[2] Nour ElSherbini (EGY) 3-2 [9] Amanda Sobhy (USA) 6-11, 11-6, 8-11, 11-9, 11-4 (57m)
Today, I knew that things were serious for Nour when father/coach Atef moved from the second row, far away from the glass, to next seat to Greg, in the “family support” first row.
I hadn’t seen Amanda playing that well since before her injury. I could see Amanda, the Squasher Slayer, who used to kill everybody in 40m top, with her sharp shot to the front and her perfect width, not to mention her immaculate lobs.
And I feel that maybe, Nour wasn’t prepared for that quality, especially on the outdoor court and a strong wind – Nour is always clear that she doesn’t enjoy playing outside. Her game, feather and delicate, doesn’t rhyme well with boiling conditions and the windy state of affairs.
After losing the first game in 9m, Nour reassessed and levelled in 10m, same score, finding some better width and length. But Amande put her foot in the glassdoor in the 3rd, 2/2, 3/3, 4/4, 5/5, 6/6, then taking the lead 10/7, 11/8, 10m game.
I think the Nour Camp counts a few more grey hair after the fourth, Nour up, 3/1, then 6/3, 7/4, only to see Amanda play her magic, wrong footing Nour and making the court very big, 7/7, 8/8, 9/9. To the great relief of the Sherbini camp, Nour closed out the 4th, 11/9.
And I think we all felt that it was it for Amanda. The way she played, that fast, that intense, that accurate, could probably not last a 5th game – yet – and it’s what happened. The Americans ran out of gas in the decider, 5/, 10/3, 11/4.
What a performance from Amanda, I would truly count her in for the Qatar crowd..
Nour
It went right to the wire, and Amanda is such an amazing player. Her comeback from injury is inspiring. This shows that she is definitely back to her best and can win all of these tough matches.
“We’ve been battling against each other since the juniors and we have been playing a lot of practice matches together, so we definitely know each other’s games. We’re quite similar in the way we play, so that’s why it makes the match so difficult and tough.
I’m glad I’m on the winning side!”
