At the age of just 17 years and 11 months old, Egypt’s teenage sensation Amina Orfi has the opportunity to etch her name in the history books over the coming fortnight as she attempts to become the youngest female player to ever win the PSA World Championships.
Orfi will be looking to break the current record – held by Nour El Sherbini, who became World Champion at the age of 20 – when she travels to Chicago this week for the upcoming 2024-25 PSA World Championships presented
And after a scintillating string of recent results, it would be foolish to write off the teenage star. A Platinum finalist at last month’s El Gouna International very much felt a coming-of-age event for Orfi, with the Egyptian claiming a thrilling 101-minute win over seven-time World Champion El Sherbini and backing this up with a dominant display against World No.4 Olivia Weaver in the semi-finals.
Speaking ahead of the PSA World Championships, Orfi detailed the improvements she has made to her game over the last 12 months, which have helped he surge from outside the world’s top ten to the cusp of the top four.
“I think I have improved my attacking game since I first started on tour,” she said. “I now know when to attack from the front and when to play to the back.
“I also feel I have started thinking differently about matches. I think there’s no specific match I should win or any specific matches I should lose – any player can beat anyone.
“I’ve had many upsets this season, so I have just started thinking about each match as its own tournament. It’s not that I have to win this match and then that match; it’s more about just taking it step by step.
“I think that is what has made a huge difference.
“I think this season has been my best on tour so far. I think I have climbed from World No.11 up to World No.5, and it’s really hard to climb up in this area of the rankings because everybody is so close in points.”
Competing in just her second full season on the PSA Squash Tour, Orfi has proven a force to be reckoned with, having already picked up Bronze, Silver and Gold level titles at the Malaysia Cup, New Zealand Open and Singapore Open, respectively.
These runs, along with runner-up finishes at the El Gouna International and at the Australian Open, have seen Orfi pick up wins against every member of the top ten she has faced, barring current World No.1 and World Champion, Nouran Gohar.
Orfi’s most recent battle against Gohar was fiercely contested, but ultimately proved a step too far for the teenager, as she fell to a four-game defeat in the final of the El Gouna International.
On how she is looking to adapt her mindset when playing against both El Sherbini and Gohar heading into the future, Orfi said:
“I have to be more focused on crucial points and when it really matters. I remember playing Nour [El Sherbini] at the Egyptian Open, and I was 2-0 up and ended up losing.
“I feel I sometimes need to have more belief that I can win these matches and win them comfortably if I’m playing well and they’re not really at their best. I need to believe in myself and not think about the outcome or what is happening. Just play point by point until the very end.
“Obviously, Nour is the seven-time World Champion, and whenever you see the way she plays…!
“I’ve seen her play since I was a kid, and it was my first time stepping on court with her last year in May at the World Championships, and I just wanted to enjoy it. I wasn’t playing my best at that time – I felt my squash could have been better – but I just wanted to see how she plays, test myself against her, so I was just happy to be on court.
“This year, I’m now just focused on winning. I want to climb up the rankings more. When I see both Nour [El Sherbini] and Nouran [Gohar], I’m obviously respecting them and their accomplishments, but I’m no longer starstruck like I was.”
Orfi boasts an impressive record when it comes to World Championships at junior level. Last year, the teenager made history at the World Junior Championships in Houston by becoming the first-ever player to win three successive titles.
The up-and-coming star will look to translate this success to the upcoming PSA World Championships in Chicago this week, but faces a tricky draw if she is to reach the latter stages of the event.
Orfi is seeded to potentially face World No.18 Jasmine Hutton and World No.14 Nada Abbas in the second and third rounds, before a potential blockbuster quarter-final with World No.3 Hania El Hammamy. If the 17-year-old were to come through this quarter of the draw, she would then most likely have to face off against defending champion Gohar in the last four.
On why the PSA World Championships holds so much importance in her mind, Orfi said:
“It’s a huge tournament. If you win it, it basically means that you are the best in the world at this moment in time. It’s just special – everyone just wants to become a World Champion. It’s either that or everyone wants to become World No.1.
“I think that it is everyone’s ultimate goal, so that’s what makes it so special.
“[If you win it], it means you’re one of the best in the sport. To win it, you will have to beat the very best. It’s the tournament that shows the quality of a player.
“There’s always so much pressure on players at this tournament, so the player who wins it is the one who has held their nerves and just wants to win.
“To win the World Championships would be the cherry on top! It would be the cake! It’s such a big tournament and I really hope that I can win.
“Everyone wants to become a World Champion.”
The 2024/25 PSA World Championships presented by the Walter Family gets underway on 9th May and runs to the 17th. All of the action will be available to watch live on SQUASHTV and selected broadcast partners later in the event.
For more information on the PSA World Championships 24/25, visit the tournament website or follow the PSA on X, Facebook,Instagram, YouTube,
