Pittsburgh Open 2020: Saurav Ghosal loses final against top-seed Fares Dessouky
What's the story?
India's ace squash player Saurav Ghosal finished runners-up at the 2020 Pittsburgh Open after suffering a 0-3 loss to Egypt's Fares Dessouky, who was the top-seeded player in the Men's Singles category.
The background
Second-seeded Saurav had got a bye in the first round and then beat England's Nathan Lake 11-13, 14-12, 11-6, 11-9 in a well-fought second round match which lasted 66 minutes. The Kolkata-born player went on to decimate Mexico's Cesar Salazar 11-8, 11-6, 11-8 in the quarter-finals.
Saurav then locked horns with fifth-seeded Omar Mossad in the semi-finals. The 33-year-old took one hour and 13 minutes to defeat the Egyptian 11-6, 16-18, 11-7, 12-10 in an intense match. Saurav is a highly regarded Indian squash player and is also the top-ranked in the country.
Dessouky's journey to the final was also a similar one. The 25-year-old had got a bye in the first round before defeating England's George Parker 11-8, 11-4, 12-10 in the second round.
The World No.11 then defeated Campbell Grayson of New Zealand 11-6, 7-11, 11-7, 11-7 in a quarter-final match, which lasted 62 minutes. The ace squash player eliminated former Pittsburgh Open champion and fourth-seed Gregoire Marche by beating him 8-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-6 in a 51-minute semi-final clash.
This way, the two top seeds of the tournament set up a summit clash against each other.
The heart of the matter
Saurav and Dessouky locked horns in the final of the coveted $52,500 prize money tournament.
Fares won the first two games easily and put pressure on Saurav. The Indian player played his best squash in the third game of the showpiece final.
However, it was a case of too little too late for the current World No. 13 as Dessouky won the final with a scoreline of 11-7, 11-4, 11-9 in his favour. The match lasted just 34 minutes.
What's next?
Saurav's search for his maiden World Tour win is set to continue after the heartbreaking defeat. The 2014 Asian Games Silver medallist is still India's best bet in the World Tour events.