EGYPTIAN SUPERSTARS SET TO DOMINATE US OPEN IN CHICAGO

By ALAN THATCHER

An all-Egyptian final is on the cards in the forthcoming US Open Squash Championship with superstars Ramy Ashour and Amr Shabana the top two seeds in Chicago.

The US Open is the first major tournament of the new season and will be staged in the open air inside the spectacular McWil glass court which will be set up in Pioneer Court, between Tribune Tower and the Chicago River, from September 2-6.

This prestigious international competition is a PSA Five Star tournament offering a prize fund of $52,500 and the stage seems set for the event to celebrate an Egyptian champion for the first time.

Reinforcing their national presence, and providing four Egyptian players among the top ten seeds, are Wael El Hindi at six and Ramy's brother Hisham at nine.

Gus Cook, the PSA consultant with special responsibility for developing world-class tournaments in the Americas, said: "We are delighted to have attracted a fantastic draw that includes Ramy, the currentWorld Open champion and Amr, a three-time world champion."

Behind them at No.3 in the seedings is Australia's David Palmer, who was runner-up to England's Peter Barker in last year's Sweet Home Chicago Open, the first squash event in North America to be staged in the open-air.

The Boston-based Palmer is also a former world champion and world No.1, which illustrates the tremendous depth of the draw. Palmer won both the US Open and World Open in 2002 and at 33 is still capable of competing at the highest level.

Cook added: "I have spoken at length to David about the tournament and he is really excited by the event, particularly being the highest world-ranked player living in the US and a finalist in Chicago last year."

English players have dominated the US Open in the past 15 years, with four victories by Peter Nicol, two by Lee Beachill, and further successes by Nick Matthew and Simon Parke.

Last year's Sweet Home Chicago Open champion, Barker, is seeded four ahead of fellow Englishmen Adrian Grant (5) and James Willstrop (7).

Tournament Director Imran Nasir, head professional at Chicago's Lakeshore Athletic Club, said: "James Willstrop could spring a few surprises being seeded as low as he is after a spell out of action following an operation to cure a bone spur on an ankle.

"He is one of the most talented shot-makers in the world and assuming he gets through he will certainly be a dangerous opponent for the top seeds in the quarter-finals onwards.

"Peter Barker is also enjoying his highest ranking of seven in the world and the springboard for his rise up the rankings in the past 12 months was provided by his victories here in Chicago and then in Baltimore, where he also beat David Palmer in the final."

Adding a truly international flavour, Finland's athletic Olli Tuominen is seeded eight, Egyptian-born Canadian No.1 Shahier Razik is ten and Indian No.1 Saurav Ghosal 11. All three possess a track record of claiming some big scalps in the early rounds of major competitions.

Another player aiming to make a name for himself is Philadelphia's Gilly Lane, the tournament wild card who will be looking forward to pitting his skills against the best players in the world on home soil.

Nasir added: "Egypt is certainly enjoying an incredible spell of ascendancy in squash at the moment, and only last week they won both the boys and girls' titles at the World Junior Open in India.

"They have a wave of young players who are dominating the world junior scene and the great news for the game of squash is that they all seem to mature into adult professionals who have a wonderful attacking flair which produces brilliant entertainment for spectators."

US Open Seeds:
1 Ramy Ashour (Egypt)
2 Amr Shabana (Egypt)
3 David Palmer (Australia)
4 Peter Barker (England)
5 Adrian Grant (England) 
6 Wael El Hindi (Egypt)
6 James Willstrop (England) 
8 Olli Tuominen (Finland) 
9 Hisham Ashour (Egypt) 
10 Shahier Razik (Canada)
11 Saurav Ghosal (India)
12 Gilly Lane (USA) wild card