Shock on day one of PSA World Tour Finals 
By SEAN REUTHE in Cairo 

The opening day of the 2018-2019 CIB PSA World Tour Finals saw defending women’s champion Nour El Sherbini fall to a surprise defeat against England No.1 Sarah-Jane Perry as the season-ending tournament got under way at Cairo’s Mall of Arabia.

The PSA World Tour Finals is the final tournament of the PSA World Tour season, with the first four days featuring round-robin matches during the group stage. Fixtures are held using a best-of-three games format and Perry marched into first place in Group B as she claimed a 2-0 victory over the World No.2.

It was the Egyptian who started stronger in both of the games, going 8-5 up in the first before losing six points in a row, while she held a 9-3 advantage in the second. But Perry soon whittled down that lead as she found her accuracy and range to devastating effect to make it three wins on the bounce against her opponent after wins at the Hong Kong Open and last month’s Allam British Open.

“I just relaxed and remembered that there wasn’t any pressure on me,” said 29-year-old Perry.

“I remember playing her on this court in Gouna a couple of years ago, and I got an absolute lesson and have had a few of those over the years. It makes it a bit of a bonus being here at the end of the season following my [elbow] operation, so I’m just trying to seize any opportunity that comes my way on the court.

“You can’t afford to have a bad start and you can’t afford to go 9-3 down in any game. I didn’t think about winning that game when I was 9-3 down, I just tried to play my way back in because I knew how important the third game was.”

Perry takes the maximum four points on offer to top Group B, with the other two players in Group B – Nour El Tayeb and Nouran Gohar – set to meet tomorrow.

In Group A, World No.1 Raneem El Welily got her title challenge under way as she stormed to a 2-0 win against Welsh World No.9 Tesni Evans, beating her 11-4, 11-6.

Fresh from winning a quartet of awards at the PSA Awards dinner last night – including the PSA Women’s Player of the Year – El Welily was in dominant form as she swept her opponent aside, with the Alexandria-born 30-year-old moving top of her group.

“As Egyptians we are very lucky to be playing the last tournament at home and not having to travel on a plane,” said El Welily.

“We are very lucky to be able to play in front of our home crowd and to be playing in a tournament where my family and coaches can watch and also playing in a tournament that CIB and Wadi Degla, my own sponsors, are sponsoring.”

France’s Camille Serme sits in second in Group A after she defeated New Zealand’s Joelle King. All three games went to tie-breaks as both played to an intense tempo in Cairo. However, it was the Frenchwoman who was able to hold her nerve and close out as she claimed a 12-14, 12-10, 12-10 victory in 55 minutes. The 2-1 win means Serme takes three points, while King also claims a point as she moves into third place.

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ElShorbagy saves four match balls against Elias

Defending men’s champion Mohamed ElShorbagy overturned four match balls as he defeated Peru’s Diego Elias to take a 2-1 victory, meaning he finishes the day in second place in Group B.

All four of their previous matches had gone the distance to five games, and despite the best of three format, crowds at the Mall of Arabia were treated to a spectacular 63 minute affair which saw ElShorbagy take a nail-biting third game by a 17-15 margin.

“We both had a lot of match balls,” said 28-year-old ElShorbagy. “Matches like this, every time we play each other it always goes down to the wire. He’s a great player and I always say that he is going to beat us all one day and I’m going to try and make it as late as possible, but one day he is a future World No.1 and a future World Champion.”

ElShorbagy sits level on three points with World No.3 Tarek Momen, but has a lower percentage of points won, meaning Momen ends the opening day top of Group B courtesy of a 6-11, 11-3, 11-8 victory over Germany’s World No.5 Simon Rösner.

Meanwhile, World No.1 and last year’s runner-up Ali Farag got off to a winning start in Group A as he toppled fellow Egyptian Mohamed Abouelghar in straight games.

Farag, the reigning World Champion, finished top of the men’s PSA World Tour Finals Leaderboard and is looking to cap off an incredible season that has seen him win six PSA World Tour titles.

He took maximum points on offer as he earned a 12-10, 11-9 triumph to put himself on the verge of securing a semi-final spot, with the top two from each group qualifying for the last four.

