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Boys U19:
[2] Basit Ashfaq (Pak) bt
[9/16] Tarek Momen (Egy)
10-8, 7-9, 9-2, 9-1 (62m)
Basit claims Drysdale Cup
Steve Cubbins at Abbeydale
Basit Ashfaq completed a great afternoon for Pakistan, taking
the Drysdale Cup with with a hard-fought victory over Tarek Momen,
giving Pakistan three of the four boys' titles.
 Punishing
rallies were the order of the day in the early part of the match, with Basit's power and reach countered by Momen's speed and retrieving
abilities. Momen reached 8-7, but couldn't take it as Basit claimed the
game 10-8.
A similar story in the second, but this time the Egyptian held on to
level the match. From then on though, it was a different story.
There was a series of lets at the start of the third, Momen doing most
of the asking, and at 3-1 down the referee declared "play on" when the
Egyptian wanted to clean his glasses for the umpteenth time. Two rallies
later he cleaned them anyway, and received a conduct warning for his
trouble.
 It
seemed the Egyptian was tiring, taking his time between rallies and
asking at every opportunity. Basit took full advantage, raced to 4-1,
6-1, 8-2 and took the lead.
Late back on court for the fourth, Momen started 1-0 down to a conduct
stroke, and looked dispirited during the game. Basit kept up the
pressure with short kills and driven lengths, quickly reaching 6-1. A
final long, disputed rally, then the Pakistani raced away again,
finishing the match off to the delight of his team-mates and coaches.
 The
headline was going to be "Basit lifts the cup ...", but in his
excitement the new champion managed to drop the famous trophy not once,
but twice!
An assured champions' speech finished off a great week in Sheffield, and
another chapter was written into BJO history.
Girls U19 :
[2] Joshna Chinappa (Ind) bt Tenille Swartz (Rsa)
3-9, 9-3, 9-6, 9-3 (44m)
This was Joshna's Year
Winner of the U17 title two years ago, runner-up in the U19 last year,
Joshna Chinappa took the next logical step when she became the
British Open U19 Champion, finally ending the run of unseeded South
African sensation Tenille Swartz.
 Swartz
started strongly, chasing down everything that Chinappa could throw at
her and putting in great drops and testing boasts when she was given the
opportunity.
A 6/2 lead became 8/3, although it took three game balls before the
South African clinched the first 9/3.
Chinappa started the second driving Swartz to the back, but anything
loose was still being punished. The pressure was beginning to tell
though, and although Tenille was still chasing everything, errors were
beginning to creep in. 3/1, 6/3, an error and a stroke and it was game
ball to the Indian, taken at the first attempt. One-all.
 Another
quick start by Joshna in the third, 5/2 then two strokes - one harsh,
the crowd thought - took it to 7/2. Tenille was still full of running,
but there was less to chase now as Joshna's game tightened up. A
horrible error on Joshna's first game ball let Tenille back in, and she
clawed her way back to 8/6, saving four more game balls before the serve
was tinned on the sixth. 2/1 and Tenille looked to be tiring.
The fourth was all Joshna. The Indian's smooth, graceful style had
finally subdued the South African's all-action game. Two long drops,
three dying lengths, a cross-court deception and a stroke made it 7/0.
Tenille was still fighting, and pulled two points back before a
winner off the serve and a trickle boast brought 8/3, match ball.
That was saved, but this was Joshna's year, and on the second
attempt the Indian team had a title to take back home for the third year
running.
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VIDEO: The Last Point
Joshna with coach Cyrus
Poncha
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Girls U13 :
[3/4] Nour Mohamed El Tayeb (Egy)
bt
[3/4] Abdel Megid (Egy) 9-3, 9-5, 7-9, 9-2 (36m)
Boys U13:
[5/8] Farhan Zaman (Pak) bt [3/4] Fouad Khalifa (Egy)
9-2, 9-0, 9-0 (17m)
Honours shared in U13
Honours were shared in the U13 finals, with Pakistan and Egypt
claiming a title each. In the girls match El Tayeb went 2-0 up, but
after Megid pulled back a tight third game it seemed that a long match
was on the cards.
But El Tayeb refocused, took the fourth quickly, and with it the title.
In the boys final Khalifa simply found Zaman too much to handle. The
Pakistani kept the Egyptian on the back foot for the whole match,
winning point after point with deceptive winners.
 
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Boys U15:
[3/4] Shohaib Hassan (Pak) bt [3/4] Ahmed Osama Hawas (Egy)
10-8, 10-8, 9-1
Girls U15:
[3/4] Heba Alaa Ahmed (Egy) bt [2] Alia Magdy Balbaa (Egy)
9-3, 9-2, 9-6 (24m)
Great Timing For Heba's First Win
Steve Cubbins at Abbeydale
An Egyptian winner was guaranteed in the first final to be played on
Abbeydale's glass court, but which of the two friends would it be?
 It
was even at the start, with the taller second seeded Balbaa leading 2-0
and 3-2, but after those first few points the game quickly turned.
Ahmed, shorter and quicker around the court, started to find her range
with long drop shots and delicate boasts, which Balbaa struggled to
retrieve. From 2-3 down the first game quickly became 9/3 to Heba.
The pattern continued in the second. Both were going short at every
opportunity, but Ahmed was faster to the ball and her drops were that
bit tighter. It was quickly 7/0, and although Balbaa rallied briefly
Ahmed took the game 9/2.
In the third Balbaa changed tactics, keeping the ball to the back, and
it paid dividends as errors started to flow from Ahmed's racket. 6/1,
and it looked like a comeback was on the cards.
But it was snuffed out on a series of quick points - no let, stroke,
stroke, error, another stroke and suddenly it was 6-all and the tide had
turned again.
An exquisite long drop, another no let and a final tight drop and Ahmed
let out a delighted "Yes!" as she clinched the title.
"We play each other all the time in Egypt," she told me afterwards, "but
that's the first time I've ever beaten her!"
Exquisite drop shots, and exquisite timing ... well done Heba.
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Girls U17:
[1] Raneem El Weleily (Egy) bt [5/8] Annie Au (Hkg)
9-6, 10-8, 9-2 (32m)
Second title for Raneem
 Raneem
El Weleily retained her U17 title with a straight game victory over
Hong Kong's Annie Au, last year's U15 champion.
The Egyptian's strength an placement were a notch above Au's, who held
her own during many contested rallies, but it was El Weleily who was in
control for most of them, taking the first two games 9-6 10-8.
The pressure began to tell in the third, with Au being pushed to all
corners of the court before the inevitable winner or too-tight shot came
from the Egyptian's racket.
So two U17 titles for El Weleily to go with her two at U15 and one at
U13, and she will be a force in the U19 next
year. Au still has another shot at this title and few would bet against
her adding to her tally in 2006.
Boys U17:
[2] Omar Abou Zeid (Egy) bt
[3/4] Bilal Zaman (Pak)
9-5, 9-3, 9-0 (27m)
Another Title Retained
 The
Boys U17 title also went to Egypt, with Omar Abou Zeid also
retained the title won in 2004.
The tall, powerfully-built Egyptian proved too strong for Zaman,
dominating the match from the start and finishing in style.
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Raneem with her mother and brother -
NICE FEEDBACK
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