Ali Farag remained unbeaten in 2024 and won his sixth title of the season to claim the 40th Windy City Squash Open as fellow World No.1 Nour El Sherbini won the womens event.

The Egyptian stars prevailed over World No.3s Paul Coll and Nouran Gohar at the University Club of Chicago. 

Farag, in his eighth final in a row, had only been beaten twice in his last 38 matches both by Coll but lifted silverware under the chandeliers following an 11-8, 5-11, 11-7, 15-13 victory.

With the scores poised at one game apiece, Farag went up the gears as he began to pull Coll all around the court to test the retrieval abilities of the New Zealander. Coll overturned five championship balls in the fourth but was ultimately unable to prevent Farag from capturing the 39th PSA title of his career.

There's the fist pump from @AliFarag

Absolutely brutal stuff in the men's @ChicagoSquash final #WCOsquash pic.twitter.com/0Vdfz09LFJ

PSA World Tour (@PSAWorldTour) February 29, 2024

Im very relieved after missing opportunities to finish out the match, said Farag afterwards.

Its testament to Pauls character, he never gives up until the very end. I was preparing for a fifth game and I think that settled me down a bit and made me play a little bit better. I have the utmost respect and admiration for Paul the way he raises his game season after season.

The University Club has played host to so many amazing battles and so many amazing memories. Thank you to all the sponsors throughout the years. Were missing the Walter family this year, but they have shown incredible support for our sport and its one of the reasons we will be playing the Olympics in 2028. Thank you to them and everyone who has put this together.

El Sherbini has also lifted her second Windy City Open trophy after she got the better of Gohar by an 11-7, 6-11, 11-4, 11-4 scoreline to win her sixth tournament of the season.

The Egyptian pair were going head-to-head for the 30th time on the PSA Tour, with El Sherbini having won 21 of the previous 29 meetings, including the final of J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions just over a month ago. 

That match had seen El Sherbini fight back from 2-0 down to deny Gohar a first title since returning from a plantar fascia injury in her heel. It was a more controlled performance from the reigning World Champion this time around, with a second-game wobble the only blemish in an otherwise dominant performance as she earned the 40th PSA title of her career.

Im happy that I played the squash that I wanted to play today, said El Sherbini.

This is one of the best seasons [in her career]. Ive been playing really well from the start of the season, I dont think Ive won this many tournaments in one season, but I still wouldnt say this is my best season. Im happy with it, but I want to stay motivated for the rest of the season.

There was a lot happening the whole week for me, there were a lot of things on my mind. Im glad I got them out and I just tried to focus on todays match. I was almost out in the second round and I wasnt happy with my performances. Nouran has been playing amazing from the first match, so I just tried to enjoy it and Im really happy that I played well today.

Results

Men

[1] Ali Farag (EGY) bt [3] Paul Coll (NZL) 3-1: 11-8, 5-11, 11-7, 15-13 (73m)

Women

[1] Nour ElSherbini (EGY) bt [2] Nouran Gohar (EGY) 3-1: 11-7, 6-11, 11-4, 11-4 (50m)