Those who follow the American collegiate squash scene know what Yasser El Halaby is capable of. The people he played with in Egypt before he left to attend Princeton are fully aware of his skills. The guys he played against as a top junior—James Willstrop, Peter Barker, and others—remember him too. And now, more pro players and squash fans are becoming familiar with his abilities.
El Halaby formally introduced himself to the professional squash community in mid-February in Virginia, when he won his first PSA title—the Worldgate Sport and Health Open. El Halaby was a qualifier in the tournament and defeated the No. 1, 5, 3 and 7 seeds on his way to the title—fellow Egyptian Omar Mosaad being the highest ranked of the group, at World No. 43, and the Czech Republic’s Jan Koukal being his finals’ opponent.
El Halaby was excited about the win, but not overly so, mentioning right away that there was a downside to playing and defeating Mosaad in the first round: Mosaad flew all the way from Cairo, and in El Halaby’s opinion probably would have made it to the final had the two of them not played each other first.
Regarding adjusting to life on the PSA tour, where he is not the dominant presence he was in college: “It’s not fun to lose, but it’s a humbling experience and makes you discover new things about squash. You always learn. You learn things about your mental attitude and about your game. When you are just watching, you see things differently. Being on court with the players is great. You learn more from them that way.”