“I’m still learning a lot about myself,” Farag said. “Coming into this tournament, I knew I needed a bit of a rest, and I didn’t need to train any more as it has been a long season, and I had to be smart with my head and body. I took a couple of days off by the beach and did some exercises away from squash which was needed, and I think that made me sharp ahead of this tournament.”

The CIB PSA World Tour Finals continues tomorrow (June 10) when the likes of British Open champion Nouran Gohar and New Zealand’s Paul Coll get their tournaments under way. Live action will be shown from 19:00 (GMT+2) on SQUASHTV (rest of world), Eurosport Player (Europe only) and the official Facebook page of the PSA World Tour (excluding Europe & Japan).
 

CIB PSA World Tour Finals 2019, Mall of Arabia, 6th of October City, Egypt.

Men’s Group A:
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) bt [8] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) 2-0: 12-10, 11-9 (39m)

Men’s Group B:
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) bt [7] Diego Elias (PER) 2-1: 6-11, 11-3, 17-15 (63m)
[3] Tarek Momen (EGY) bt [6] Simon Rösner (GER) 2-1: 6-11, 11-3, 11-8 (44m)

Women’s Group A:
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) bt [8] Tesni Evans (WAL) 2-0: 11-4, 11-6 (18m)
[4] Camille Serme (FRA) bt [5] Joelle King (NZL) 2-1: 12-14, 12-10, 12-10 (55m)

Women’s Group B:
[7] Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG) bt [2] Nour El Sherbini (EGY) 2-0: 11-8, 11-9 (23m)

TODAY (June 10) Men’s Group A:
[4] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) v [5] Paul Coll (NZL)

Men’s Group B:
[6] Simon Rösner (GER) v [7] Diego Elias (PER)
[2] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) v [3] Tarek Momen (EGY)

Women’s Group A:
[1] Raneem El Welily (EGY) v [4] Camille Serme (FRA)
[5] Joelle King (NZL) v [8] Tesni Evans (WAL)

Women’s Group B:
[3] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) v [6] Nouran Gohar (EGY) 

Report by SEAN REUTHE (PSA PR and Media Manager). Edited by ALAN THATCHER.

Pictures and graphics courtesy of PSA

Record numbers set for July showdown
By DONNA HELMER – Squash Mad Correspondent

A record numbers of players are expected to turn out for the newly merged HEAD National Racketball Championships at Edgbaston Priory Club next month.

The two-day event, which takes place over the weekend of 6-7th July, is expected to lure a huge draw following the amalgamation of the National Racketball Championships and National Squash 57 Championships.

With 29 national titles up for grabs from the Under 13s to the inaugural Over 80s, this accessible tournament enables players of all ages and abilities to come together and play at one of the UK’s finest clubs, whether they’re competing for fun or pursuing a major title.

Year after year, the tournament continues to attract the finest players from around the UK including Tim Vail and Bett Dryhurst – who have triumphed 10 and 31 times respectively.

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Speaking ahead of the tournament, Mark Fuller, UK-Racketball Director said: “I’m very excited about the competition this year – it’s looking likely that this will be one of the biggest events in the sport’s history!

“With the help of England Squash, we have already seen a significant increase in entries.

“The game’s top players including many of last year’s defending champions have already signed up. There has never been a better time to play this event for the first time and fight it out for a national title.

“This is an event for all ages and abilities, so whatever your standard, join us in Edgbaston for a thrilling weekend of action!”

And there’s more than just a trophy on offer for victorious participants this year, with all competitors having a chance to win HEAD prizes and Series points that will count towards their overall finishing position in the 2019 UK-Racketball Series.

To find out more about the event and to sign up, visit UK-Racketball

Pictures courtesy of  UK Racketball and England Squash

For Wales under-20s lock Teddy Williams, a World Rugby Championship match with Argentina was not even his hardest test of the day.

Tackles and mauls were the stress relief for 18-year-old Williams, one of three members of the Wales under-20 side who is balancing the World Rugby U20 Championship with their A-level exams.

Williams, a pupil at Cardiff Welsh medium school Ysgol Glantaf, sat chemistry in the morning, then was driven hastily across the city of Rosario back to the stadium just in time to help his side defeat the hosts 30-25 in a contest that kicked off at 1pm.

