El Gouna (Egypt), April 5 – Indian Abhay Singh lost to Egyptian Youssef Ibrahim in the second round of the El Gouna Open, a PSA Platinum-level event.
Ibrahim, who had been struggling with a persistent left shoulder injury, defeated Abhay in five games with a score of 3-2 (7-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-5, 11-8) in 68 minutes.
Earlier, Abhay had rallied to beat Egyptian world No. 13 Aly Abou Eleinen 9-11, 11-8, 3-11, 11-4, 11-8 in the men's opening round on Day 1.
Elsewhere, on the third day of play, World No. 4 Karim Gawad defeated Egyptian compatriot Youssef Soliman in a 109-minute thriller.
In what was Gawad's longest match on the PSA Squash Tour since 2013, the 34-year-old managed to hold his nerve and come from behind to defeat World No. 12 by a score of 5-11, 14-12, 8-11, 11-8, 11-9.
Meanwhile, World No. 2 Paul Coll defeated Malaysian No. 1 Eain Yow Ng to reach the quarter-finals with a score of 11-7, 11-2, 11-8. He will next play Youssef Ibrahim.
World No. 8 Mohamad Zakaria asserted his dominance in his gripping rivalry with Joel Makin, avenging his Australian Open defeat with a straight-games victory over the No. 5 seed.
The 18-year-old World Junior Champion delivered a mature performance to overcome British National Champion Makin 11-6, 11-5, 11-5 on a thrilling day of action at the Platinum-level event.
In the women's section, world No. 2 Nour ElSherbini looked in imposing form as she cruised into the quarter-finals after defeating Melissa Alves.
The eight-time World Champion delivered a sharp, accurate performance from the first to the last point of the match, easing into the last eight with a score of 11-3, 11-3, 11-7.
In another match, world No. 4 Olivia Weaver defeated Egypt's Farida Mohamed to advance to the quarter-finals in four games, 3-1 (8-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-8) in 43 minutes.