Tournament wildcard Menna Walid fought back from 2-0 down and four match balls down to claim a remarkable victory over No.5 seed Lucy Turmel and progress to her maiden PSA World Tour quarter-final at the Squash On Fire Open 2024.
World No.70 Walid, who secured her spot in the main draw of the Bronze-level event after winning the Squash On Fire 2024 Wild Card Challenge last week, looked destined for defeat when 10-6 down in the third game, but managed to flip the match on its head with a clinic of powerful, attacking squash.
After staving off all four of Turmel’s match balls and clinching the third in a subsequent tie-break, the 19-year-old moved from strength to strength and soon found herself level at two games a piece.
Despite finding herself 5-2 down in the fifth, Walid once again showed maturity beyond her years to work her way back into the game and eventually prevail by an 11-7 scoreline.
“I’m literally over the moon,” she said after the match. “I started to play my shots when I was 2-0 down and 10-6 down. I had nothing to lose and I gave it my all.
“I think that when I was 2-0 down I didn’t play my best squash, but there was still a lot to play, so I just tried to control myself. I kept telling myself to play my best squash because I had nothing to lose because I was playing the World No.24, and then I managed to come back.”
On her upcoming quarter-final tie against No.4 seed Tomato Ho, she added: “I’m super excited for tomorrow. I want to give it my all and prove to myself that I’m competing and I’m here to win.”
Meanwhile in the men’s draw USA No.4 Todd Harrity progressed to a career-first PSA World Tour quarter-final after upsetting No.7 seed Omar Mosaad in straight games.
Defending champions Tinne Gilis and Victor Crouin also got their campaigns underway with straight game wins over Haya Ali and Ben Smith, respectively.
Day three of action from the Squash On Fire Open 2024 commences at 12:00 (GMT-5) on Friday, 16th February and will be available to watch live on SQUASHTV. For more information on the Squash On Fire Open 2024, visit the PSA website or follow the PSA on X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
Results: Squash On Fire Open 2024 Women’s RD2
Aira Azman (MAS) bt [7] Zeina Mickawy (EGY) 3-0: 11-3, 11-7, 11-9 (29m)
[3] Amina Orfi (EGY) bt Ainaa Amani (MAS) 3-0: 11-9, 11-4, 11-5 (30m)
[6] Rachel Arnold (MAS) bt Jessica Turnbull (AUS) 3-0: 11-4, 12-10, 11-5 (25m)
[2] Sabrina Sobhy (USA) bt Salma Eltayeb (EGY) 3-0: 11-4, 11-5, 11-3 (27m)
[1] Tinne Gilis (BEL) bt Haya Ali (EGY) 3-0: 11-1, 11-1, 11-8 (18m)
[8] Hana Moataz (EGY) bt Malak Khafagy (EGY) 3-0: 11-5, 11-7, 11-6 (27m)
[4] Tomato Ho (HKG) bt Menna Hamed (EGY) 3-0: 11-5, 11-6, 11-9 (32m)
[WC] Menna Walid (EGY) bt [5] Lucy Turmel (ENG) 3-2: 5-11, 5-11, 13-11, 11-9, 11-7 (58m)
Draw: Squash On Fire Open 2024 Women’s Quarter-Finals
[1] Tinne Gilis (BEL) v [8] Hana Moataz (EGY)
[WC] Menna Walid (EGY) v [4] Tomato Ho (HKG)
[3] Amina Orfi (EGY) v [6] Rachel Arnold (MAS)
Aira Azman (MAS) v [2] Sabrina Sobhy (USA)
Results: Squash On Fire Open 2024 Men’s RD2
[4] Youssef Ibrahim (EGY) bt Lucas Serme (FRA) 3-0: 11-7, 11-9, 11-8 (33m)
[5] Greg Lobban (SCO) bt Yannick Wilhelmi (SUI) 3-2: 11-9, 6-11, 3-11, 11-7, 13-11 (77m)
[2] Youssef Soliman (EGY) bt Velavan Senthilkumar (IND) 3-0: 11-6, 11-8, 11-2 (33m)
Todd Harrity (USA) bt [7] Omar Mosaad (EGY) 3-0: 11-7, 11-3, 11-4 (29m)
[1] Victor Crouin (FRA) bt Ben Smith (ENG) 3-0: 11-5, 11-1, 11-1 (28m)
[6] Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt Spencer Lovejoy (USA) 3-1: 4-11, 11-8, 11-4, 13-11 (58m)
[8] Nathan Lake (ENG) bt James Willstrop (ENG) 3-1: 13-11, 11-3, 9-11, 11-6 (44m)
[3] Iker Pajares (ESP) bt Bernat Jaume (ESP) 3-1: 11-2, 11-13, 12-10, 11-9 (68m)
Draw: Squash On Fire Open 2024 Men’s Quarter-Finals
[1] Victor Crouin (FRA) v [6] Saurav Ghosal (IND)
[8] Nathan Lake (ENG) v [3] Iker Pajares (ESP)
[4] Youssef Ibrahim (EGY) v [5] Greg Lobban (SCO)
Todd Harrity (USA) v [2] Youssef Soliman (EGY)
