CHENNAI, India: Egypt fulfilled all expectations by brushing aside defending champion England 2-0 to win the squash World Cup on Saturday.
World No. 2 Ramy Ashour beat No. 4 James Willstrop 11-8, 11-7, 11-7 in the opening match of the best-of-three final, then Raneem El Weleily sealed the contest with her first win in five meetings over the women’s No. 2 Jenny Duncalf 11-8, 7-11, 11-9, 11-1.
Third-ranked Karim Darwish of Egypt didn’t have to play at Express Avenue Mall.
"This win is dedicated to the people of Egypt," an emotional Ashour said. "It’s a proud moment for us. It’s the moment that we all have been waiting for," he said referring to the mass protests that ousted president Hosni Mubarak.
Former No. 1 Ashour started strongly, wrong-footing Willstrop on several occasions as he used his trademark backhand crosscourt drop shot to set up winners.
"We expected it to be a tough match," Ashour said. "It’s usually not easy to play against England. Raneem’s win was unexpected and she should be given a lot of credit for that."
Willstrop was philosophical afterwards.
"It didn’t go our way," he said. "I had chances but I didn’t play well in crucial times in the end. That’s how it is at times."
Weleily pulled off a second upset in two days after defeating former world champion Rachael Grinham of Australia in the semifinals of the mixed team event.
Weleily won the opening game but Duncalf, who retired in the semifinals against Malaysia after injuring her groin, won the second. The third game ran close before Weleily finished it off with two delicate drop shots.
"Of course I took a lot of confidence from the win over Rachael, but this was the final and the pressure is a lot different," Weleily said.
"I’m sure Karim would have played well to win it for us but I am happy I did not allow it to go that far."
Australia beat Malaysia 2-1 in the match for third place.
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James Willstrop of England (L) and Ramy Ashour of Egypt (R) eye the ball during their World Cup Squash final match in Chennai on March 12. (AFP PHOTO/Vino John)
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Jenny Duncalf (R) of England and Raneem El Weleily of Egypt (R) eye the ball during their World Cup Squash final match in Chennai on March 12, 2011. (AFP PHOTO/Vino John)
