Egyptian duo Karim Abdel Gawad and Nour El Tayeb are the champions of the 2023 Ace Malaysia Squash Cup after defeating top seeded men's player Mostafa Asal and fifth seeded women's player Rachel Arnold respectively at the S2 Sports Complex in Seremban. 

Gawad won the 27th PSA title of his career and his second of the 2023-24 season after playing some mesmerising squash to see off world number five Asal by an 11-8, 12-10, 11-5 scoreline.  

Asal enjoyed an early lead in each match, but Gawad was always able to move through the gears and unleash his trademark racket skills to secure the victory. It is the first time since 2018 that Gawad has won back-to-back titles on the PSA World Tour, following his triumph at the Grasshopper Cup last month. 

Egyptians Abdel Gawad and Nour El Tayeb were the best in Malaysia. PSA WORLD TOUR
Egyptians Abdel Gawad and Nour El Tayeb were the best in Malaysia. PSA WORLD TOUR

"I feel great. To win another title in a row and to have such a good performance makes me very happy. The way I am playing, the way I am moving around the court is just very enjoyable for me right now and hopefully for everyone. Playing Mostafa is very tough, but I was looking forward to this match," said Gawad. 

El Tayeb, the top seed in the women's tournament, claimed the 15th PSA title of her career after an 11-2, 11-4, 11-4 storming victory over Arnold in just 19 minutes. 

World number 39 Arnold had the home crowd behind her, but she was wearing a heavy brace on her right leg after battling through two five-game matches to reach the final. She never really got going and El Tayeb took full advantage to seal the PSA World Tour Bronze title. 

Beautiful snapshot of the winner, Nour El Tayeb. PSA WORLD TOUT
Beautiful snapshot of the winner, Nour El Tayeb. PSA WORLD TOUT

It's El Tayeb’s second title of the season after winning the South Western Open in October.  "I've been playing well all week, so it's nice to play well today. My opponent couldn't move well, maybe she was struggling because of the long week. I feel sorry for her but I'm here to win and it gives me a lot of confidence," said the Egyptian. 

The next stop on the PSA World Tour is the VITAGEN Singapore Squash Open, a PSA World Tour Gold event which takes place at the OCBC Arena from 14 to 19 November.

Results - Men’s Final: 2023 Ace Malaysia Squash Cup:

[2] Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) bt [1] Mostafa Asal (EGY) 3-0: 11-8, 12-10, 11-5 (51 minutes).

Results - Women’s Final: 2023 Ace Malaysia Squash Cup:

[1] Nour El Tayeb (EGY) bt [5] Rachel Arnold (MAS) 3-0: 11-2, 11-4, 11-4 (19 minutes).