Jump to content

Tarek Momen

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tarek Momen
Tarek Momen
Nickname(s)The Viper, The Momenator
Country Egypt
Born (1988-02-23) 23 February 1988 (age 36)
Cairo, Egypt
ResidenceCairo, Egypt
Height1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight66 kg (146 lb)
Turned pro2005
RetiredActive
PlaysRight-handed
Coached byHaitham Effat, Samir El Degwi
Racquet usedHarrow
WebsiteTarek Momen on Twitter
Men's singles
Highest rankingNo. 3 (February 2019)
Current rankingNo. 4 (December 2021)
Title(s)8
Tour final(s)27
World OpenW (2019-20)
Medal record
Men's squash
Representing  Egypt
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Bellevue Singles
Silver medal – second place 2018–19 Chicago Singles
Gold medal – first place 2019–20 Doha Singles
World Team Championships
Silver medal – second place 2013 Mulhouse Team
Gold medal – first place 2019 Washington D.C. Team
Updated on July 2020.

Tarek Momen (born 23 February 1988 in Cairo) is a professional squash player representing Egypt. He is a former World Champion, and reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 3 in February 2019.

Career overview

[edit]

A PSA member since 2005, Tarek Momen found time to graduate in Electronic Engineering at the American University in Cairo before devoting himself 100% to the Tour – and first breaking into the top 20 world rankings in August 2010, before celebrating a then career-high No 10 in April 2013.

The latest Egyptian to break into the world top ten, Momen reached his first Tour final at the Thessaloniki Open in Greece in March 2006 as a qualifier – upsetting No 2 seed Daryl Selby in the semi-finals before losing out to Spanish favourite Borja Golán in the final. It would be another five years before he would claim his maiden title, at the 2011 Irish Open in Dublin. Unseeded, Momen overcame No 2 seed Olli Tuominen, then third seed Saurav Ghosal before downing Australian favourite Stewart Boswell 12-10, 11-7, 8-11, 11-3 in the final.

Later in 2012, two significant titles came Momen's way: Firstly, seeded three in the Colombian Open, he ousted local hero Miguel Ángel Rodríguez in the final to win the PSA International 35 title in Bogota – then, unseeded, he carved his way through the Malaysian Open field in Selangor, dismissing Borja Golán in four games in the semi-finals before overcoming compatriot Mohamed El Shorbagy, the event's second seed, 12-10, 6-11, 12-10, 8-11, 14-12 in the 109-minute final. The PSA International 50 title marked the third and biggest of his career.

The Selangor success had extra significance for Momen as the women's title was won by compatriot Raneem El Weleily, the then world No. 2 who later became his wife. Momen's 2013 campaign began strongly with a surprise semi-final finish in the Swedish Open after a five-game upset over 4th seed Daryl Selby in the opening round. Last 16 round finishes in successive World Series events, the North American Open and PSA Kuwait Cup in March – coupled with a quarter-final berth in the KL Open, where he was unseeded – all led to his career-high No.10 ranking the following month. And the British Open in May saw the 25-year-old record his best ever performance in the event when he upset seventh seed Peter Barker to reach the quarter-finals.

Away from the Tour, Momen made his senior debut for Egypt in the World Team Championship in June in France, where he won all but one of his matches for the title-holders.[1][2]

In May 2023, he reached the quarter final of the 2023 PSA Men's World Squash Championship, before losing to Mohamed El Shorbagy.[3]

Titles and Finals

[edit]

Major Finals (7)

[edit]

Major tournaments include:

  • PSA World Championships
  • PSA World Tour Finals
  • Top-tier PSA World Tour tournaments (Platinum/World Series/Super Series)
Year/Season Tournament Opponent Result Score
2017 Qatar Classic Mohamed El Shorbagy Loss (1) 8-11 12-10 7-11 7-11
2018 Tournament of Champions Simon Rösner Loss (2) 8-11 9-11 11-6 5-11
2018-19 PSA World Championships Ali Farag Loss (3) 5-11 13-11 11-13 3-11
2019-20 PSA World Championships Paul Coll Win (1) 11-8 11-3 11-4
2020 Tournament of Champions Mohamed El Shorbagy Loss (4) 11-9 7-11 7-11 5-11
2020 Egyptian Open Ali Farag Loss (5) 9-11 3-11 4-11
2021 U.S. Open Mostafa Asal Loss (6) 11-5 11-5 9-11 10-12 3-11

References

[edit]
  1. ^ PSA Player Profile
  2. ^ SquashInfo Player Profile
  3. ^ "2023 World Championship draws". PSA. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
[edit]