded Baptiste Masotti.
Sarah-Jane Perry produced a similar performance as she negated the Egyptian threat of Nada Abbas 11-7, 10-12, 11-3, 11-9 over 37 minutes in the evening slot.
The seventh-seeded Midlander will now play top seed Nouran Gohar in a heavyweight last eight match on Thursday night. The no-nonsense Gohar, playing her first proper match of the week, beat Belgium’s Nele Gilis in straight games.
Earlier, New Zealand’s fourth seed Joelle King beat American Olivia Fiechter in convincing style 3-0.