Laura Massaro began her title defence of the PSA Dubai World Series Finals with victory over Egyptian world No 2 Raneen El Welily on the opening night at the Emirates Golf Club on Tuesday.
England’s world No 7 Massaro came from behind to clinch the victory 8-11 11-9 11-8 in 39 minutes.
“It was just a bit of a shock to get back to the best of three format,” Massaro said referring to the tournament’s new best of three format in the group stage.
“It was quite quick and you keep thinking the whole time, ‘Keep pushing, keep pushing,’ because you know you have only got maximum three games.
“It’s a little bit of a different feeling and it is explosive and powerful and your lungs have a different feeling to it.”
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After losing the first game Massaro regained her composure to lead all the way to level the tie with an impeccable drop shot.
“I was thinking this one game will be crucial regardless of what happens in the third,” she said. “I felt like I played OK in the first game and I felt like I had more to come. So, I tried to get that out in the second.
“I’m absolutely chuffed to get a win over Raneen. It has been well over a year and she has become world champion and playing so well.”
El Welily was playing while fasting but refused to make that an excuse for the defeat. Although said she had to learn a lot from the first game of the tournament.
“Yes, I am [fasting] but I don’t want to discuss too much about it,” she said.
“I try not to think about it to be honest but obviously it has an effect in your mindset because there is so much difference when you don’t eat as you would while preparing for a competition.
“My basic game wasn’t the best tonight. Some of the shots were loose even when I played to the back. They were too high on to the back-wall.
“Also it wasn’t about the confidence but about doing my best. I don’t think I gave my 100 per cent today. Hopefully I can give 90 per cent tomorrow and see how it goes.”
Camille Serme of France also came from a game down to defeat England’s Sarah-Jane Perry 8-11 12-10 12-10 in the other women’s match.
In the men’s event, Simon Rosner of Germany got the better of Egypt’s Karim Abdul Gawad 12-10 11-6, while Egyptian Ali Farag downed Gregory Gaultier of France 11-9 11-8.
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Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
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Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
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Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
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What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
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The poll of 2,006 people aged 16-24 assessed their exposure to drug dealers online in a nationally representative survey.
Of those admitting to seeing drugs for sale online, 56 per cent saw them advertised on Snapchat, 55 per cent on Instagram and 47 per cent on Facebook.
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National Editorial: Suleimani has been killed, now we must de-escalate
Mina Al Oraibi: Air strike casts a long shadow over the decade ahead
Jack Moore: Why the assassination is such a monumental gamble
Damien McElroy: A CEO tasked with spreading Iran's influence
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National Editorial: Suleimani has been killed, now we must de-escalate
Mina Al Oraibi: Air strike casts a long shadow over the decade ahead
Jack Moore: Why the assassination is such a monumental gamble
Matthew Levitt: Iran retains its ability to launch terror attacks
Damien McElroy: A CEO tasked with spreading Iran's influence
Hussein Ibish: Trump's order on solid constitutional ground
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