The El-Gouna championship remains in Egyptian hands, reports Amira El-Naqeeb "Very unsatisfying to say the least. Terribly disappointing. Hugely frustrating." This is how world number one James Willstrop expressed himself after losing to Egypt's Rami Ashour in the final of the El-Gouna International Squash Open. World number five Ashour beat England's Willstrop in the final 12-10, 11-5, 5-2. Willstrop was unable to finish, explaining that he was "struggling with the conditions." With the win Ashour managed to keep the El-Gouna championship title in Egyptian hands, the second time in two editions of the event, succeeding world number four Karim Darwish in 2010. The second El-Gouna International Squash open was staged in the beautiful resort town of El-Gouna on the Red Sea coast, 22km from Hurghada International Airport. The tournament was the brainchild of Amr Mansi an ex-squash professional player who saw El-Gouna, fell in love with it, and decided to lobby to make the event happen. The tournament is one of the biggest challenges in the Professional Squash Association PSA Super Series for this year. The tournament took place from 8-13 April which coincided with the Egyptian Easter. Sixteen top players from 10 countries were competing for $120,000 in prize money. The hi-tech glass squash court was set up in Abu Tig Marina. There were numerous sponsors for the tournament, including the Arab African Bank, Carrier, Family Tours, and the Egyptian Tourism Authority (ETA). ETA has put most of the country's sports events on top of its agenda in an attempt to attract tourists to Egypt following last year's revolution. The final was adrenaline packed for squash fans as it became hotter and fiercer with Ashour's brilliant attacking play, cornering his opponent. "My edge in this game was that I was sharper and more focused than Willstrop. It's a game of inches, where there is always a thin line between winning and losing," Ashour told the Weekly. Ashour evaluated his opponent as fair, diligent, and deliberate, "very smart on court, and never easy to beat." Upon Ashour's win, there were fireworks everywhere, and the Egyptian fans figuratively set the court on fire, clapping and whistling. Ashour had recently been injured. "I was in a very bad physical and mental state so the most important thing other than winning this title was the come back."
