Final Squashsite coverage
[1] Fares Dessouky 3-0 [2] Saurav Ghosal (Ind) 11-7, 11-4, 11-9 (34m)
No. 11 Fares Dessouky emphatically claimed the $52,5000 Pittsburgh Open title in a thirty-four-minute final against India’s world No. 13 Saurav Ghosal Sunday, January 26, at the Rivers Club in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The twenty-five-year-old from Alexandria entered his first career appearance in Pittsburgh as the tournament’s top seed, opposed by the two seed, Ghosal.
Dessouky progressed to the final with four-game wins over world No. 28 Campbell Grayson in the quarterfinals and world No. 14 Gregoire Marche in the semifinals. In the bottom half of the draw, Ghosal overcame former world No. 3 Omar Mosaad in a narrow semifinal encounter 11-6, 16-18, 11-7, 12-10 after seventy-three minutes.
In the final, Dessouky extended his winning record against the Indian veteran to 5-0, claiming the title 11-7, 11-4, 11-9.
“Fares played almost flawless squash to beat Saurav Ghosal in three in the finals of the Pittsburgh Open—and he needed to as Ghosal’s impressive speed, movement and court coverage combined with his soft touch to the front had proven too much for everyone else in the tournament,” reported Steven Baicker-Mckee. “Dessouky’s attacking game was at its finest all day, and he probably had fifteen balls roll out of the nick. Ghosal worked hard to keep Dessouky off the volley in game three, and the strategy helped, allowing him to pull even at nine-all. But after a hard-fought point to pull ahead 10-9, Dessouky smashed another ball into the nick to claim the title.”
The 2020 Pittsburgh Open title marks Dessouky’s third and largest PSA title.
Semis
[2] Saurav Ghosal (Ind) 3-1 [5] Omar Mosaad 11-6, 16-18, 11-7, 12-10 (73m)
[1] Fares Dessouky 3-1 [4] Gregoire Marche (Fra) 8-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-6 (51m)
Quarters
[1] Fares Dessouky 3-1 [7] Campbell Grayson (NZL) 11-6, 7-11, 11-7, 11-7 (62m)
[5] Omar Mosaad 3-0 Mohamed ElSherbini 15-13, 19-17, 11-8 (77m)
Round Two
[1] Fares Dessouky 3-0 [9/16] George Parker (Eng) 11-8, 11-4, 12-10 (45m)
Mohamed ElSherbini 3-1 [3] Zahed Salem 11-3, 11-13, 11-9, 11-6 (63m)
[5] Omar Mosaad 3-0 Ben Coleman (Eng) 11-9, 11-7, 11-6 (44m)
Round One
Mohamed ElSherbini 3-0 Shahjahan Khan (USA) 11-2, 11-5, 11-6 (46m)
Todd Harrity (USA) 3-1 Mazen Gamal 11-13, 11-5, 11-4, 11-6 (46m)
Richie Fallows (ENG) 3-0 Karim El Hammamy 11-7, 11-1, 11-8 (33m)
Fearless Fares Dessouky is featuring in the Bronze Pittsburgh Open for the first time in his career. The World No.11 is still continuing his return towards the top after spending 14 months on the sidelines following a brutal knee injury. However, the Egyptian, whose highest ranking is World No.8, believes he is getting back to his best.
“I have been playing well and I am enjoying my game at the moment, every match makes me a better player,” Dessouky explained. “This is going to be my first time in Pittsburgh and I hope it goes well and also, I want to enjoy the tournament there,” he said.
“I honestly miss that feeling of being the higher seed and trying to defend for his place at the top.”
Dessouky missed the J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions, and this will be his first tournament of the new year, and it is one where three former champions will be in the field.
“Honestly, all of them are playing amazing squash and they deserved to win this tournament for sure. It’s going to be a good challenge to see who’s going to win the title this year,” he explained. “It would mean a lot to me to secure the win and if it happened, that would give me strength to push for better for the rest of the season.”
