Squash
As one of the premier tournaments for squash, many of the world’s top players have gathered to compete for a record prize purse. Located in gorgeous Hull, England, the Allam British Open is a mainstay event that attracts huge amounts of viewers from across the globe all uniting to cheer on their favorite squash players. Wildly competitive, squash is a dazzling, eye-catching sport, and watching the top-players reveals how difficult this complicated sport truly is. Keep on reading for a roundup of the Allam British Open with the winners, losers, and the major storylines.
The tournament has been staged for nearly ninety years, and it continues to attract a record number of viewers. For 2019, fans were certainly in for a treat as competitors fiercely fought for the British Open Squash Championship title. Filled with a number of upsets and longtime rematches, the 2019 Allam British Open was an extremely exciting tournament for squash fanatics.
The Winners
The two winners of the 2019 Allam British Open were the Egyptian players Mohamed ElShorbagy and Nouran Gohar who defeated the top-ranked Ali Farag and fourth-ranked Camille Serme. In fact, Gohar put her name in the record books by defeating her opponent, Serme, in record time, winning the women’s crown. As the runner-up in the 2016 tournament, Gohar pushed and, ultimately, stormed to one of the sport’s top honors. Plus, as a seven-seed, Gohar was the lowest-ranked seed to ever win the tournament.
As for the men’s final, Elshorbagy and Farag had faced each other many times over the past twelve months with Farag winning three of their four matches. However, Elshorbagy put all of this behind him as he brutally faced Farag and defeated his long-time foe. With this win, Elshorbaggy became the first Egyptian since 1966 to win the trio of British Open crowns, marking Elshorbaggy’s win as one for the history books.
The Prize
As for the prize for winning the 2019 Allam British Open, winners will both achieve the glory of victory in this tournament as well as a record-setting $348,000 prize purse. This is the highest that the prize has ever been, and it was sure to set a fire in competitors to give everything they had in pursuit of this honor and prize. The organizers of the Allam British Open did everything they could in order to make the squash tournament more competitive, and this purse was effective in ultimately increasing the competition!
Wimbledon of Squash
With the British Open Squash Championships, the Allam British Open is considered to be one of the two most prestigious tournaments in the entire world. In fact, many fans often refer to the Allam British Open as the Wimbledon of Squash. For this year, along with the massive purse, the event was also staged at the Hull Sports and Fitness Centre which was newly-opened. The grass courts at the University of Hull Sports and Fitness Centre are entirely open for fans to view every minute detail of the sport, resulting in an unparalleled level of access to the sport.
Competition, Surprises, and Intrigue
Overall, this year of the Allam British Open was filled with competition, surprises, and intrigue. The event truly matched the fast-paced, exciting heart of squash, and both competitors, as well as fans alike, are gearing up for next year’s tournament. The competitors have continued to show marked improvement as the sport continues to evolve, and if this year’s tournament is any indication, then next year will be sure to excite fans. With the tagline “Where legends are made,” fans definitely witnessed history and legends being made this past week at the Allam British Open.
