LAHORE, Pakistan, 22 December 2003 — Unfancied Amr Shabana beat newly crowned world No. 1 Thierry Lincou of France in the final of the World Open squash championship here yesterday, becoming the first Egyptian to win the title.
The ninth seed described the 15-14, 9-15, 15-11, 15-7 win against Lincou, who had only dropped two games en route to the final, as a “dream come true”.
The 24-year-old from Cairo, who beat defending champion David Palmer of Australia in round three, received the winner’s crystal trophy and $24,000 check from Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf.
“The only chance I had to win against a player better than me in the rankings was that I played an attacking game. I did that and thanks to Allah Almighty, and the people of Pakistan who supported me, I have won this title,” said Shabana.
“This is a dream come true and the best and perfect country to win the world title because Pakistan had produced stars like Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan, who both watched me win the title.”
The win was his fourth against the odds in the tournament after beating fifth seed Anthony Rickets of Australia in the quarterfinals and countryman Karim Darwish, a former world junior champion, in the semifinals. Shabana was only the second Egyptian to feature in a World Open final after Ahmad Brada, who lost to England’s Peter Nicol in 1999. Yesterday, he came from 8-12 behind in the first game to level it at 14-all with a series of drop shots, taking the game 15-14.