"It was a bonus to have him as an option off the bench. Originally we thought he would take the exam in Buenos Aires and would miss the match," head coach Gareth Williams explained.

"We have three players involved with exams - we are balancing it."

The day before the Argentina victory, Williams sat a biology exam. He also took a maths exam along with team-mate Aneurin Owen, 18, before Wales' 32-13 defeat by France.

This week Williams, the son of former Wales international Owain Williams, will sit further exams in chemistry, maths - with Owen - and biology.

Owen suffered a head injury after colliding with a team-mate against Argentina, and while he was not fit enough to play against France he is fit enough for a maths exam.

Their team-mate, Leicester Tigers fly-half Sam Costelow, 18, had to travel even further to do his exams.

Different regulations meant he was forced to travel four hours and almost 200 miles to the capital city of Buenos Aires with a chaperone from the Wales management team in order to sit a geography exam.

Team manager Darren Joy has been responsible for making the arrangements, having contacted each of the respective schools three months ago to begin making plans.

While all the schools were willing to help, Joy endured a lot of red tape obtaining the requisite paperwork to ensure the players did not have to pick between the tournament and their education.

"The work the boys have put in is amazing, especially if you add in the fact that for a lot of them, it is their first time being away from home for a prolonged period," head coach Williams added.

"They have needed to keep their focus on two fronts with the rugby and the exams and that has been really impressive from them.

"To be able to set-up the exams over here in Argentina, we give a lot of credit to team manager Darren Joy.

"He has made it as comfortable as possible for the boys to complete their exams and make sure it doesn't impair on their preparation or performance."

Wales conclude their group matches against Fiji in Santa Fe on Wednesday.

For three of the squad, it will be a test they relish.

The Women's Rugby Super Series tournament will be harder than a World Cup, according to England captain Sarah Hunter.

The top five teams in the world all meet in San Diego, with Grand Slam champions England opening their campaign against USA on 28 June.

Simon Middleton's side then face Canada, France and world champions New Zealand in the round-robin tournament.

"It's incredible for us to have this opportunity," Hunter told BBC Sport.

"In some respects you could say it is harder than a World Cup.

"You probably wouldn't play the top five sides in the world during a World Cup campaign, so it gives us a great chance to actually see where we are at."

England breezed to a Six Nations Grand Slam earlier in the year, but Hunter expects the standard of competition to be significantly higher in California this summer.

"We did have a great Six Nations, and we can only play the opposition in front of us, but now we are going halfway across the world and playing the best teams that there are," she added.

"It's our chance to find out where we are and how we then need to move on in terms of looking at the big picture [at the World Cup] in two years' time."

Middleton has named a 28-strong squad for the Super Series, with Hunter leading a group shorn of some experienced players through injury.

Fly-half Katy Daley-McLean, centre Rachael Burford and wing Jess Breach have all been declared unavailable.

However, centre Emily Scarratt is among those to return, while uncapped pair Chloe Edwards and Clara Nielsen are both named as Middleton looks to build depth into his squad.

"We need to be coming off the summer tour with a really clear picture of what our squad is starting to look like in terms of the World Cup," Middleton told BBC Sport.

"The Super Series will provide us with a perfect platform to see exactly where we are."

England's Super Series matches

Friday, 28 June: England v United States (21:00 BST)

Sunday, 7 July: Canada v England (01:15 BST)

Wednesday, 10 July: England v France (22:15 BST)

Sunday, 14 July: New Zealand v England (21:00 BST)

All matches will be played at the Chula Vista Elite Athlete Training Center in San Diego except the final game against New Zealand, which will be played at San Diego State University's Torero Stadium.

SONOMA, Calif. – Kenny Murillo and Christian Szymczak raced to the overall victory in Sunday’s Pirelli GT4 America SprintX main event at Sonoma Raceway.

The No. 47 NOLASPORT Porsche 718 Cayman CS MR of Jason Hart (SprintX Pro-Am) would lead the field to the green flag for the final Pirelli GT4 America SprintX race of the weekend at Sonoma Raceway.

