Tuominen Takes Shabana In Detroit

Olli Tuominen scored a notable upset in the Volvo Motor City Open when he beat No2 seed Amr Shabana, the world champion from Egypt, in the quarter-finals Detroit, USA.

The unseeded Finn, ranked 25 in the world, started slowly against Shabana - indeed the Egyptian started very fast. "He can be so good like that," said Tuominen afterwards. "He can be so strong and so accurate, and there's nothing you can do."

After winning the opener, Shabana's level dropped in game two and Tuominen picked up the pace. "I got back into the match and started to move him around. I hit closer to the wall and could see his shots better."

In game three, it all came apart for the gifted Egyptian. Tuominen kept up the pressure, accelerating to a 7-3 lead, at which point Shabana, clutching his brow in apparent mental exhaustion, threw away the last four points. When he returned for game four, he quickly threw in the towel, retiring after the first point to give Tuominen a 3-11 11-8 11-3 1-0 (ret.) victory.

Was this the Finn's most memorable victory against the world champion? "Actually, I remember playing him in the British Open Juniors when we were just 14 in a really tough match," said Tuominen. "We go way back, and that's the one I really remember."

The Finn will now meet another Egyptian Karim Darwish after the third seed beat sixth-seeded Canadian Graham Ryding 11-10 11-8 11-4.

Top seed Jonathon Power wore down Welshman Alex Gough in their quarter-final match. From the start, their rallies were long, corner-to-corner affairs, some lasting as many as 75 shots. The exertion seemed to take its toll on both players' backs. By the third game, Gough was done, his back causing too much discomfort. Power, dictating play and finishing rallies with brilliantly disguised shots, took the victory 11-7 11-7 11 -1.

"That one was tough," said the MCO defending champion. "Fifty minutes is a long game for such an easy score day." Power, 30, will play 21-year old Gaultier next.

The fourth-seeded Frenchman ended Egyptian Mohammed Abbas' run, beating the fifth seed 9-11 11-1 11-5 4-0 after Abbas retired with a foot injury.

Quarter-finals:
[1] Jonathon Power (CAN) bt Alex Gough (WAL) 11-7, 11-7, 11-1
[4] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [5] Mohammed Abbas (EGY) 9-11, 11-1, 11-5, 4-0 ret.
[3] Karim Darwish (EGY) bt [6] Graham Ryding (CAN) 11-10 (2-0), 11-8, 11-4
Olli Tuominen (FIN) bt [2] Amr Shabana (EGY) 3-11, 11-8, 11-3, 1-0 ret.