Doha — There couldn’t have been a more fitting finale – the world’s top two players, the world No.1 against world champion. Both players had some testing times en route to the final and they both had played each other in the last two majors.
If squash was a big betting sport, this would have been one which the bookies might have lost a lot of money. When Nouran Gohar went up 2-0 in under 25 minutes, everything pointed towards the inevitable. One would be foolish to bet against that, but the Princess Warrior truly showed what a warrior she is as she captured a first Qatar title, as Mostafa Asal’s bid for a 15th win a row, like El Sherbini, ended.
Starting the match in a rather cautious manner, Sherbini was clearly trying to keep the pace slower and not wanting to go into a power play against Gohar. Her strategy worked well and got her to game ball at 10-8, and she must’ve been disappointed not to capitalise on that. Instead, it was four points in a row to Gohar for the lead.
Gohar maintained her momentum coming into the next game, wasting no time to race to a 3-0 lead and never looked back. In just 25 minutes, Sherbini’s quest for her first Qatar Classic title did not look bright.
Leading 2-0 in the third, Gohar’s had two backhand crosscourt attempts into the nick bounce up which allowed Sherbini to take control of the two rallies. She went into overdrive to take the lead 6-3, before things got even at 6-6. A big rally ensued next that had Gohar chasing every corner and when Sherbini finished, she gave the crowd a big fist pump which sent them into a frenzy. Her body language went up a notch from hereon and she never dropped another point.
As expected, Gohar requested for a new ball at this point and it definitely suited her power play. She was dominant in the earlier part of the fourth game but it was Sherbini who did better at the end to force a decider.
The decider was halted at 4-4 when Sherbini put away a beautiful backhand drop into the nick, but the end of her grip caught Gohar’s nose, which resulted in a 13-minute injury break. It was a no let decision when they restarted to put Sherbini into the lead, and she never looked back. A fist pump at the end of the 30-minute game, as she remains unbeaten this season with her third successive title, after Paris and the Egyptian Open.
“I’m really happy I’ve finally won this title and I’ve won everything now, so I can relax a bit. I’m definitely happy I’ve won the first three titles of the season.
“My parents are here and are sharing this moment with me. It means a lot and they’re always in my corner”, Sherbini said later.
.@noursherbini wins the Qatar Classic for the first time! 🙌
The Egyptian first reached the final in 2015, but she has had to wait nine years to get her hands on the trophy 🏆
Here are the winning moments 👇#QatarClassic pic.twitter.com/da4tyOeGne
— PSA Squash Tour (@PSASquashTour) October 5, 2024
Gohar was graceful in her defeat and said, “It’s not in my character to just give up. Even if I wasn’t able to walk I would still give a try and the crowd today was a real treat.
“It has been a pleasure and an honour all week to play here in Qatar. Thank you so much to the organisers and all the sponsors. I’m lucky to be able to play five matches again on this court here.
“I can’t wait to be back next year, hopefully on the winning side.”
The way Gohar took charge in most of the first two games, you bet she would be on the winning side one of these days.
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