As we say in France, “la vie n’est pas un long fleuve tranquille”… life is not a quiet river…
Back in Cairo after Gouna
To be truly fair, I arrived in Cairo flat as a French pancake. For those who follow me on social media, you know that my elder brother has not been well for 8 years exactly (on the 27th May 2018, he had a stroke that left him with about 10% of his brain/body), and ensuring him a good quality of life is getting increasingly difficult.
Add to that having to literally dig a trench in front of the house on the day of my departure for Cairo – I kid you not – which actually was not the day of my departure for Cairo as Air France had to bump me on the flights the next day…
… And you have a Fram with her blond brain overexhausted upon arrival.
The Day of Confusion…
It all started well as in the taxi to the hotel, I realised I had forgotten my notebook at home – which is a bit special and hard to find. I had my flatmate to send it to me to the tournament hotel. Sounded like a good idea at the time, while Raneem was getting me a new one, as a backup. In Egypt, always have several plans in place…
But when I got to the Hyatt Centric, they couldn’t find my booking. And for a good reason: I was in the wrong hotel – I assumed wrongly that we were using the same hotel as the last two times we were at Palm Hills… So I had to find another taxi to get to the final destination – the Giza Palace. Meanwhile the booknote was on its way to Centric.. sigh…
Giza Palace
Apparently, it’s a brand-new HUGE hotel with lovely rooms, plenty of nooks and crannies, corridors, doors, lifts, and very few signs on the walls to tell you where you are. As I was “shopping” for a room – you know me and my autism, some elements are compulsory, and I don’t stop annoying everybody until I get them – visiting three different ones, I met with an official several times, trying to find his way, roaming in the corridors…
Joke apart, it’s a great place, and I have a lovely room – eventually – thanks to the Duty Manager Ahmed Elgazzar, who looks 18 years old, bless him. His help was greatly appreciated.
I particularly appreciated the professionalism and the kindness of the “Breakfast People”. They got to know me very well, and upon my arrival, I had my pot of Earl Grey with a lovely mug (instead of a baby-size cup) and hot milk. Happy Fram.
Very nice restaurant, airy and light, with a large outdoor area that could be used at that time. Very fast halls, comfortable seating, where you could pass by the SquashTV people having their daily meetings. Plenty of lifts everywhere – it took me a while to know which one to take to arrive close to my room, but once I got it, it was pretty simple.
The only negative would be the pricing of tea and water. I happened to have a drink with a friend one morning, and nearly had a heart attack signing for the bill. I did mention it to the relevant people, and they promised to review their pricing…
The Pass Odysee
For as long as I can remember, the pass has been a source of frustration for me during big events. On each pass, there are zones, and logically, I would expect to have the all-access pass. But it’s always a bit of a surprise, a kind of lottery to see what I get…
If for the first time EVAH I got the correct pass in Gouna, I was stunned, but it quickly reverted to one missing, the VIP area, which happens to be the place I work from… sigh…
No problem said Engy, our PSA Magician, and she gave it back to me a few minutes later…
Well the pen has faded a bit with use, but it did the trick. Ta Engy…
Random thoughts …
One person I was absolutely delighted to see was David Palmer. Our Marine.
He guided Siva for years, and even if she now trains with Greg Gaultier, they still have a great relationship. He was here to support Veer Chotrani, Ramit Tandon, Hollie Naughton and Tinne Gilis,
He is truly one of the Legends, one of the players I miss on the Tour, and having him for a few days made me feel young again, un “coup de jeune”! Can’t wait to see him again.
Tarek in a suit, Raneem coaching
Two things I never thought I would see – Raneem was not keen about coaching – I started a rumour but failed to impress her: Raneem coaching two players (Melissa Alves and Nada Abbas) and Tarek in a suit.
As for the kids, Shahir & Murad, they are growing up fast…
Key Moments
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Nele is back!
After a not-so-good European Team campaign, where she lost to French-Egyptian Pocket-Rocket Lauren Baltayan in the semis, Nele showed us throughout the week where she belonged, top of the game, and what she is capable of when she believes. Whatever Rob Owen was telling her worked…
Her match against Olivia in Round 3 is one of the best battles I saw this year for sure.
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Nathan full of beans!
Nathan Lake win in the first round against Marwan was a bit of a surprise and got the limelight as the English lost his calm right at the end of the 4th, shouting endlessly at the ref.
The decision that led to that outburst was discussed plenty on SquashTV and social media, both to make sure that the refs felt supported and cared for in what is probably the most difficult job squash has ever produced.
Nathan proved that he was not a one-match wonder when he destroyed the hopes of one of the up-and-coming young players I particularly keep an eye on, Ashab Irfan, even if he finally lost against Paul, but in a very entertaining match on the glass.
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Yahya’s coming back stronger
I thought that the young Egyptian Yahya Elnawasany had reached a plateau and was not going anywhere fast. I couldn’t be more wrong…
He had a succession of troubles that he managed to overcome and is now back full-time on the Tour, with great support from Wael El Hindi in Florida.
Read what he told me in his second and third rounds after match chats.
The Ones to Watch
Nadien El Hammamy
A young Egyptian is making waves. Yes, Egypt needed desperately another gifted girl, ha!
No relation with the world number one, still a junior, a player I was pointed at about 5 years ago. And from that moment on, I kept my eyes/keyboard on her.
