Amr Shabana facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Amr Shabana

Amr Shabana reacts during his 2009 Kuwait Open semi-final match.
Nickname(s)	The Maestro
Country	Egypt
Residence	Cairo, Egypt
Born	(1979-07-20) July 20, 1979 (age 45) Cairo, Egypt
Height	1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Weight	73 kg (161 lb)
Turned Pro	1995
Retired	August 2015
Plays	Left Handed
Racquet used	Eye Rackets
Men's singles
Highest ranking	No. 1 (April, 2006)
Current ranking	Retired (Ended 10)
Title(s)	33
Tour final(s)	45
World Open	W (2003, 2005, 2007, 2009)
Medal record Men's squash Representing  Egypt World Championships Gold 2003 Lahore Singles Gold 2005 Hong Kong Singles Gold 2007 Bermuda Singles Gold 2009 Kuwait Singles Bronze 2006 Doha Singles Bronze 2008 Manchester Singles Bronze 2010 Khobar Singles World Team Championships Gold 2009 Odense Team Silver 2001 Melbourne Team Silver 2005 Islamabad Team
Last updated on: July 2015.

Amr Shabana (Arabic: عمرو شبانة) was born on July 20, 1979, in Cairo, Egypt. He is a former professional squash player. Many people think he is one of the best squash players ever.

Amr Shabana won the important World Open four times. He won in 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2009. In 2006, he became the World No. 1 player, which means he was the best squash player in the world! He also helped the Egyptian team win the World Team Championships in 1999 and 2009.

Amr Shabana's Amazing Squash Journey

Amr Shabana is a talented left-handed player from Cairo. He first showed his skill early on. In January 1993, he was the runner-up in the British Under-14 Open. Four years later, he reached the final of the British Under-19 Open.

He joined the PSA in 1995. Amr won his first big tournament in July 1999. It was the Puebla Open in Mexico. Just one week later, he won his second title, the Mexico Open.

Becoming a World Champion

In 2003, Amr Shabana had an amazing year. He was the ninth seed at the World Open in Pakistan. He beat many top players, including the defending champion David Palmer. He also defeated Anthony Ricketts and Karim Darwish. In the final match, he beat Thierry Lincou. This made him Egypt's first-ever winner of the World Open title!

The year after, 2004, was a bit tough for him. He only reached one final, the British Open. He lost to David Palmer there. But in 2005, Amr came back stronger than ever. He got a new coach, a new manager, and even got married! He said, "All I have to worry about now is playing my matches – everything else is looked after for me now."

This change helped him a lot. He won the Heliopolis Open in his hometown of Cairo. Then, he won the St Louis Open in the United States. He beat David Palmer and James Willstrop before winning against Anthony Ricketts in the final.

Winning Streak and World No. 1

Amr Shabana continued his winning streak. He won the Hungarian Open in Budapest, making it three titles in three weeks! But his biggest win that year was the World Open in Hong Kong. He beat Lee Beachill, Peter Nicol, and David Palmer. This made him the first player in a long time to win the World Open title twice!

The new year, 2006, brought more success. He won the Canadian Classic in January. Then, he won the Tournament of Champions in New York in March. In April, he won the Bermuda PSA Masters. These wins brought his total PSA Tour titles to 12. In April 2006, Amr Shabana became the first Egyptian player to reach the World No. 1 ranking. This was a huge achievement!

In 2007, Shabana became world champion for the third time. He won the World Open in Bermuda. In January 2009, his long time as World No. 1 ended. His fellow countryman Karim Darwish took over the top spot.

In 2014, Amr Shabana made history again. He became the oldest professional player to win a World Series title. He defeated Grégory Gaultier in the final of the Tournament of Champions.

Amr Shabana officially stopped playing professional squash on August 27, 2015. He had a truly amazing career.

World Open Final Matches

Here are the details of Amr Shabana's World Open final matches. He won all four of them!

Outcome	Year	Location	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Winner	2003	Lahore, Pakistan	Thierry Lincou	15–11, 11–15, 15–8, 15–14
Winner	2005	Hong Kong	David Palmer	11–6, 11–7, 11–8
Winner	2007	Bermuda	Grégory Gaultier	11–7, 11–4, 11–6
Winner	2009	Kuwait	Ramy Ashour	11–8, 11–5, 11–5

Major Tournament Finals

Amr Shabana also played in many other major tournament finals. Here are some of them:

British Open: 1 Final (0 Wins, 1 Runner-up)

Outcome	Year	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Runner-up	2004	David Palmer	14–16, 11–7, 13–11, 11–7

Hong Kong Open: 4 Finals (4 Wins, 0 Runner-up)

Outcome	Year	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Winner	2006	Ramy Ashour	13-11, 3-11, 11-5, 13-11
Winner	2007	Grégory Gaultier	11-13, 11-3, 11-6, 13-11
Winner	2008	Grégory Gaultier	11-9, 13-15, 8-11, 11-2, 11-3
Winner	2009	Grégory Gaultier	11-9, 9-11, 11-3, 5-2 (rtd)

Qatar Classic: 3 Finals (1 Win, 2 Runner-up)

Outcome	Year	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Winner	2007	Grégory Gaultier	11-4, 8-11, 11-6, 11-5
Runner-up	2008	Karim Darwish	11-4, 11-5, 11-3
Runner-up	2010	Karim Darwish	8-11, 11-2, 11-7, 11-6

US Open: 4 Finals (2 Wins, 2 Runner-up)

Outcome	Year	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Runner-up	2006	Grégory Gaultier	11-5, 7-11, 11-4, 11-9
Winner	2009	Ramy Ashour	11-7, 11-2, 7-11, 12-14, 11-8
Winner	2011	Nick Matthew	11-9, 8-11, 11-2, 11-4
Runner-up	2014	Mohamed El Shorbagy	8-11, 11-9, 11-3, 11-3

Amr Shabana's Career Wins

Amr Shabana won 30 titles on the PSA World Tour. These wins include major tournaments like the World Open, Hong Kong Open, and Tournament of Champions.

Images for kids

• 

  Amr Shabana during the 2009 Kuwait Open semi-final match against James Willstrop.

• 

  Shabana after winning the AON US Open.

See Also

• Official Men's Squash World Ranking