Peter too wrote:

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JonH comes home wrote:

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Peter too wrote:

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JonH comes home wrote:

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I see an Egyptian, Mayar Sherif, is in the last 8 - new name to me but great to see

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 In my teens I started watching Wimbledon on TV. My interest really grew when I decided to back an Egyptian to win the mens singles and followed him round after round right through to the final. I have been following tennis ever since, though I haven't always been so fortunate it my later choices of who to support.

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 That would have been Jaroslav Drobny then, who was a Czech and then became Egyptian , Im guessing after the soviets went into czechoslavakia? 

ishmael el shafei was a later good player but since then , few and far between and no women I recall. 

of course , Egypt dominates world squash these days and most of the top women are in fact Egyptians , as are the men as well. 

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Yes it was Drobny. Many soviets in those days had minders to make sure they didn't stray, if Jaroslav had any he gave them the slip and looked for a country that would give him asylum. Egypt offered, so he became an Egyptian citizen and represented Egypt to reward them for their hospitality. He had done pretty well the year before so he was one of the contenders for the title.

-- Edited by Peter too on Tuesday 2nd of May 2023 03:16:34 PM

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And he later became British in 1959 and for the ear of his life !