Clyne To Face Gohar In Surprise Cincinnati Final

Unseeded American Olivia Clyne will take on world No.1 Nouran Gohar in the Cincinnati Gaynor Cup final after the former's semi-final opponent - sixth seed Georgina Kennedy - was forced to retire from their semi-final match in the PSA World Tour Silver event at the Cincinnati Country Club due to a foot injury.

Clyne has been in terrific form of late and reached the final of the Cleveland Classic - also a Silver event - earlier this month where she fell to Kennedy in four games.

From the outset it was clear that Kennedy was unable to move properly as Clyne dropped just a solitary point in the opening game and the English player soon shook hands in the second to bring the match to an end.

"I really feel for Gina," said Clyne, now in the 13th Tour final of her career.

"She's been the same as me, playing all these matches the last couple of weeks and it does take its toll. You never know when it's going to sneak up on you, some days you can start your day feeling alright, you could start your day feeling terrible - like I did this morning - but end your day feeling alright.

"I know what that's like and it's an awful feeling, so I hope that she gets better soon. I was prepared for war and I was going to leave every inch of myself out there tonight. I was prepared for the worst 90 minutes of my life, physically."

Meanwhile, defending champion Gohar has reached the 37th PSA final of her career - and her fifth of the season - following a dominant 11-4, 11-7, 11-4 victory over No.5 seed Salma Hany.

Gohar had won eight of the previous nine matches against her fellow Egyptian and extended that record with pinpoint accuracy into the front corners coupled with solid line and length throughout the 41-minute fixture to secure her place in the final of the PSA World Tour Silver event.

"I think I came out strong and wanted to make sure I had a big lead," said Gohar afterwards.

"Being 2/0 is a completely different story compared to it being one-all. I wanted to put pressure on her, I was moving well and I'm happy with the way I played today. My preparation so far has been going well, so I'll keep it the same, keep it simple and get ready for a battle tomorrow."