El Hammamy produced a spell-binding performance to beat reigning El Gouna champion El Sherbini - who lifted her sixth World Championship trophy in Cairo two weeks ago - 11-6, 5-11, 14-12, 11-6 in 67 minutes.
21-year-old El Hammamy is no stranger to a major final after wins at the likes of the Allam British Open and the CIB Black Ball Women’s Squash Open in recent years, and she will look to capture her third Platinum title when she takes on World No.1 Nouran Gohar in a repeat of that British Open title decider.
“It definitely feels amazing being able to beat the six-time World Champion,” El Hammamy said afterwards.
“It’s something that I’m always proud of. Playing against Nour is definitely tricky, she’s the best of the best, to be honest. Playing against her makes me so happy and makes me want to play my best because if I’m not bringing my ‘A game’ I’m not able to beat her, so I’m definitely happy with that win.”
Gohar has reached her 11th successive major PSA final - becoming the first player to do so since Malaysia’s Nicol David in 2013 - and her third El Gouna final after beating World No.28 Nour El Tayeb 11-7, 13-11, 4-11, 11-1 in 65 minutes..
A tenacious El Tayeb proved to be a difficult opponent for the hard-hitting Gohar, but she eventually came unstuck in a one-sided fourth game as Gohar continued her tremendous form this season.
“Nour, since I was a junior, has been a role model for us and she’s one of the best and she keeps on being the example, she’s had a baby and is playing like this,” said Gohar.
“Not just me but the whole tour thinks she’s playing better than before. Honestly, I was really excited for the match. It’s been so long since I felt I was challenged, mentally more than anything.”
The finals of the El Gouna International take place tomorrow (June 3) and play begins at 19:00 (GMT+2). All of the action will be shown live on SQUASHTV as well as on the channels of PSA’s broadcast partners.
For more information on the El Gouna International, visit the tournament website or follow the event on Twitter, Facebook and Insta
Results - Men’s Semi-Finals: 2022 El Gouna International
[1] Paul Coll (NZL) bt [3] Mohamed ElShorbagy (EGY) 3-2: 9-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-1, 11-6 (109m)
[4] Mostafa Asal (EGY) bt [2] Ali Farag (EGY) 3-1: 11-4, 11-6, 6-11, 11-6 (69m)
Draw - Men’s Final: To Be Played June 3rd
[1] Paul Coll (NZL) v [4] Mostafa Asal (EGY)
Results - Women’s Semi-Finals: 2022 El Gouna International
[1] Nouran Gohar (EGY) bt Nour El Tayeb (EGY) 3-1: 11-7, 13-11, 4-11, 11-1 (65m)
[3] Hania El Hammamy (EGY) bt [2] Nour El Sherbini (EGY) 3-1: 11-6, 5-11, 14-12, 11-6 (67m)
Draw - Women’s Final: To Be Played June 3rd
[1] Nouran Gohar (EGY) v [3] Hania El Hammamy (EGY)
