- Upsets
- Egyptian youngsters
- Malak controversy
- Emotional comebacks
- Players finding their love & confidence again
- No easy draws in Egypt!
– Upsets everywhere
The opening round produced several surprises, with qualifiers and Lucky Losers taking full advantage of their opportunities. Ruqayya Salem beat the in-form Rachel Arnold, Yasshmita Jadishkumar ousted Mariam Metwally in straight games, while 18-year-old Lucky Loser Marwan Assal claimed his first World Event win by beating Baptiste Masotti.
– The Egyptian youngsters made their presence felt. Wild cards and qualifiers were anything but easy draws.
Habiba Rizk pushed Anahat Singh extremely hard, Seif Refaay took Auguste Dussourd to 11-9 in the fifth, and Adham Roshdy made Sam Todd work for 71 minutes.
– Anahat survived a serious scare.
After cruising through the opening two games, she found herself under huge pressure from wildcard Habiba Rizk and the home crowd before finally closing the fourth 16-14, after four match balls had been saved.
– Drama around Malak Khafagy. Leading 2-0, Malak was unable to continue following a collision. The injury ruling and subsequent decision created considerable controversy and frustration for the Khafagy family. CIB Egyptian Squash Open
– Experience mattered in the big five-game battles
Yannick Wilhelmi eventually escaped Toufik Mekhalfi 11-9 in the fifth after surrendering a two-game lead; Auguste Dussourd came back from 7-4 down in the fifth against 18-year-old Refaay; Juan Vargas used his experience to recover from 5-2 down against qualifier Ibrahim Elkabbani.
– Patrick Rooney rediscovered Patrick Rooney. His emotional five-game win over Curtis Malik was about far more than the result: instinct, freedom on court and Malcolm Willstrop’s influence were at the heart of one of the most personal stories of the day.
– Several players spoke openly about difficult periods
Nada Abbas explained how she had struggled to enjoy squash and was learning to play with less pressure; Karim El Hammamy celebrated his first victory in eight months after injury and a run of eight or nine defeats; Zeina Mickawy admitted simply experiencing the feeling of winning again was hugely important. CIB Egyptian Squash Open
– Hana Moataz is looking for another step forward. A clinical win over Marta Dominguez reflected her work on patience and rally construction, while she revealed her ambition to break into the Top 20 and challenge Top-10 players.
– Joachim Chuah continues to impress. The Malaysian qualifier, in his first full season on Tour after finishing college in the US, dismissed Nicolas Mueller in straight games and earned himself a second-round meeting with World No.1 Mostafa Asal.
– Veer Chotrani moved through comfortably, although Moustafa ElSirty was clearly hampered physically. Veer now gets a first competitive meeting with Mohamed ElShorbagy, a player he grew up admiring.
– Lucy Turmel is finally competing injury-free.
After a difficult previous season with a persistent glute problem and a ranking drop, she began her campaign with a four-game win over Xin Ying Yee. CIB Egyptian Squash Open
– Nadien Elhammamy was one of the most convincing winners, producing a composed, clinical 3-0 performance against Nour Aboulmakarim and earning a fascinating second-round meeting with Hania El Hammamy.
– And perhaps the overall message from R1: in Egypt, there really is no such thing as an easy wildcard, qualifier or Lucky Loser. The depth of the Egyptian field — combined with a fearless group of young international players — made the opening round far more dangerous than the rankings suggested.
PSA Day One Roundup
Egyptian 18-year-olds Marwan Assal and Ruqayya Salem scored a pair of major seeding upsets on the opening day of the CIB Egyptian Open 2026, defeating Baptiste Masotti and Rachel Arnold at the Diamond-level event in Cairo.
Lucky Loser Assal claimed his first-ever World Events victory on the PSA Squash Tour after the World No.90 fought back from a game behind to stun World No.20 Masotti 9-11, 11-9, 13-11, 11-6. Assal, the younger brother of current World #1 Mostafa, had suffered a gruelling 96-minute defeat to Ibrahim Elkabbani in the qualifying finals earlier this week at O West Sporting Club. However, he made the most of his second opportunity to set up a second-round tie with No.14 seed Yahya Elnawasany.
“I’m feeling so happy right now. I played some super squash today,” Assal said. “I’m really exhausted from this match, and before yesterday in qualifying I had such a tough match, 96 minutes, and I’m a Lucky Loser from that! Lucky Loser means a lucky shot. I played very well today and I’m so happy with my performance. I’m really looking forward to my next match.”
Meanwhile World #55 Salem secured her second win from as many meetings with the in-form World #22 Arnold, who recently pulled off a major upset over eight-time Nour ElSherbini at the Qatar Classic. The Egyptian teenager replicated her four-game win over the Malaysian at last year’s British Open with an equally impressive victory today, coming from a game behind to seal her spot in the second round 12-14, 11-9, 14-12, 11-4.
Elsewhere Malaysian duo Joachim Chuah and Yasshmita Jadishkumar both celebrated their maiden Diamond-level victories. Qualifier Chuah, who recently graduated from college and is competing in his first full season on the PSA Squash Tour, backed up his recent NASH Cup title win with a comprehensive three-game victory over Swiss veteran Nicolas Mueller. The 22-year-old’s opponent in tomorrow’s second round will be World #1 Mostafa Asal.
Lucky Loser Jadishkumar defeated Egypt’s Mariam Metwally 11-9, 12-10, 11-7.
Other notable winners on the opening day in Cairo were Patrick Rooney and Yannick Wilhelmi, who came through tense five-game encounters with Curtis Malik and Toufik Mekhalfi.
