Hany Axes Top Seed Gilis in Epic Christchurch Comeback

Salma Hany came roaring back from two games down to topple tournament top seed Tinne Gilis and reach the New Zealand Open semi-finals at the Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch.

Going into today's match, the Egyptian had never beaten Gilis in three previous attempts, with Gilis breaking Hany's heart on home court at last year's El Gouna International by taking a five-game win after the 28-year-old from Cairo had come back from 0/2 down to level.

Today, it was sweet revenge for Hany.

Gilis had looked dominant early on and seemed on course to progress in straight games after the Belgian went 2/0 up and then took a 5-2 lead in game three.

Hany, however, refused to crumble. The No.7 seed covered every inch of the court, drawing applause from the crowd with brilliant attacking play and daring dives as she came back to take game three 11-9 and then level with an 11-5 win in game four.

In contrast to games one through four, which were free-flowing attacking affairs, game five was cagey and ragged, punctuated by collisions, decisions and appeals as the pressure of the occasion began to tell.

Hany initially dealt with the constant interruptions better, inching ahead to a 7-3 lead before Gilis finally settled to take the scores to 7-7.

Hany regained her composure to stop the flow of points and was the first player to reach match ball when she took a narrow 10-9 lead.

In a brilliant final rally, Hany was able to complete the comeback, sending Gilis all over the court before hitting a perfect drive beyond her opponent's despairing dive to convert at the first opportunity.

"Absolutely incredible!" Hany said afterwards. "I'm very, very proud of how I fought today. To be able to come back after 0/2 against such a great player is definitely something I'm very proud of.

"I definitely remembered how I came back in El Gouna after she bagelled me, and in the second game... well, I need to stop mentioning that!

"I knew I had the mental strength to come back from 0/2 down and I just kept telling myself to keep pushing until the last point."

Hany will face Japanese No.6 seed Satomi Watanabe in the semi-final after the Japan No.1 received a walkover against her opponent, Scotland's Georgia Adderley, due to injury.

The other semi-final will be contested by Egyptians Amina Orfi and Rowan Elaraby after they both overcame Malaysian opponents, with 17-year-old No.2 seed Orfi beating Rachel Arnold 3/1 and Elaraby defeating Sivasangari Subramaniam - who wore strapping to her right leg throughout - in straight games.

The men's semi-finals will see New Zealand No.1 and defending champion Paul Coll go up against France's Baptiste Masotti while No.2 seed Marwan ElShorbagy will play Malaysian No.3 seed Eain Yow Ng in the second semi-final.

Top seed Coll, the former world No.1 who played his junior squash in Christchurch, was severely tested by French No.5 seed Sebastien Bonmalais, but was able to clinch a win in straight games 11-8, 11-6, 12-10.

No.6 seed Masotti, meanwhile, came back from a game down to beat compatriot Auguste Dussourd 3/1.

ElShorbagy, a beaten finalist in Tauranga in 2023, continued to impress in Christchurch, with the English No.2's racket skills proving too hot to handle for Spanish No.7 seed Iker Pajares in a 14-12, 11-2, 11-8 win.

In the other men's quarter-final, Ng ended the swashbuckling run of his compatriot Sanjay Jeeva. World No.65 Jeeva had proven to be a popular figure this week in Christchurch, with his unpredictability and wins against the odds against world No.40 Alex Lau and world No.22 Abdulla Al-Tamimi endearing him to the Isaac Theatre Royal crowd.

Today, though, the 25-year-old was comprehensively outplayed by Ng, who nullified his opponent's flair and wrapped up an 11-2, 11-6, 11-5 win in 32 minutes.