Ibrahim Shocks Makin To Make Maiden US Open Semi

World No.9 Youssef Ibrahim advanced to his first PSA Squash Tour Platinum semi-final since the 2022 Windy City Open after claiming a statement win over No.4 seed Joel Makin at the Comcast Business US Open in Philadelphia.

Ibrahim, who came into the match with just one win from his nine prior Tour meetings with Makin, delivered a superb performance full of balanced stroke play to take down the British National Champion by a 12-10, 11-8, 7-11, 11-8 scoreline.

Despite a third-game injury scare, which saw Ibrahim call for the Physio following a suspected dislocated shoulder, the Princeton Squash alumni returned to the court full of accurate, attacking intent in the fourth.

The No.8 seed fought off the pain to move through to a hard-earned 72-minute win in the Arlen Specter US Squash Center to make the event's last four for the first time.

"Joel and I have played a lot of tough matches in the past," Ibrahim said after the match.

"I think we have played eight or nine times, and I think 80-90% of them, I have been a couple of points away from winning them. So, I knew it was going to be long and tough. I was in it for the long run.

"Once it [the shoulder injury] happened, I didn't think I was going to be able to continue; it is the first time I have experienced something like this."

Ibrahim will face world No.1 Mostafa Asal in the semi-finals after the current World Champion put in a near-faultless display to end the impressive run of England's Curtis Malik in three games.

The Egyptian looked to be back in top form after his shock defeat to French No.1 Victor Crouin at the Silicon Valley Open last week, proving to have too many attacking weapons for Malik to deal with as he recorded an 11-6, 11-5, 11-6 win on the all-glass court.

Meanwhile, in the women's event, world No.2 Hania El Hammamy and world No.5 Olivia Weaver set up a first head-to-head meeting on the PSA Squash Tour since June 2023.

US No.1 Weaver advanced to her fourth US Open semi-final in five years after a ruthless straight games victory over Sana Ibrahim.

World No.5 Weaver, Philadelphia-born-and-raised, barely put a foot wrong throughout the 31-minute encounter, hitting her targets into the back of the court to great effect and limiting the mid-court opportunities of world No.18 Ibrahim.

After racing through a rapid-fire 11-3 first game, the 30-year-old only moved from strength to strength, sealing her one-sided victory with a sublime forehand overhead nick.

"I'm so happy I could play well tonight and put on a decent performance," Weaver said after the match.

"Sana had a huge win last night, so I knew that I was going to have to bring my A-game. I wasn't fully pleased with how I played and moved in my previous rounds, so I really wanted to turn over a new leaf tonight, and I'm really happy that I did that."

In the other women's quarter-final, No.2 seed El Hammamy recorded her 13th straight win on the PSA Squash Tour with a dominant 11-6, 11-3, 11-4 win over world No.8 Satomi Watanabe.

The Egyptian, arriving in Philadelphia on the back of title victories at the Egyptian Open and Qatar Classic, rarely looked troubled throughout her 30 minutes on court, leading for all but one point of her match against the Japanese No.1.