She actually won the Irish Open a couple of days ago, ousting the top two seeds if you please, and during the event, she beat Rachel Arnold, then displayed her talent in front of Nour El Sherbini on the glass!
Lauren Baltayan
I already mentioned Lauren in my little note about Nele. Against all odds, her victory against the Belgian got the French team into the final against England.
The young French Egyptian, just turned 19, confirmed her great form as she dispatched Lucy Turmel on the Glass on the first night of the event!
And she managed to get Satomi nervous, although up 10/3 match ball! She got the Japanese to lose her calm against the ref, that I never saw before, but only for a split second…
Order was restored as Satomi took the 4th 11/6, but she was very complimentary about the young girl, who has a “beau futur devant elle”….
R2: MATCH OF THE DAY – The Pocket Rocket makes like hard for Satomi!!
Pele-Mêle – Not only but also…
Best matches, we have to mention the Youssef/Paul quarter – with one of my best lines to Ashraf Hanafi seating next to me and who missed the first game won by Paul as he was talking live to the Egyptian Channel OnSport: “I don’t see how Paul could lose the match”… That aged well…
and Nour/Olivia semi…
SF: Nour saved 4 game balls and needed 5 match balls against Olivia
Amina, obviously…
I remember watching her play in the local events, years ago. Battling with the likes of Fayrouz or Lauren, her accuracy at the back, patience and determination were second to none. I was aware of the strange attitude she received from some elements of the Egyptian Federation at the time, one that was quite hard to comprehend.
A lot is said about the Orfi, the Dad in particular, and about the way Amina sometimes appears cold and detached from her competitors. I got to know them a bit.
The intensity of Mohamed – the dad – in particular, can be over the top while coaching/watching his daughter, for sure. But the bond between them all is obvious, and as Amina develops, she might want a bit more independence. Or not…
It was said on SquashTV that Omar Mosaad – one of the three coaches of Amina – was sacked by Mohamed. Amina put the record straight after her quarter against Satomi.
Then came the semi against Hania, with whom Amina had a “bit of a disagreement” during the Egyptian Leagues, which escalated when Hania made a statement after her victory in Gouna.
When I spoke with three different Egyptian coaches about Hania’s loss in the semis, they all had the same analysis. It’s that feud that put extra pressure on Hania, they reckon. That’s why she didn’t play at her best throughout the event, thinking about the upcoming match. And the three of them think that Hania will beat Amina next time. Don’t ask me, I’m blond.
SF: Amina incredible of maturity ousts the world number one in 103m
As for the final…. As I stated in my report:
“We all had a little wishful thought about seeing the nicest/fairest player on the tour winning her 9th title. Amina, we knew she was going to win so many of them… We were somehow hoping she would just start from next year… 🙂
But Amina… Amina is just.. something else.”
As for the Men
Sad.
Football for me is a reflection of what sport shouldn’t be: it brings vandalism, aggression, violence, and brings out the worst in people. And I feel that’s what our top men sport is now riddled with.
I’m sad that I don’t get to see Jahangir, Nick, James, Thierry, Shabana, Ramy, Mohamed, Ali, and all those players who gave me goosebumps. Fireworks. Tough battles. Intense. Ridiculous squash. Not always fair, mind. But overall, respectful of our values: sportsmanship, respect and class.
I am just sad. Sad that I don’t want to watch men’s finals anymore. That I had to stop writing about them. Sad we now have “a game of gentlemen played by hooligans”.
It used to be fun to report on the Men’s game, my heart pumping, “how’s your blood pressure, Fram“, smiled Nick during the 2014 Gouna’s final between Ramy and Mohamed.
It’s just not fun anymore. It’s just… sad.
An incredibly well-organised event
I can say openly this was a perfectly run event. Up to the smallest details. For example, we had shuttles not only on time but every 20m for the first days, when it was very busy. Incredibly well run at all levels.
The set up was completely different from the ones we had normally with the Ievents tournaments. I must say I prefer the old one, but hey, it was great still! Plenty of games for all, and if the food/drinks department was a bit light to begin with, from the semis, it was amazing!!!
Thanks to all the team, a Team with whom I’ve been working for a few years now, Mansi, Nazih, Marc, and all the others who run that even like a battleship, and yet, always approachable and helpful.
Thanks to my PSA fellows: in particular, Engy Elmandouh, our PSA Op, the Media Team, having to work like the Indian Goddess with 26 arms each, and especially Sean Reuthe, the “angel sent to ease my pain”. And so great to work with Nathan Clarke, my SquashPlayer Boss, and Laurent Cossa, directing the SquashTV orchestra. And OF COURSE, my work husband for 22 years, Steve Cubbins!
Amr Mansi, our multi-hat Promoter, commented:
This week felt really emotional.
From competing on the PSA tour as a professional player, dreaming of the biggest stages in squash..to today being part of delivering the CIB Palm Hills PSA World Championships, the biggest tournament in the world, is something I am very proud of
Watching the best players in the world compete, seeing the crowds, the atmosphere, the global attention on our sport… I genuinely felt proud.
Proud as a former player, proud as a promoter, and proud to see Egypt continuing to lead a sport that means so much to so many of us.
Squash gave me so much throughout my life, and being able to give something back to the sport through events like this is truly special.
Well done, extremely well done to all involved… Incredible achievement.
