By Anil John /Doha
Players from 29 countries are taking part in the Doha WSF World Junior Squash Championships beginning in Doha today, but if history is any yardstick it would be a couple of Egyptians who would be celebrating with the winners’ trophies on July 12.
Star duo: Marwan El Shorbagy (L) and Nour El Sherbini
The Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex has been a beehive of activity over the past few days as wide-eyed teens from all parts of the globe interacted with each other, excited at the prospect of making new friends and carrying home fond memories from Qatar which is hosting the event for the first time.
The Qatar Squash Federation (QSF) has spared no effort in providing the best of facilities for the players. Its state-of-the-art courts are the best any country can have, and with accommodation for the players and their entourages offered at the posh Courtyard Marriott, a stone’s throw from the tournament venue, there’s precious little anybody could complain about. The heat outside the air-conditioned courts, of course, is another matter.
The tournament was initially scheduled for Egypt, but with the country in the throes of change following the ouster of Hosni Mubarak through a popular revolt it was decided to shift it to Qatar, with the QSF more than keen to showcase its organisational abilities once again.
“This is the first time we are hosting a tournament of this magnitude,” gushed QSF technical secretary Gamal Rasmi. “We are talking about the WSF World Junior Squash Championships, nothing less.”
About 150 young men and women would competing in the event, although like in any tournament of this magnitude, only a handful can claim be genuine contenders for the title.
And among them, the Egyptians are the favourites.
Ever since Pakistan’s dominance in the sport ended abruptly some 15 years ago, with the frontier town of Nawakili no longer producing the kind of Khans blessed with supreme natural talent such as Hashim, Mohibullah, Azam and Sharif in the 40s to the 60s and later Jahangir and Jansher, the Egyptians have taken the mantle of the world’s leading squash nation.
Abdulla al-Tamimi: Qatar’s hope
It reflects at the junior level too, with Marwan El Shorbagy and Nour El Sherbini, the top seeds among men and women, and that too by a fair distance.
While the 18-year-old El Shorbagy is on the top of the list with 108.33 points, the second-ranked Oliver Holland of England is way behind on 75. Another Egyptian, Mohamed Abouelghar is third with 72.67 points, with India’s Mangesh Mangaonkar fourth on 55.
El Shorbagy is the defending champion, having beaten compatriot Mohamed Abouelghar in the final in Belgium last year.
Among women, El Sherbini has 88.33 points, while Emily Whitlock of England is second on 75 with India’s Anaka Alankamony third on 75. El Sherbini and Whitlock are widely tipped to clash in the final.
Egypt’s domination among junior men is a telling comment on its dominance over the game. The last six world champions have been Egyptians.
In fact, the last non-Egyptian to win the tournament was England’s James Willstrop, and that was in Chennai in 2002. Since then Egyptians Ramy Ashour (2004, 2006), Mohamed El Shorbagy (2008, 2009), Amr Khaled Khalifa (2010) and Marwan El Shorbagy (2011) have enjoyed total sway over the title.
Marwan is trying to emulate his elder brother, Mohamed, in winning the event twice. He is expected to face Pakistani Danish Atlas Khan in the last four and is likely to clash with compatriot Abouelghar, the number two seed, in the final in a repeat of last year’s event.
Former champion El Sherbini, is just 16 years old allowing her another three-year run at the junior level. The distance between her and some of the other players can be gauged from the fact that she won her first world junior title at the tender of 13 in 2009 in Chennai, and earlier this year reached the final of the British Open.
Meanwhile, Qatar is banking on Abdulla Mohamed al-Tamimi to make an impression in the WSF World Junior Championships, especially after the 17-year-old’s encouraging run in Europe this summer.
The Aspire graduate won the Dutch Open at the under-19 level in June, and a week earlier in Germany finished third in the Pioneer Junior Open in Cologne, Germany.
Al-Tamimi, who is ranked seventh in the world, has been given a bye in the first round, is one of the six Qataris playing the tournament, the others being Abdulwahab al-Ishaq, Saddam Mehwoush, Abdulrahman Abdeelzaher, Faisal al-Marri and Abdulla al-Mass.
But its al-Tamimi who is expected to go deep into the tournament, and the youngster was pretty confident about doing well.“I always prepare well for a tournament, and my fitness level is good,” he told reporters. “I have some good results to show in recent tournaments in Europe and I hope to build on my experience,” he added.The individual championships will be followed by the men’s world team championships
The first round begins at 1pm today.