It was the No. 34 Murillo Racing Mercedes of Murillo and Szymczak (SprintX West Pro-Am) who would grab the headlines however, moving from fifth to first.

Just prior to the green flag, SprintX Race 1 winner Jeff Burton (SprintX West Am) would head to pitlane in the No. 91 Rearden Racing Audi R8 LMS GT4 to change a tire that was losing air pressure.  The team would change the Pirelli rubber and get the car back on track without losing a lap to the leaders.  The team would fight back through the field and finish eighth overall.

Thirteen minutes into the race the No. 51 Panoz of Matt Keegan (SprintX Am) pulled along-side the No. 19 Cameron Racing BMW M4 GT4 of Gregory Liefooghe (SprintX Pro-Am) and would out-brake the BMW at the turn seven hairpin via the outside line for second place.  Keegan would then chase down the leading No. 47 NOLASPORT Porsche and grab the lead at the final hairpin one lap later.

Behind the leaders, the No. 33 Rearden Racing Audi R8 LMS GT4 of Owen Trinkler (SprintX West Pro-Am) would also choose the final hairpin to make a pass over the No. 67 TRG Porsche 718 Cayman CS MR of Kevin Woods (SprintX West Am) to grab seventh position.

During the mandatory pit stops for driver changes, the first and second place cars would pit together early in the pit window, with Preston Calvert getting in to the No. 51 Panoz and Matt Travis in the No. 47 Porsche.  Third place Gregory Liefooghe would stay out in an attempt to over-cut his rivals and pit with 26 minutes remaining, turning the No. 19 Cameron Racing BMW over to Sean Quinlan.  The stop was just a little too quick compared to the minimum required time and the No. 19 would face a drive through penalty for the error.

The No. 34 Murillo Racing Mercedes AMG of Christian Szymczak (SprintX West Pro-Am) would be the fastest car on track after switching drivers, as the bright orange machine would move from fifth to second in just a matter of laps before chasing down the race-leading Panoz.  With 20 minutes remaining the No. 34 would slip stream past the No. 51 at the turn seven hairpin and take the overall lead and victory.

“I was actually going back and forth on racing this weekend, but I knew it was going to be a great time so I had to,” said Szymczak. “The mercedes was really good all weekend.  I’ve been racing with Murillo for years now and the team is great and gave us a great car.”

Half a lap later Colin Mullan (SprintX Pro-Am) in the No. 36 Andretti Autosport McLaren 570S GT4 would pass the No. 47 NOLASPORT entry on the outside of turn one to take over the final podium position.

DUBUQUE, Iowa – Bryce Garnhart thought he would settle for second.

Then the yellow light flashed in front of him due to the leader crashing.

The defending track champion put the peddle down on the restart and cruised to the 25-lap Smokey Rupp Memorial Merfeld Brothers IMCA Modified win Sunday at Dubuque Speedway.

“I know it was bad for him, but it made me happy,” Garnhart said in victory lane. “Car ran great and I can’t thank everyone enough that works on this and supports us.”

Hometown driver Austin Moyer helped lead the field to John Ryan’s green flag and quickly opened a large advantage. With a straightaway lead over Garnhart, who clawed from sixth in a competitive 22-car field, Moyer jumped the turn two cushion and banged the wall, ending his night on lap 19.

Garnhart beat Timmy Current off the restart on the top groove and sped to the win.

Kyle Brown, Jeff Larson, Chris Zogg and Current completed the top five.

Ron Klein had a similar misfortune to Moyer in the Eichmann’s Bar and Grill IMCA Late Model 25-lap finale. Klein got caught up with a lapped car about halfway through, breaking the front end. Jeff Tharp inherited the lead on the restart and blasted to the win.

Justin Kay, Luke Merfeld, Eric Pollard and Jermiah Hurst followed.

Jerry Miles launched on a restart and won the Peosta Warehousing Logistics IMCA SportMod 15-lap feature.

Miles got that spot when top two drivers Rusty Deshaw and Tyler Soppe battled off turn two, collided and went head on into the backstretch wall. Deshaw’s ride ended upside down. He was not hurt, but both cars were done.

Austin Heacock, Jason Roth, Justin Becker and Wes Digman came next.

