Gohar wins first WSA title as she lays down a marker ahead of British Junior Open
By MICHAEL CATLING – Squash Mad Reporter
Rising Egyptian star Nouran Gohar claimed her maiden title on the WSA Tour, as she thrashed home favourite Lucie Fialova in straight games at the Prague Open.
Gohar, aged 16 and top seed for the $5,000 event, cruised through her previous three rounds without dropping a game and she repeated the feat in the final as she stormed to a 11-5, 11-7, 11-3 victory in the Czech capital.
Despite just 11 places separating the two players in the world rankings, the match failed to ignite into anything other than a one-sided contest as Gohar relentlessly dictated points from the get-go.
The world number 38 eased through the opening game in less than 10 minutes and despite the backing of a partisan crowd, second seed Fialova struggled to cope with Gohar’s quickness and retrievals.
And while the Czech number two manufactured early leads in the second and third game, she was quickly pegged back before succumbing to her younger opponent in just 32 minutes.
Gohar will now turn her attention to the British Junior Open in Sheffield next month, where she will be looking to better her final defeat to world number 24 Emily Whitlock earlier this year.
Final Result:
[1] Nouran Gohar (Egy) 3-0 [2] Lucie Fialova (Cze) 11-5, 11-7, 11-3 (32m)
Pictures by Steve Cubbins (SquashSite)
Meguid’s merry run ends in retirement as teenage superstar Gohar stays on course for first WSA Tour title
By MICHAEL CATLING – Squash Mad Reporter
QUALIFIER Farah Abdel Meguid’s hopes of recording a hat-trick of giant-killing acts ended in exhaustion at the hands of Egyptian teenager Nouran Gohar, as the world number 101 was forced to concede victory in her semi-final at the Prague Open.
After losing the first game 11-9, Meguid promptly lost the opening six points of the second before retiring due to a ‘lack of feeling’ in her legs.Â
It was cruel way to end the year for the 21-year-old, who had knocked out the seeded duo of Birgit Coufal and Gaby Huber en route to making the last four.
However, the unseeded Egyptian was clearly suffering after playing her quarter-final earlier in the day and duly handed her 16-year-old compatriot victory in just 19 minutes.
Gohar (pictured right), who is competing in her first full-year on Tour, will meet second seed Lucie Fialova in the final of the $5,000 event, after the Czech number two battled past Cyrielle Pelter of France in straight games.
Fialova defeated sixth seed Lotte Eriksen in the quarter-finals earlier in the afternoon and she again endorsed the seedings and WSA world rankings as she overcame the number eight seed 13-11, 11-8, 11-7 in 37 minutes.
Semi-Final Results:
[1] Nouran Gohar (Egy) 3-0 [Q] Farah Abdel Meguid (Egy) 11-9, 6-0 rtd (19m)
[2] Lucie Fialova (Cze) 3-0 Cyrielle Peltier (Fra) 13-11, 11-8, 11-7 (37m)
Quarter-Final Results:
[1] Nouran Gohar (Egy) 3-0 [5] Laura Pomportes (Fra) 11-4, 11-4, 11-3 (26m)
[Q] Farah Abdel Meguid (Egy) 3-0 [7] Gaby Huber (Sui) 11-9, 11-6, 3-1 rtd (22m)
[8] Cyrielle Peltier (Fra) 3-1 [3] Olga Ertlova (Cze) 11-8, 6-11, 11-4, 11-8 (37m)
[2] Lucie Fialova (Cze) 3-0 [6] Lotte Eriksen (Nor) 13-11, 11-5, 11-5 (30m)
Pictures by Steve Cubbins (SquashSite)