WORLD SQUASH NEWS
RESULTS: Savcor Women's Finnish Open Squash Championship, Mikkeli, Finland
Semi-finals:
[4] Salma Shabana (EGY) bt [1] Carla Khan (PAK) 9-5, 9-5, 9-5
[6] Farrah Sterne (RSA) bt [2] Tegwen Malik (WAL) 9-7, 10-9, 4-9, 9-7
Final:
[4] Salma Shabana (EGY) bt [6] Farrah Sterne (RSA) 9-7, 9-7, 9-2
Salma Celebrates Finnish Open Hat-trick
Egyptian Salma Shabana extended her record of success in Finland when she
beat South African Farrah Sterne in the surprise final of the Savcor Women's
Finnish Open Squash Championship in Mikkeli. It was the former world number
twenty's third Finnish Open title in her fifth WISPA World Tour event final
in the country.
The 26-year-old fourth seed made her breakthrough in the semi-finals when she
upset top-seeded Pakistani Carla Khan in straight games. Shabana then
defeated sixth-seeded Sterne 9-7 9-7 9-2 to pick up her first title since
winning the Finnish Open trophy in March 2001.
It was in December 1994 that Salma Shabana won the Finnish Open trophy for
the first time to become, at 18 years and two months, the youngest winner of
a WISPA title.
This year's Mikkeli victory also marked Shabana's first WISPA title since the
birth of her and fellow squash international Omar Elborolossy's son Marwen,
who was in Finland to witness his mother's success.