Tricky early hurdles await Sangari at World C’ships in Cairo

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s top squash player S. Sivasangari (pic) faces a tough task to secure a career breakthrough semi-final appearance in the World Championships starting in Cairo, Egypt, today.

Sivasangari, as the fifth seed, has earned her highest seeding for the world meet but she will need to be wary of tricky early round encounters.

Sivasangari opens her campaign against France’s Marie Stephan today.

A win will see her meeting either Malaysia’s Aira Azman or Hong Kong’s Lee Ka Yi in the second round.

It is in the third round where she will likely go up against Belgium’s Tinne Gilis.

Sivasangari needs to be on guard against Gilis, who is the ninth seed, as their previous encounters have often been tightly contested.

Sivasangari last defeated Gilis in the semi-finals of the Australian Open, thus levelling their career head to head to four wins each.

If she prevails in Cairo and reach the last eight, Sivasangari will have to get past top seed and world No. 1 Hania El Hammamy.

The Egyptian will be very hard to beat on her home ground, having not lost to the Malaysian No. 1 in the last two years.

Sivasangari last beat El Hammamy in 2024 in the London Squash Classic final.

Last year in Chicago, Sivasangari became the first Malaysian to reach the women’s quarter-finals since Datuk Nicol David in 2017 but she lost to home favourite Olivia Weaver.

Another Malaysian player Noor Ainaa Amani Ampandi has a tough opening round contest against Egyptian Hana Ramadan.

Ng Eain Yow, the only Malaysian in the men’s competition, opens his campaign against Swiss player Yannick Wilhelmi.

Eain Yow is in the lower half of the draw with the likes of fourth seed Karim Abdel Gawad of Egypt and world No. 2 Paul Coll of New Zealand.