2009 - ATCO Super Series Finals Squash Championships 2009

Close Company List

Kuwait Mens World Open Squash Championships 2009 Official Programme

Today from the Event : 2009

Gaultier Makes It A First Repeat For Eight Years

Greg Gaultier, the fourth seed from France, looked as though he were playing the best squash of his career as he became the first player for eight years successfully to defend the Super Series title, fashioning a beautifully constructed win over Thierry Lincou in the first final between players of the same nation.

Darwish Beats His Predecessor

[1] Karim Darwish bt [2] Amr Shabana 11/8, 11/9, 11/5

Karim Darwish may not quite have lived up to his world number one ranking this week, but his third place, the $14,250 prize money, and his confirmed status as the leading Egyptian were at least some consolation.

Lincou Makes It An All-French Final

[5] James Willstrop bt [7] Thierry Lincou 11/8, 11/8, 4/11, 3/11,11/6 (63m)
Thierry Lincou ensured that there will be an all-French final to the Super Series final, even though he was beaten in his last group match by James Willstrop in a curiously high-charged five-game encounter in which Lincou was close to elimination at two games down and Willstrop was at risk of disqualification through what is politely called the bleeding rule.

Gaultier Title Defence Goes All The Way To The Final

[4] Gregory Gaultier bt [1] Karim Darwish 10/12, 11/5, 11/9, 11/7 (59m)
Greg Gaultier continued to look the tournament's form player as he edged his way past world number one Karim Darwish and carried the defence of his Super Series title all the way to the final.

Shabana Makes Last Gasp Effort To Reach Final

[2] Amr Shabana bt [3] Ramy Ashour 11/9, 11/4, 11/2 [24m]
Amr Shabana, the former world number one who began the Super Series final with a defeat, with his left knee taped, and with continued doubts about his fitness, enjoyed proving his doubters wrong with some typically entertaining deception

A Double Statement From A Long-Time Great

[6] David Palmer bt [8] Wael El Hindi 7/11, 11/6, 11/9, 11/9 [62m]
David Palmer made a statement with both words and deeds that he intends to stay at the top of the game for some while yet, as he finished his campaign at the Super Series finals with a win.
The twice former world champion may be 32 years old now, but he revealed an enduring appetite, tactical acumen, and a fine mixture of pace in attack while overcoming the considerably younger Wael El Hindi.

The Oldest Beats The Best

[7] Thierry Lincou bt [3] Ramy Ashour 11/7, 11/7, 8/11, 11/5
Thierry Lincou defied the years, the brightest young player in the game, and in many people's minds, the odds as well, to give himself a great chance of making the title match of the Super Series finals only two weeks short of his 33rd birthday

Darwish The Top Dog

[1] Karim Darwish bt [6] David Palmer 11/3, 15/13, 11/9 (62m)
Karim Darwish suggested his game may permanently have reached a new level since becoming world number one in January, producing a tough, disciplined, and yet fluent performance which saw off the challenge of the former top dog David Palmer in a dramatically edgy tussle.

The Great Shabana is Back

2] Amr Shabana bt [5] James Willstrop 7/11, 11/6, 11/8, 11/8 (54m)
It will make a few players shudder when Amr Shabana says he has not played this well since last year. It will make most spectators shiver with pleasure.

Gaultier Roars On

[4] Gregory Gaultier bt [8] Wael El Hindi 11/3, 11/5, 11/6 (38m)
Greg Gaultier looks more and more capable of becoming the first player in eight years successfully to defend the Super Series title. The second-seeded Frenchman roared through his second match in less than 40 minutes, beating a slightly jaded-looking Wael El Hindi 11-3, 11-5, 11-6 to get to the verge of winning his group.

Darwish Gets A Long Run

[1] Karim Darwish bt [8] Wael El Hindi 11/6, 11/7, 5/11, 6/11, 11/5 (78m)
It's new territory for Karim Darwish. Being world number one and up there to be shot at is very different from coming up on the rails and snatching the top spot at the tail end of the year.

Willstrop Beats The World Champion

[5] James Wilstrop bt [3] Ramy Ashour 7/11, 11/6, 11/8, 11/8 (54m)
James Willstrop scored one of the finest wins of his career to beat world champion Ramy Ashour in four games and to give himself a real chance of making the finals unexpectedly before a home English crowd.

Shabana's Comeback Suffers A Jolt

[7] Thierry Lincou bt [2] Amr Shabana 11-3, 11-9, 11-5 (37m)
Thierry Lincou, the former world number one, caused the first upset of the Super Series finals when he brought down Amr Shabana, the man who stood for 30 months at the top of the rankings until the start of this year.

Gaultier Fires A Warning

[4] Gregory Gaultier bt [6] David Palmer 11-7, 3-11, 11-6, 11-2 (67m)
Greg Gaultier could have not given us a much better start to the defence of his Super Series finals title. The champion went through his complete repertoire of extraordinary flairy strokes, mixed in with passages of orthodox, disciplined line and length – almost as though it were two players in one – while beating David Palmer, a former holder of the title.

Today from the Event : 2009

Event Partners and Sponsors