CHENNAI: There was not one instance on Saturday when an Egyptian player shouted in frustration after losing a point. Even during the first game between Marwan Tarek and Viktor Byrtus of Czech Republic, Tarek was as cool as a cucumber when the score read 8-8.
And that was probably the toughest test for the African nation in the World Junior Squash Championships semifinals at Express Avenue mall on Saturday. That Egypt will reach the final was more or less sure, as all the top seeds were playing for them. But, a look at the margin of victory against Czech Republic speaks a lot about the gap in quality between the two teams.
And that is not just applicable for today. Egypt did not lose one game on their way to the final in Chennai. Tarek, Mostafa Asal and Omar El Torkey were all in a league of their own. They did, though, have a similar run in 2016, when they reached the final without any issues before suffering a shock loss to Pakistan.
In the other semifinal of the day, England too barely struggled while beating USA in straight games. Nicholas Wall and James Wyatt were their stars, and it took them less than an hour to dismantle their opponents.
The Commonwealth nation has had plenty of success internationally, at both junior and senior level. While their resources and dominance has not been as great as Egypt, they can boast of a 3-1 head-to-head record against their opponents in the final of this event. However, England last reached the final in 2002, while Egypt are gearing up for their eighth consecutive summit clash.
England coach Lee Drew feels that previous records will not favour Egypt on Sunday. “We are going into tomorrow’s game as the underdogs. All those wins happened a long time ago, and Egypt have been very consistent. But this tournament has always been very open since the beginning.
“Except for Egypt, any one could have reached the finals. But I am really proud of the boys and their attitude. They have been so relaxed and professional throughout the tournament. I hope that we can give tough fight tomorrow.”
Results (semis): Egypt bt Czech Republic 3-0 (Marwan Tarek bt Viktor Byrtus 11-8, 11-5, 11-4; Mostafa Asal bt Ondrej Vorlicek 11-8, 11-4, 11-2; Omar El Torkey bt Marek Panacek 11-3, 11-7); England bt USA 3-0 (Nicholas Wall bt Daelum Mawji 11-5, 11-8, 11-5; James Wyatt bt Thomas Rosini 11-4, 11-8, 11-7; Sam Todd bt Ayush Menon 5-11, 11-3, 11-2).