Top seeds Ali Farag and Nour El Sherbini from Egypt are set to compete in the semi-finals of Qatar’s premier squash event.
Reigning world number one Ali Farag made it to the semi-finals of the QTerminals Qatar Classic tournament by defeating Switzerland’s Mueller Nicolas in straight games. The 32-year-old has only dropped one game so far at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex. Farag, who aims to defend his title, previously secured his quarterfinal spot by overcoming fellow Egyptian Soliman Youssef 3-1 after starting the tournament strong with a win on the opening day. Unfortunately, local favorite Abdulla Al-Tamimi faced elimination, losing 3-1 to Egypt’s Karim Abdel Gawad.
In the women’s draw, last year’s finalists, Hania El Hammamy and Nour El Sherbini, both advanced to the final four as expected. El Sherbini, currently the top-ranked female player, claimed victory over England’s Georgina Kennedy with a 3-1 score, marking her toughest match in Doha this year. Defending champion El Hammamy cruised past Belgium’s Gilis Tinne with a 3-0 win, moving closer to retaining her title.
The semi-finals are set to take place on Friday, with both the men’s and women’s finals scheduled for October 5. As part of the Professional Squash Association’s World Tour, the Qatar Classic is a platinum-tier event, offering a significant 2,750 ranking points to the winner, making it one of the most highly-anticipated tournaments in the squash calendar. This year’s champions in each category will also take home an increased prize of $215,000.
