England
GEORGE TOWN: Nour El Sherbini cemented her giant-killer status in the world meet after knocking out fourth seed Alison Waters of England 11-3, 11-9, 7-11, 11-2 in the second round.
It was the Egyptian teenager’s second straight victory over a seeded player in the tournament, having registered a four-game triumph over 12th seed Kasey Brown of Australia in the first round on Tuesday.
But it was the 18-year-old El Sherbini’s 41-minute win over Waters, a semi-finalist at the 2012 World Open, which sent shock waves throughout the tournament.
“This is my first ever victory over Alison, and the first time that I’ve qualified for the world meet quarter-finals,” said Sherbini.
“In our previous meetings, I devised strategies to beat Alison but always ended up losing. This time, there was no game plan and I just stepped on the court to enjoy playing.”
The three-time world junior champion is on a comeback trail after missing the entire second half of 2013 through injury. She has also seen her ranking drop from No. 4 to No. 27 within the period.
Sherbini dedicated her surprise win over Waters to her mother Randa, who was among the spectators at the SPICE Arena on Thursday.
“My mother is my biggest supporter. She becomes very nervous when watching me play.
“She has been like this ever since she started following me when I was seven. She always sits at a far corner of the gallery and then paces back and forth when I’m in action,” she said.
El Sherbini will try to continue her giant-killing act when she takes on France’s Joelle King in the last eight on Friday.
Fifth-seeded King prevented an all-Egyptian match-up by blitzing 13th seed Omneya Abdel Kawy 11-8, 11-4, 11-4 in the second round.
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