KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's S. Sivasangari and Ng Eain Yow both face a mammoth task in the third round of the World Squash Championships in Cairo tomorrow.
Sivasangari, who stunned world No. 2 Hania El Hammamy to win last month's London Classic, will face the Egyptian for a place in the quarter-finals.
And it's never easy to beat an Egyptian in her own backyard. More so when Hania is out for revenge after London.
World No. 13 Sivasangari subdued American Caroline Fouts 11-6, 11-7, 11-6 in the second round yesterday while Hania beat France's Melissa Alves 11-3, 11-4, 11-7.
World No. 17 Eain Yow, who beat Japanese Ryunosuke Tsukue 11-1, 11-5, 11-9 in the second round, will meet world No. 2 Paul Coll. The Kiwi defeated Mexican Leonel Cardenas 11-6, 11-5, 11-4. Asian champion Eain Yow met Coll three times in tournaments and won only once.
Sivasangari, 25, knows that the odds will be against her to get the better of Hania but she is in good form to create another upset.
"I'm happy with my training schedule now and ready to face Hania," she said.
National chief coach Ajaz Azmat said Sivasangari is mentally and physically ready to play Hania.
"She trained three times a day for the world meet, and she's all fired up for another tough battle against Hania.
"The pressure will be on Hania as she needs to defend her world ranking. I strongly believe that Sivasangari will rise to the occasion to create another upset against Hania."
Hania, 23, said: "I lost (London Classic) final against Siva and all credit to her. She was unbelievable in the tournament. She deserved that win, but I'm definitely prepared.
"I know what to expect of the best coming out of her, so I know how to prepare myself better than last time."
Eain Yow, who reached the third round for the first time in a World Championship. said: "I think I finally found my maturity. I now have more experience, it's just about being patient."
"I'm not thinking who I'm playing, or what's happening, ranking, all this stuff. It's not relevant. What's relevant is how I approach the game, how I step on court and how I impose my game on other players."