Laura Massaro stayed on course to become the first player to win three world titles in a year when she overcame old rival Annie Au of Hong Kong 12-10, 12-10, 11-2 to reach the World Squash Championship quarter-finals in Cairo on Wednesday.
The 31-year-old titleholder saved game points in both the first two games against Au, the world number nine, who has in the past had some notable wins over the Englishwoman.
This time though Massaro was at her most resilient in crisis moments, particularly when the referee unaccountably stopped the rally with Au leading 10-9 in the second game, apparently thinking the ball was down, but eventually requiring the point to be replayed.
If Massaro manages to go on to a successful title defence on Saturday, she will do so only nine months after becoming champion, and only two weeks after heading up the England squad which regained the world team title at Niagara Falls.
“I like to think that my strengths are my adaptability and also sticking to my game plan,” she said.
“Annie can be a difficult opponent and playing last match at night can make the ball really cool.”
That made it harder to force the pace against the lobs, cross courts and changes of direction from the skilful Au, and difficult to strike the cool ball accurately into the back corners.
But Massaro did it well enough to complete the job in 40 minutes and earn herself a meeting with Alison Waters, a fellow member of England’s world title winning team, who beat another team mate Sarah-Jane Perry in straight games.
“It will be strange to play each other, but we just have to get on with it,” said Massaro, who is the second seed and expected to play in the final against Nicol David, the top-seeded Malaysian who has won the world title a record seven times.
Before that can happen though, both will have to win twice, with David due to face Camille Serme, the world number six from France, in the first match on Thursday.
The other quarter-final in Massaro’s half will see Raneem El Weleily, the third-seeded Egyptian, take on her 21-year-old compatriot, Nour El Tayeb.
Both won on Wednesday and their successes mean there are three players from the home country in the last eight.
For a while though it seemed El Weleily, one of only three woman probably capable of winning the tournament, might not survive – despite her ultimately convincing win over Dipika Pallikal, the leading Indian, by 7-11, 11-5, 11-3, 11-6.
El Weleily turned an ankle over within five points of the start, re-emerging from treatment with a bulky strapping, and seeing the first game slip quickly away from her after that.
“The good thing is that I have played with this before, and I managed to get used to it,” said El Weleily, whose wide range of strokes began to blossom as the match wore on.
“I was pleased with my mental response,” she added.
Meanwhile El Tayeb, who progressed with an 11-8, 9-11, 11-8, 11-3 win over Rachael Grinham, the 37-year-old former world champion from Australia, will have other worries.
She is in the middle of final exams in economics at the American university in Cairo, and claims she spent five hours studying the night before her second round match.
“I’m not saying whether I’m expecting to win,” she said.
“I don’t want to put pressure on myself – but hopefully that will work.”