Egypt’s Nour El Tayeb has won her first PSA title since becoming a mother after the World No.11 overcame top seed and compatriot Salma Hany to win the inaugural women’s CIB Zed Squash Open. An incredible comeback has been written as Nour El Tayeb has been crowned the CIB Zed Squash Open champion, her first title since her return to the PSA after becoming a mother.
It may be her first title since her return to Squash but it is her 12th career title and it’s made all the more special since it was only July last year in which she became a mother with World No.1 and fellow Team Dunlop player Ali Farag. However, it wasn’t with out drama in the final as a power cut at Zed park just 2 points before victory sent the event into uncertainty and resulted in a long delay. But it didn’t seem to faze Tayeb who saw off the challenge of her opponent quickly after returning to court – 11-7, 12-14, 11-6, 11-4 in a match that overall took 74 minutes. The win has seen her move back into the top 10.
“I feel great. It’s one of the happiest titles I’ve won,” said El Tayeb afterwards.
“I took a year’s break, so I wanted to do well coming back after having a baby. This week, with how my preparation was in pre-season and how I was mentally and physically, to play such a tough match, physically, emotionally and psychologically, I’m very happy with how I played.
“When it happened [the power cut], I’m glad it didn’t happen when we were closer in the match. It’s the first time this has happened to me, and I was just trying to take everything in as it’s a big final.
“I’ve only played one big final in Egypt before, but it was a new experience for me and I was trying accept it, and I’m glad I managed to control it.”
The next stop on the PSA World Tour will be the Qatar Classic in Doha from September 4-10, and the South Western Women’s Open, which will be held in Houston, United States, between September 6-11. Both tournaments will be shown live on SQUASHTV.