The 2008 Women’s World Team Squash Championship final in Cairo wasn’t just another match. For Egypt, it marked the culmination of an astonishing transformation and an opportunity to rewrite the sport’s history on home soil and etch their names onto squash’s biggest stage
Just 15 years earlier, the idea of an Egyptian women’s team reaching a world final - let alone defeating powerhouses like England - would have been unimaginable.
Before 1996, Egypt hadn’t even fielded a team in the Women’s World Team Championships and as recently as 1992, only a handful of Egyptian women were playing squash at all.
Yet, by 2008, a new generation of players had emerged, led by Omneya Abdel Kawy, Egypt’s top-ranked player - already a veteran of five world championships at just 23 years old - and Egypt’s young squad knew the significance of what was at stake.
Raneem El Welily in action
But no one could have anticipated the extent to which this victory would ignite a movement and pave the way for a new generation of Egyptian champions. For that night in Cairo, Egypt wasn’t just competing for a title; they were rewriting history.
From the start, Egypt’s campaign was defined by resilience. On the first day, an unexpected challenge from unseeded Canada nearly rattled them; Kawy, Egypt’s top seed, lost in a shock defeat to Canada’s Alana Miller, ranked 28 places below her.
But that was the last misstep for Egypt.
Driven by the energy of a crowd that filled every corner of the National Stadium grounds, the team rallied, with Raneem El Welily and Engy Kheirallah pulling them through to a narrow 2-1 win. For the Egyptian players, who had placed second to England in 2006, this was more than just a tournament.
The dream of a world title had felt distant before, but now, as they fought through each round, it began to look almost possible.
Engy Kheirallah in action against Netherlands
“Omneya and I played in the World Teams in 2000, 2002 and 2004, making it into the quarter, or semi-finals on each occasion,” said Kheirallah.
“In 2006, our first time in the final, it was a huge achievement for us and for all of women’s squash in Egypt. But because it had happened in Canada, not a lot of people were aware of what we achieved back at home.
"Playing at home in 2008, we had a lot of people laugh at us even thinking we were capable of winning the tournament.
“People said: ‘If you make it into the final, that will be a big thing.’ No-one ever imagined us winning, because on paper there was no way we could win this tournament.”
After defeating a highly ranted Netherlands team in the semi-finals, Egypt faced England in the final and delivered a truly electrifying evening of squash.
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A devestated El Wleily after her defeat
Kawy set the tone, dispatching England’s Jenny Duncalf in straight games and the crowd erupted with every point, feeling the weight of what was within reach. The second encounter saw El Welily push Laura Massaro all the way in a gripping five-game encounter, but the experienced English player ultimately prevailed, levelling the score and setting up a final showdown between Egypt’s Engy Kheirallah and England’s Alison Waters - then the World No.5 and clear favourite.
Kheirallah’s task was clear: win, or see Egypt’s hopes slip away again.
“I remember the day before the final, I was daydreaming about winning the event on home soil in front of all our family and friends,” she said.
“Then that night I dreamt we had won. It was a big, big deal - but we had no fear because there was still no expectation on us.
“When Omneya put us in front and Raneem was playing so well against Laura, the idea of being in the final deciding match didn’t even occur to me. It wasn’t something I was ready for and I was going up against a player I have never before beaten.”
Abdel Kawy between games
The match played out with a thrilling urgency, each point punctuated by cheers from the crowd as Kheirallah clawed back from behind. When she took the fourth game courtesy of a 11-0 bagel, a palpable belief settled over the stadium.
“When I came off 2-1 down, I remember thinking ‘this is the first ever Women’s World Team event in Egypt - this cannot end this way’,” said Kheiralla.
“I won the fourth game 11-0 - I still to this day don’t have a clue how this happened. It was like a miracle.”
Egypt’s first world title was now just within grasp. In the decisive final game, Kheirallah dug deep, matching Waters point for point until, at 11-10, a missed return from Waters sealed Egypt’s victory.
Kheirallah and team celebrate
The Egyptian team’s celebration was as heartfelt as it was historic - players and fans alike knew this was more than a win; it was a breakthrough.
“It just went crazy - it was a dream come true,” continued Kheirallah.
“We had come a very, very long way. We had been through it all, since 2000, but after that moment in 2008, other teams never underestimated us again and other countries started really giving us respect as players.
“We were the first Egyptian female team in any sport to win a world championship. A couple of days later, we got a call from President Mubarak’s office and he asked us to meet him. We were the first Egyptian team to receive the highest honorary medal for sports. It was the first time a female team and a squash team received this medal.
“Parents started putting their daughters on the squash court after that tournament. More girls started to take squash seriously. At the age of 13 or 14, lots of girls quit sports in general, but now they had role models.”
For young Egyptian girls in the crowd that night, this victory was something they could hold onto. Among them were Nour El Sherbini and Nouran Gohar, both of whom would go on to become world champions themselves and who have since led Egypt to further World Team Glory.
For Sherbini, seeing Kawy and her teammates lift the trophy was like seeing her own future; she finally had an idol in the sport. Gohar, too, felt something unlock within her as she watched the Egyptian players dominate on the global stage.
“I can remember the World Teams in 2008 and I can remember going to Cairo Stadium to watch them play Malaysia in the semi-final. For me, being there to watch them win that match was just a huge thing and something inspirational,” she would later say.
The impact of that night extended far beyond the National Stadium’s glass walls. Assem Khalifa, then newly appointed President of the Egyptian Squash Federation, called the victory “a powerful signal to the world,” one that marked Egypt as a rising force in women’s squash.
“They knew that this time, they were very close to their dream, having reached the final for the first time in 2006,” said Khalifa at the time.
“It was an amazing game of squash with the host country beating the world champions in a replay of the final two years ago. This is just what you need to motivate and inspire young squash players in Egypt. This tournament and the result will have a lasting effect on squash girls in Egypt for a long time.”
That night in 2008 was indeed a turning point.
It was the culmination of a transformative journey, underscoring the strides take from the early days of the 1990s, when a supportive infrastructure for female players was still a distant dream, to a nation led by female champions.
Spurred by figures like Dr Samiha Aboulmagd and Suzanne Mubarak, the country’s First Lady and a known squash enthusiast, investments in squash academies and training facilities began to transform the landscape for women in the sport.
From then on Egypt’s women didn’t just play - they dominated, filling the sport’s ranks with champions, each building on the legacy of that Cairo final and redefining the landscape of women’s squash globally.
