Kuwait’s Ammar Altamimi leads by two games before Karim’s comeback in Dubai
By Squash Mad Reporter
After narrowly avoiding crashing out of the competition at the first hurdle against Pakistan’s Farhan Zaman, top seed Karim Abdel Gawad was once again forced to complete an impressive comeback in his second round encounter at the Dubai Squash Cup to keep his hopes of tournament glory alive.
The young Egyptian found himself down two-games to nil to Kuwait’s Ammar Altamini before eventually finding his form to rally and take the last three games and complete a remarkable 62-minute turnaround victory and secure his place in the quarter-finals, where he will face a tough encounter against compatriot Zahed Mohamed.
Mohamed booked his place in the last eight with a straightforward win over Pakitsan’s Adil Maqbool, spending just 25-minutes on court, while Pakistani duo Nasir Iqbal and Aamir Atlas Khan continued their runs with victories over Ahmed Effat Ashoush and Tayyab Aslam, respectively.
Number two seed Chris Simpson ensured his place win the quarters with an easy win over Hossam Nasser, with the Egyptian having to retire during the third game, and Simpson will now face experienced New Zealander Paul Coll after he came from two-games down to see off the challenge of Farhan Mehboob in 65-minutes.
Dubai Cup (Second Round):
[1] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) bt Ammar Altamimi (KUW) 3-2: 5-11, 5-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-3 [62m] [7] Zahed Mohamed (EGY) bt Adil Maqbool (PAK) 3-0: 11-4, 11-5, 11-5 [25m] [6] Nasir Iqbal (PAK) bt [Q] Ahmed Effat Ashoush (EGY) 3-1: 11-8, 11-7, 4-11, 11-9 [43m] [3] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) bt [Q] Christo Potgieter (RSA) 3-1: 11-9, 8-11, 11-3, 11-6 [35m] Aamir Atlas Khan (PAK) bt Tayyab Aslam (PAK) 3-1: 11-8, 12-14, 11-3, 11-9 [52m] Muhd Asyraf Azan (MAS) bt [8] Abdullah Al Muzayen (KUW) 3-2: 11-5, 8-11, 11-5, 9-11, 12-10 [45m] Paul Coll (NZL) bt Farhan Mehboob (PAK) 3-2: 5-11, 8-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5 [65m] [2] Chris Simpson (ENG) bt [Q] Hossam Nasser (EGY) 11-9, 11-0, 6-1 [retired]
Quarter-final Draw:
[1] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) v [7] Zahed Mohamed (EGY)
[6] Nasir Iqbal (PAK) v [3] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY)
Aamir Atlas Khan (PAK) v Muhd Asyraf Azan (MAS)
Paul Coll (NZL) v [2] Chris Simpson (ENG)
Picture by NITESH SQUAREÂ