Gohar reached the final of the 2019 edition of this tournament and took a step closer to this year’s title decider with an 11-9, 12-10, 11-7 victory over Malaysia’s Sivasangari Subramaniam.
The match was a competitive affair in which Subramaniam could perhaps count herself unfortunate not to take a game, but it will be Gohar who lines up in the quarter-finals where she will take on fellow Egyptian Rowan Elaraby, who outplayed World No.8 Joelle King over at the El Gouna Squash Complex earlier today.
“Siva is not an up-and-coming player, she is already there, she is one to watch,” said Gohar.
“We haven’t played since the World Juniors which was four or five years ago, and I feel really old now. We have evolved and it was completely different to the last time we played. I am just glad that I managed to grab the last few points in each game to win in three.
“Physically, it was hard. The court is really bouncy, and it is hard to kill the ball, so there are a lot of court sprints to do. I just tried to stay tough even though I was not playing the best squash, I was just trying to dig in and to win.”
Elaraby had won her only previous meeting with King on the PSA Tour – a 3-2 victory at the 2019 U.S. Open – but made short work of her opponent this time around as she powered to an 11-6, 12-10, 11-8 win in just 28 minutes.
United States No.1 Amanda Sobhy will also line up in the last eight after she beat England’s Lucy Turmel 11-6, 11-7, 11-7 and she will play Egypt’s Salma Hany in the quarter-finals in a rematch of their semi-final clash at the CIB Black Ball Open in March.
“She [Turmel] is a feisty up-and-coming player, so she is young and hungry, and it shows with the win she had previously,” said Sobhy.
“I wanted to just find my game, I wasn’t happy with my performance on the first day and I wanted to get settled on to the glass court, so it is good to get a match that tests you and she did that. I’m really pleased to just win in three and not let her get any momentum.”
