The Egyptian stars gave ample evidence of their superb skills and the level of dominance at the Squash World Cup held in Chennai recently.
Much before the start of the event, it was clear Egypt would win as the top seed, and it did it in grand style. The win over Malaysia in the final showed the African powerhouse had the capacity to bounce back when the odds were against it.
The team’s game plan, strategy, and execution were spectacular throughout the mixed-team competition, which took place after a gap of 12 years.
Though the timing of the event at the end of the season prevented the cream of Egypt players from taking part, three of the four were in the top 50 and the other was ranked 56th.
Failing to come good
But disappointment was in store for Indians fans when the host lost tamely to Malaysia 3-0 in the semifinals. Much was expected from the second seed after it had put it across Japan 3-1 in the last group-B tie.
The experienced Joshna Chinnappa and Saurav Ghosal, who gave lots of hope with their performance against Japan, failed to rise to the occasion against Malaysia.
The 21-year-old Abhay Singh, a rising star ranked World No.62, also cracked under pressure. In the crucial ties against Japan (in the group phase) and Malaysia in the knock-outs, he lost the opening match, putting pressure on his compatriots.
The Squash Rackets Federation of India (SRFI) officials, unhappy with India’s display, is now guarded on the nation’s chances at the Asian Games in Hangzhou.
The host, however, didn’t lower its guard on the organisational front. The setting, meticulous preparations, and clinical execution of the World Cup left everyone, including Zena Wooldridge, president of the World Squash Federation (WSF), immensely satisfied. The WSF, SRFI, and the Government of Tamil Nadu deserve full credit for pulling off a grand show.
“I think you’ll agree we’ve witnessed an outstanding week of squash in Chennai. The new format has produced some exciting squash and I hope you’ve enjoyed the whole experience and hospitality here in Chennai,” said Woolridge at the closing ceremony.
Just like the excellent hospitality of the host, Egypt’s performance was appreciated by those who watched its players put on a clinical exhibition of squash at the Express Avenue Mall.
One for all, all for one
The four Egyptians — Aly Abou El Eleinen (men’s World No. 21), Hamim El Hammamy (men’s 40), Fayrouz Aboelkheir (women’s No. 33) and Kenzy Ayman (56) — stood up for one other.
When Kenzy lost her first match to Yee Xin Ying in the summit clash against Malaysia, or when Fayrouz went down to a talented Aira Azman of Malaysia in the second match in the group phase, the others fought tooth and nail to balance it out by winning tough matches.
“Bloody hell!” remarked a Malaysian PSA official after watching Eleinen playing catch-up for 10 rallies and then winning the point with a cracking backhand winner against Japan’s Ryunosuke Tsurue in the semifinals.
When Egypt last won the title in Chennai in 2011, it had in its ranks the world’s top players such as Raneem El Wilily, Ramy Ashour, Karim Darwish, and Mohamed Elsherbiny.
With this win, Egypt has shown its second line of players is stronger than the best of other countries, and more importantly, has a bench strength that is rock solid.
Playing its heart out
Fourth-seeded Malaysia deserves all the plaudits that came its way. It played its heart out and was confidence personified in the final against Egypt.
Comprising Darren Pragasam (men, World ranked 141), Hung Sai Ong (men, 149), Aira Azman (women, 55), and Yee Xin Ying (women, 79), the team pushed beyond its potential and produced its best-ever show in the World Cup.
Darren and Aira, and to a lesser extent Ying were the stars for Malaysia. Aira was stupendous against Joshna in the second match of the semifinals. Even though the Indian fought hard, Aira had the final laugh.
Darren, whose play was average till then, raised his game against India in the semifinals. In the third match against his idol Saurav Ghosal, he was outstanding. His deceptive backhand drops and relentless retrievals put the top-ranked Indian in a fix.
The Malaysian couldn’t hide his emotions after the huge win over the 19th-ranked Indian. “I know the fans wanted an India win today but I’m so happy to see so many people come out and support our sport. It’s amazing, thank you so much.
“Saurav’s someone I’ve looked up to forever. He’s one of the greatest Asian and Indian players. I saw he was struggling a bit [with a knee issue] and I said ‘I have a chance today’. But hats off to him, he fought to the end even though he was hurting. You guys must be proud of him.”
The petite Aira has a huge heart and a bountiful game. The 18-year-old relies not much on power but on angles and delicate drops. Her win over a much higher ranked Fayrouz in the Group-A match was a lesson in court craft.
Fayrouz, one of the brightest talents to emerge from Egypt, found the going difficult against Aira as the latter had the audacity to go for winners from difficult angles and her deception across the court gave no chance to the Egyptian.
Malaysia has a bright future and it should fancy quite a few medals in singles at the Asian Games if the form at the World Cup is any indication.
India needs to introspect. Under pressure at home, its players crumbled. Abhay is certainly a better player than what the World Cup showed, while Joshna, whose rankings has gone down to 72, and Saurav must rectify their mistakes and come back stronger for the forthcoming events.
Egypt’s coach Mohamed Elkeiy said it right: “We were not under pressure. It was India that was under pressure.”
The World Cup was a joyous spectacle to behold but one that may not have left pleasant memories for Indian squash fans.
