The draws for the El Gouna International Squash Open 2026 have been released, with two-time winner and defending champion Mostafa Asal topping the men’s draw and 2022 champion Hania El Hammamy leading the women’s draw.
The event will see 32 male and female players compete for the season’s final Platinum title in the 14th men’s edition and the ninth women’s edition of the El Gouna International.
The event will take place between 4-10 April 2026, on a stunning glass court at the El Gouna Conference & Culture Center, with early round action coming from the El Gouna Squash Complex.
Dominant men’s World No.1 Asal will be looking to score a third El Gouna title this year, drawing him level with legends Ramy Ashour and Ali Farag as the most decorated players in the event’s history.
The 24-year-old has reached the El Gouna International final in each of the last four years, highlighting his form at the event and clear fondness for it. Asal has won five of the six major events so far this season, the last three all without dropping a single game. He opens his 2026 campaign against England’s Curtis Malik.
Six-time major event winner and World No.2 Paul Coll is yet to add the El Gouna International title to his trophy haul. The New Zealander reached the final in 2021 and 2022 but suffered 3-0 losses to Asal and Mohamed Elshorbagy. The 2022 event was Coll’s last appearance in the final but as No.2 seed for this year and a four-time Platinum finalist this season, he’ll be hopeful once again of capturing another major title.
The No.3 and 4 seeds in the men’s event are two-time runner-up Karim Gawad and 2024 World Champion Diego Elias. Gawad returned to World No.3 for the first time since 2020 this season, showcasing his incredible skill and courtcraft.
He faces Declan James in round one. Despite being a former World No.1 and World Champion, Peru’s Elias is yet to reach an El Gouna International final in the six times he’s featured in the event. Elias has been injured for the majority of the 25/26 season but is steadily returning to his best form and would love nothing more than to claim a second major title on Egyptian soil.
The women’s game has reached new heights this season, with several high-quality battles taking place between the leading players in the world.
World No.1 El Hammamy has certainly played her part in what has been an iconic season so far. The 25-year-old has four major titles to her name so far during the 25/26 campaign and will be determined to make that five and become the fourth multiple-time champion in El Gouna. She opens up with a first-round match against Indian teenage sensation Anahat Singh.
Two-time El Gouna International champion Nour ElSherbini has rediscovered her top form in recent months, winning both the Hong Kong Open and Windy City Open to return to World No.2. ‘The Warrior Princess’ won the first-ever women’s El Gouna International back in 2017 but hasn’t won the event since 2021. She’ll be looking to continue her fine form and close the gap between herself and El Hammamy at the top of the world rankings.
World No.3 and 4 Amina Orfi and Olivia Weaver head to another major event, desperate to break the hold of ‘The Big Three’. Both have come agonisingly close in the last two major events. Weaver led 9-3 in the final game of the Tournament of Champions final, whilst Orfi led 2-0 in the Windy City Open final.
Both went on to lose out on the titles. These disappointments will only spur Orfi and Weaver on for the remainder of the season, and with the next opportunity to claim major event silverware coming in El Gouna, could this be the event where the six-year record for ‘The Big Three’ ends?
Men’s Draw:
[1] Mostafa Asal [EGY] vs Curtis Malik [ENG]
Yahya Elnawasany [EGY] vs Gregoire Marche [FRA]
Mohamed ElShorbagy [ENG] vs Leonel Cardenas [MEX]
Bernat Jaume [ESP] vs [7] Victor Crouin [FRA]
[8] Marwan ElShorbagy [ENG] vs Timothy Brownell [USA]
Jonah Bryant [ENG] vs Noor Zaman [PAK]
Mohamed Abouelghar [EGY] vs Fares Dessouky [EGY]
Baptiste Masotti [FRA] vs [4] Diego Elias [PER]
[3] Karim Gawad [EGY] vs Declan James [ENG]
[WC] Mazen Hesham [EGY] vs Youssef Soliman [EGY]
Greg Lobban [SCO] vs Mohamad Zakaria [EGY]
Juan Vargas [COL] vs [5] Joel Makin [WAL]
[6] Youssef Ibrahim [EGY] vs Dimitri Steinmann [SUI]
Aly Abou Eleinen [EGY] vs Abhay Singh [IND]
[WC] Seif Refaay [EGY] vs Eain Yow Ng [MAS]
Kareem El Torkey [EGY] vs [2] Paul Coll [NZL]
Women’s Draw:
[1] Hania El Hammamy [EGY] vs Anahat Singh [IND]
Kenzy Ayman [EGY] vs Nele Gilis [BEL]
Jasmine Hutton [ENG] vs Aifa Azman [MAS]
Marina Stefanoni [USA] vs [7] Fayrouz Aboelkheir [EGY]
[6] Satomi Watanabe [JPN] vs [WC] Talia Zakaria [EGY]
[WC] Farida Walid [EGY] vs Hana Moataz [EGY]
Rowan Elaraby [EGY] vs Lucy Turmel [ENG]
Tinne Gilis [BEL] vs [3] Amina Orfi [EGY]
[4] Olivia Weaver [USA] vs Lucy Beecroft [ENG]
Salma Hany [EGY] vs Farida Mohamed [EGY]
Rachel Arnold [MAS] vs Sana Ibrahim [EGY]
Hana Ramadan [EGY] vs [8] Georgina Kennedy [ENG]
[5] Sivasangari Subramaniam [MAS] vs Nada Abbas [EGY]
Zeina Mickawy [EGY] vs Aira Azman [MAS]
Georgia Adderley [SCO] vs Melissa Alves [FRA]
Malak Khafagy [EGY] vs [2] Nour ElSherbini [EGY]