Salma Hany and Leonel Cardenas both triumphed in five games over the top seeds in today’s finals – the second year in a row that both second seeds have claimed the Manchester Open titles …
[3] Salma Hany (Egy) 3-2 [1] Gina Kennedy (Eng) 11-2, 9-11, 11-3, 5-11, 11-9 (63m)
[2] Leonel Cardenas (Mex) 3-2 [1] Aly Abou Eleinen (Egy) 11-2, 5-11, 11-9, 3-11, 11-8 (71m)
DRAWS & RESULTS WATCH LIVE LIVE SCORING SOCIAL FEEDS PHOTO GALLERY
Salma avenges 2024 defeat to claim the title
[3] Salma Hany (Egy) 3-2 [1] Gina Kennedy (Eng) 11-2, 9-11, 11-3, 5-11, 11-9 (63m)
Egypt’s Salma Hany has won the Manchester Open 2025 after beating top seed and defending champion Georgina Kennedy in a thrilling final at the National Squash Centre. The No.3 seed won 11-9 in the fifth game to capture her first title of the season.
Hany was electric out the gate as she controlled all areas of the court in the opening game and put her stamp on proceedings from the outset. She rattled off the winners and in no time and took the game 11-2 to silence the home crowd.
Kennedy fought back in game two and started to get in front of Hany. Kennedy’s trademark quick boast was starting to ask questions of the Egyptian’s movement and answers weren’t coming. Kennedy’s line hitting improved and so did her points haul. She moved through the gears to win the game 11-9.
Hany returned to winning ways in the third game and hit an incredible nine winners to move back ahead on the scoreboard. The World No.15 made use of the slightly spongey ball to find winner after winner but Kennedy’s basic game was not good enough and invited Hany to attack.
After taking the third game 11-3, Kennedy chose to change the ball which worked perfectly at the start of the game. The top seed ran out to a 4-1 lead by stepping up on the volley and forced Hany into making guesses when her attacks were loose. Hany gave up the ghost at the end of the game with Kennedy holding a strong lead at 10-5 and it wasn’t ling before we entered the fifth game.
In a nervous fifth game, neither could get away on the scoreboard until Hany won three points in a row to earn three match balls at 10-7. Kennedy clawed two points back to set up a nervy final match ball for Hany but a wicked cross court off a heavy drop sealed a first title of the season for the Egyptian.
“I still can’t believe it’s over. What a battle.” said Hany after her win.
“I feel really proud with how I kept it together until the end. I felt really sharp but playing Gina is not easy at all. She’s such a fighter. We played a battle here last year so I’m just really happy I could win this one.
“This means a lot. This is extra special. Especially after my injury at the start of the season and it was really important to me and my team and we’ve all been through a lot with the injury. It was really tough and today I just wanted to stand up for myself and my team and I’m always so grateful for their support and here’s to more wins.”
Cardenas beats top seed Eleinen in five
[2] Leonel Cardenas (Mex) 3-2 [1] Aly Abou Eleinen (Egy) 11-2, 5-11, 11-9, 3-11, 11-8 (71m)
Mexico’s Leonel Cardenas has claimed the Manchester Open 2025 title in superb style after coming through a five-set battle with Egypt’s top seed Aly Abou Eleinen in front of a packed house at the National Squash Centre.
The Mexican No.1 stormed through the first game, using his strength around the middle of the court to dominate the rallies and leave Eleinen searching for answers. None came for the top seeded Egyptian and in a matter of minutes, the No.2 seed was in the lead.
The Egyptian fired back in game two and started to assert himself at the front of the court to showcase his attacking abilities. He claimed the game 11-5 to draw in a match was just getting started. Cardenas did well to reverse the momentum once again and sneak ahead in game three. The World No.17 closed out the game with several hard nosed rallies, squeezing Eleinen on the side walls and tidying up the resulting loose balls. 11-9 was the score in the third game, as the Mexican moved ahead.
A big response was needed by the Egyptian and that’s what we got. The World No.13 showed exactly why he is capable of beating the top players such as Mostafa Asal. He resorted back to basics and forced errors from the Mexican’s racket to force an exciting decider.
As the fifth game progressed, there was nothing between the two with both eager to remain solid and not give anything away. Cardenas kept his concentration the better and moved through to 9-6. Eleinen wasn’t done there and came back to 9-8. Cardenas earned a match ball and pumped a ball straight down line on match ball and after a no let was given after a review, the Mexican was the champion.
“It was an unbelievable match. All credit to Aly, it could have gone either way and I’m just happy with the way we played today. I’m sure it wont be the last final that we’ll play together. We’ve been playing since juniors and he’s one of the best players on the tour right now.
“I want to thank all my supporters in Mexico, my sponsors and my family. I want tot hank the crowd, it is probably the biggest crowd that I’ve played in front of and it helped me get over the line for sure and I hope to be back next year.”
Reports and Reaction
