Gaultier Joins Compatriot Lincou In World Top Four

France's Gregory Gaultier has moved up to a career-high world No4 in the new December Dunlop PSA Men's World Rankings, issued today by the Professional Squash Association. With compatriot Thierry Lincou at three, two Frenchmen appear in the top four world rankings for the first time.

Gaultier, 23, from Aix-en-Provence, has been enjoying a sensational run on the PSA Tour since August, reaching the finals of the English Open and World Open and, after winning the Hungarian Open in October, going on to clinch the US Open crown last month.

In last week's Warid Pakistan Open in Islamabad, Gaultier made it through to his fifth final in three months - where Lincou gained revenge for the defeat by his French team-mate in Boston to win the eighth PSA Super Series event of the year.

Egypt's Amr Shabana maintains his lead at the top of the rankings, celebrating his ninth month in a row as world No1. But his teenaged compatriot Ramy Ashour is making further rapid progress in the rankings, rising a further two places to a best-ever No7.

After reaching the Hong Kong Open final in October, the 19-year-old from Cairo went on - against the seedings - to make the semi-finals of both the US Open and Pakistan Open last month.

The squash hierarchy in England has also undergone a change in the new list, in which Nick Matthew rises two places to a career-best-equalling No5. The 26-year-old from Sheffield, a quarter-finalist in last month's US Open, becomes the highest-ranked Englishman for the first time.

Victory in November's Coastal Contacts Jericho Open in Canada has helped England's Peter Barker move up to a career-high No19.

1 [1] Amr Shabana EGY
2 [2] David Palmer AUS
3 [3] Thierry Lincou FRA
4 [5] Gregory Gaultier FRA
5 [7] Nick Matthew ENG
6 [6] Anthony Ricketts AUS
7 [9] Ramy Ashour EGY
8 [4] James Willstrop ENG
9 [10] Karim Darwish EGY
10 [8] Lee Beachill ENG
11 [11] John White SCO
12 [12] Stewart Boswell AUS
13 [14] Mohd Azlan Iskandar MAS
14 [13] Adrian Grant ENG
15 [17] Wael El Hindi EGY
16 [16] Olli Tuominen FIN
17 [18] Mohammed Abbas EGY
18 [15] Ong Beng Hee MAS
19 [20] Peter Barker ENG
20 [19] Graham Ryding CAN