Sivasangari out of tour finals semi-final contention after second defeat
NATIONAL squash ace S. Sivasangari's hopes of progressing to the semi-finals of the 2024/2025 PSA Squash Tour Finals were dashed after she suffered her second consecutive defeat in Group B on Tuesday.
The 26-year-old went down to Egypt's Fayrouz Aboelkheir 11-10, 9-11, 7-11 in a closely fought 41-minute battle at the Revival Film Studio in Toronto.
Sivasangari took the first game 11-10 but was unable to maintain her momentum, eventually falling 9-11, 7-11 in the next two games.
This follows her opening-day loss to second seed Olivia Weaver of the United States, where the Kedah-born player lost in straight games, 9-11, 9-11.
Weaver continued her winning form in Group B, overcoming Japan's Satomi Watanabe 3-11, 11-6, 11-6 in 31 minutes.
Group B remains open for the second semi-final spot, with Watanabe and Aboelkheir each recording one win ahead of today's final group match.
The PSA Tour Finals features the top eight players in the world, divided into two groups, with only the top two from each group progressing to the semi-finals.
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The Star
8 hours ago
- The Star
Unforced errors during important points led to Sangari's surprise loss
S. Sivasangari lost to Egyptian Amina Orfi in the Malaysia Cup final in November. PETALING JAYA: Costly mistakes proved to be too much for national squash player S. Sivasangari at the PSA Squash Tour Finals in Canada. The world No. 8 couldn't find her footing as she took her second defeat in the group stage after falling to world No. 14 Fayrouz Aboelkheir of Egypt on Tuesday. Sivasangari had the upper hand but missing crucial points gave Aboelkheir the chance to catch up and win the match 10-11, 11-9, 11-7 at the Revival Film Studios in Toronto. National coach Ajaz Azmat said Sivasangari could have gotten past Aboelkheir, but mistakes in the second and third allowed Aboelkheir to fight back. "Sivasangari played well but made unforced errors during important points. She was leading in the second set but the mistakes affected her momentum," he said. It was a surprise loss by the Malaysian as she had won both their previous meetings last year against Aboelkheir at the Singapore and Hong Kong Opens. Aboelkheir said she was wary of Sivasangari, knowing that the Malaysian No. 1 can spring a surprise anytime. "She (Sivasangari) is very dangerous, especially in a best-of-three match. You never know when it's going to go your way but I'm glad to win against her," said Aboelkheir. However, the hope remains that Sivasangari will win her final Group B stage fixture against No. 7 Satomi Watanabe of Japan. Although the chances of making it to the semi-finals are slim, Sivasangari will need to win in straight sets against Watanabe and hope the other group fixture between Olivia Weaver and Aboelkheir ends in straight sets as well for Weaver. Weaver sits top of the group with seven points, with Watanabe and Aboelkheir in second and third with four points each, while Sivasangari has one point as she won one set against Aboelkheir. Meanwhile in Group A, world No. 1 Nouran Gohar of Egypt and world No. 10 Georgina Kennedy of England sealed their spots in the semi-finals with a match to spare. Gohar defeated world No. 6 Tinne Gilis of Belgium 11-2, 11-4, while Kennedy took down world No. 9 Amanda Sobhy of the United States 11-4, 11-10.
The Sun
10 hours ago
- The Sun
Sivasangari out of tour finals semi-final contention after second defeat
NATIONAL squash ace S. Sivasangari's hopes of progressing to the semi-finals of the 2024/2025 PSA Squash Tour Finals were dashed after she suffered her second consecutive defeat in Group B on Tuesday. The 26-year-old went down to Egypt's Fayrouz Aboelkheir 11-10, 9-11, 7-11 in a closely fought 41-minute battle at the Revival Film Studio in Toronto. Sivasangari took the first game 11-10 but was unable to maintain her momentum, eventually falling 9-11, 7-11 in the next two games. This follows her opening-day loss to second seed Olivia Weaver of the United States, where the Kedah-born player lost in straight games, 9-11, 9-11. Weaver continued her winning form in Group B, overcoming Japan's Satomi Watanabe 3-11, 11-6, 11-6 in 31 minutes. Group B remains open for the second semi-final spot, with Watanabe and Aboelkheir each recording one win ahead of today's final group match. The PSA Tour Finals features the top eight players in the world, divided into two groups, with only the top two from each group progressing to the semi-finals.
The Star
15 hours ago
- The Star
Fayrouz stuns Sivasangari as Malaysian's path to PSA semis narrows
PETALING JAYA: S. Sivasangari's hope of making it to the semi-finals of the PSA Squash Tour Finals hangs in the balance after suffering her second defeat in the group stage on Tuesday (June 24). World No. 8 Sivasangari lost 10-11, 11-9, 11-7 to world No. 14 Fayrouz Aboelkheir of Egypt at the Revival Film Studios in Toronto. It was a surprise loss by the Malaysian as she had won both their previous meetings last year at the Singapore Open and Hong Kong Open. Sivasangari, who is making her debut at the Squash Tour Finals, had lost her first Group B match against world No. 4 Olivia Weaver, with the American winning 11-9, 11-9. She has one last group stage fixture to complete in her bid to enter the semis - against world No. 7 Satomi Watanabe of Japan. Weaver currently sits top of the group with seven points, with Watanabe and Aboelkheir in second and third with four points each, while Sivasangari has one point as she won one set against Aboelkheir. Weaver had defeated Watanabe 3-11, 11-6, 11-6 in their second group stage match. The Malaysian No. 1 will need to win in straight sets against Watanabe to give herself a shot at the semis, but only if Weaver defeats Aboelkheir in straight sets as well. Meanwhile, in Group A, world No. 1 Nouran Gohar of Egypt and world No. 10 Georgina Kennedy of England sealed their spots in the semi-finals with a match to spare. Gohar defeated world No. 6 Tinne Gilis of Belgium 11-2, 11-4, while Kennedy took down world No. 9 Amanda Sobhy of the United States 11-4, 11-10.