Brannon Bechen led all 10 laps of the 4Cylinder feature to beat Thomas Adams, John W. Campbell and Jacob Welter.

The K Motorports IMCA Stock Cars and Kinsella Concrete IMCA Hobby Stocks took the track together for two races in one.

Cole Mather picked up his third Stock Car win of the season over Kyle Merkes, Matt Hudspeth and Reece Norton.

Daniel Wauters took another Hobby win over Dakota Simonsen, Brandon White, Roger Winkers and Hank White.

PORT COLBORNE, Ontario — Brad Rouse and James Michael Friesen took home the two 25-lap features for the Cosco Haulage DIRTcar Sportsman as Archer’s Truck Service presented the racing action at the New Humberstone Speedway Sunday evening.

Rob Pietz took home the checkered flag for the Pro Fabrication RUSH Late Models. Billy Bleich Jr. won the main event for the JC Auto Thunder Stocks, which was home race number one for the Insta Panels Duel on the Dirt. Leroy Buscumb won race one of the Insta Panels Duel on the Dirt for the Glo and Go Tanning Mini Stocks.  Mitch Dumont won the Airhardt Deliveries Pro 4 Trucks feature.

Jay Mallory and James Michael Friesen were on the front row for the Cosco Haulage DIRTcar Sportsman feature from Opening Night with Friesen in the lead. Rouse moved up to third, Rouse to lead on lap seven.

Once out front, Rouse would not relinquish the lead. Rouse would go on to score the win. In the nightcap feature for the Cosco Haulage DIRTcar Sportsman, James Michael Friesen would use his pole position to take the lead away early from Jordan Cosco. Adam Leslie moved up through the field as would Brad Rouse to move into the top three. Friesen would lead all 25-laps to score the win.

Pro Fabrication RUSH Late Models first home race for the Northeast Late Model Alliance saw John Pinsonneault leading the field at the drop of the green. David Pangrazio would take the lead away and was being pressured by Adam Ferri and Rob Pietz. Ferri would take the lead and then Pietz would take the lead away at the midway point and would not look back as he would go on to score the win.

Home race number one for the Insta Panels Duel on the Dirt for the JC Auto Thunder Stocks saw Billy Bleich Jr and Donny Lampman on the front row with Bleich showing the way. Bleich continued to show the way as Rob Murray moved into second place. Bleich dominated the event, leading all 20 laps to score the victory.

The Glo & Go Tanning Mini Stocks had their first home race as part of the Insta Panels Duel on the Dirt and it was Evan Curtis and Kourtney Kocarik on the front row. Cole Hardy flipped, in turn, one to bring out the red flag on lap one. Hardy was alert and talking to medical personnel and visited the on-track care centre. Jay Moulton and Evan Curtis would lead the field back to the green flag with Moulton taking the lead. Moulton, Curtis, Olivier Larocque, and Leroy Buscumb all battled for the lead in the closing laps. Moulton’s lead would come to an end on lap 15 after spinning in turn four.  Buscumb would hold off several challenges to score the win.

Mitch Dumont took the lead away from Danny Wurster on lap one of the 15-lap feature for the Airhardt Deliveries Pro 4 Trucks.  The first caution of the event would come out on lap six as Brian Aube hit the front stretch wall.

On the restart, Dumont and Dylan Llord would pull away from the field as Llord would take the lead exiting turn two. Dumont would regain the lead with five laps remaining. Dumont would go on to score the win.

The Vintage Cars saw Jeff Larmet hold off challenges from Conrad Baker and Rick St. Pierre to score the victory. Qualifying heats were won by Andy Imbeault and Rick St. Pierre.

CALIFORNIA, Mo. — Sunday night saw the third annual Dylan Bias Memorial Race come to the Double-X Speedway with Kyle Bellm winning the headlining 360 sprint car feature.

Bellm took the lead from the pole and led the 25-lap distance to end Tyler Blank’s four-race winning streak. Blank was running second when he suffered a flat tire with two laps remaining.

Tyler Utz posted a good finish in second, Taylor Walton was third, Ayrton Gennetten finished fourth and Randy Martin completed the top five.

