US hope Amanda Sobhy came back from the brink of defeat in the final women's qualifying round of the J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions at the Princeton Club in New York to defeat Egypt's Nour El Sherbini in five games and advance to the main draw of the Women's Squash Association (WSA) Gold event being played on the ToC glass court in Grand Central Terminal.


Sobhy, a junior at Harvard University where she is the women's team number one, had lost the first two games and was down 0-5 in the third. "I thought of all my friends whom I had promised could see me play on the glass court in Grand Central and how I would be letting them down if I didn't win this match," Sobhy said. "So I just focused on one point at a time."


With her Harvard teammates cheering loudly, the 2010 World Junior Champion started turning the tables on Sherbini, a three-time world junior title-holder. Having felt stiff and tight in the first two games, Sobhy figured out how to relax a bit on the court and gained a foothold in the match by winning the third game 11-8. The 20-year-old from New York, who is playing college squash and professional squash along with balancing the rigorous Harvard academics, was buoyed by her teammates' support and took further command of the match, winning the last two games - 11-6, 11-5.

Sobhy, who is undefeated in college play (and pictured above at Grand Central), will face England's fourth seed Alison Waters on the Grand Central glass court in the first afternoon session of play.

Hong Kong's Annie Au and Australia's Rachael Grinham also earned trips to the Grand Central glass court with 3/0 victories over India's Dipika Pallikal - the highest-ranked player in the qualifiers - and Denmark's Line Hansen, respectively. Au drew Asian rival Nicol David, the top seed from Malaysia, whom she will play Tuesday evening. Veteran Grinham, a former world No1 who joins sister Natalie in the main draw, will take on world No2 Laura Massaro on Monday evening.

The longest qualifying match was played by Sarah-Jane Perry of England and Egypt's Omneya Abdel Kawy who, in their maiden encounter, engaged in a seesaw battle for the last qualifying spot. "It was a hard match and a little contentious," admitted Perry, who jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first game but had to fend off a game ball before winning 12-10. "We both really like to hold our position in the middle of the court." The second game was all Kawy who found her rhythm and sprinted to an 11-2 game win.

Perry, who is playing her first tournament since October after being sidelined with a fractured vertebrate, eked out another 12-10 tiebreak in the third. Kawy promptly turned around to win the fourth and even the match. In the fifth, Perry took a 9-5 lead and won the game 11-7.

The 23-year-old Englishwoman's first round opponent is countrywoman Jenny Duncalf, the seventh seed. Perry, who defeated Duncalf in the English Premier League two weeks ago, was delighted with the draw.
RESULTS: Women's JP Morgan Tournament of Champions, New York, USA

Qualifying finals:
Annie Au (HKG) bt Dipika Pallikal (IND) 11-8, 11-9, 11-5 (33m)
Amanda Sobhy (USA) bt Nour El Sherbini (EGY) 6-11, 10-12, 11-8, 11-6, 11-5 (57m)
Rachael Grinham (AUS) bt Line Hansen (DEN) 12-10, 11-7, 11-2 (31m)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG) bt Omneya Abdel Kawy (EGY) 12-10, 2-11, 12-10, 9-11, 11-7 (67m)