The Henson brothers Derek and Cole led the field to the green flag to begin the super stock event. Derek Henson would use the low groove to take the lead which never grew over four car lengths for the duration of the event.

Toby Ott and Marc Carter ran second and third right on the bumper for the majority of the event. Some close racing between Henson and Ott led to Ott coming to a stop on the top of turn four on lap 22. On the restart Derek Henson was still at the point with Carter and Cole Henson lining up behind him.

With three laps remaining, Henson would hold the slim advantage over the field to claim the victory. Marc Carter would earn a well contested second, Cole Henson was third, Zach Zeugin was fourth and Joe Miller finished fifth after starting 13th.

The hobby stock division rolled out next on the feature slate with Chuck Coffey and Kyle Smith running one-two early and just past the halfway point Dakota Girard joined the fray. Smith and Girard would challenge the leader on the white flag lap but Coffey was not to be denied.

Smith would win the duel for second with Girard finishing third.

WEEDSPORT, N.Y. — Danny Dietrich has certainly been on a roll this year, and now he can add an Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions presented by Mobil 1 victory at Weedsport Speedway to his list of accomplishments.

Dietrich, driver of the Gary Kauffman Racing/Weikert’s Livestock/Sandoe’s Fruit Market/Pace Performance/Big Cove Whitetail Trophy Hunts/Drop Of Ink Tattoo/Sweeney Cars/Self Made/No. 48 sprint car, put fans on their feet Sunday night in central New York, utilizing a late-race restart to power around Danny Varin with just five circuits remaining.

Impressive enough, Dietrich accomplished his feat with a severed component in the rear suspension; a bent w-link.

“We are really starting to like this place,” Dietrich said of Weedsport Speedway, who now owns eight victories this year including his $5,000 All Star Circuit of Champions triumph. “Hats off to this entire team. We are clicking really well right now and the results show. There are so many people that help make all of this possible. Just a surreal feeling right now. Hopefully we can keep this momentum going into next weekend.”

Starting from the outside of row four, Dietrich was not speedy in his pursuit of the top spot, ultimately fading to a position just outside of the top-five during the first few circuits. In fact, Dietrich did not crack into the top three until lap 26 of 35.

During his late-race surge to the top, Dietrich was given some help, as Larry Wright, who was racing just ahead of Dietrich in the runner-up spot, made contact with the outside retaining wall on the 27th circuit, ultimately ending his night. The ensuing caution, which allowed Dietrich to restart on the tailtank of race leader Danny Varin, created the recipe for Dietrich’s eventual takeover.

Although Dietrich relied on the bottom of the speedway to get to himself that far forward, it was the top that proved to be the winning route. Utilizing momentum, Dietrich used a slingshot move around Weedsport’s cushion to gain command for the first time on lap 30, navigating the narrow edge in turns three and four to eventually work around Varin.

“I knew that is where I needed to be,” Dietrich continued. “[Danny Varin] was pretty good on the bottom, so I knew if I kept my pace up and built some momentum, I’d have a shot at him around the top. That late caution really helped us out. It gave me a chance to move up a lane and use clean air to get around him.”

Varin chased Dietrich to the final checkers, followed by Spencer Bayston, Cory Eliason and Greg Wilson.

Matt Sheppard topped the 35-lap modified feature.

The finish:

Feature (35-laps): 1. 48 – Danny Dietrich, 2. 00 – Danny Varin, 3. 70X – Spencer Bayston, 4. 26 – Corey Eliason, 5. 20W – Greg Wilson, 6. 13 – Paul McMahan, 7. 98H – Dave Blaney, 8. 14 – Tony Stewart, 9. 5W – Lucas Wolfe, 10. 87 – Aaron Reutzel, 11. 11 – Dale Blaney, 12. K4 – Chad Kemenah, 13. 70 – Brock Zearfoss, 14. 10 – Paulie Colagiovanni, 15. 07 – Gerard McIntyre, 16. 98 – Joe Trenca, 17. 47X – Dylan Westbrook, 18. 5 – Justin Barger, 19. 45 – Chuck Hebing, 20. 99 – Skylar Gee, 21. 35 – Tyler Esh, 22. 99L – Larry Wight, 23. 88C – Chad Miller, 24. X – Dan Bennett