The world number one from Malaysia needed no more than half an hour to get past Omneya Abdel Kawy, the Egyptian number one, by 11-8, 11-1, 11-9, and it was only in the first game that the outcome was in much doubt.

In the men’s tournament, Egypt’s Amr Shabana kept his bid for a fourth world title on track with a 11-2, 11-3, 11-6 win over young compatriot Mohamed El Shorbagy.

Kawy led Nicol 7-3 and 8-5 in the early stages, slowing down the game in her distinctive style and carving out openings in the front court with volleys and skilful drops.

But once the Malaysian started to run these down and pull back the deficit, she also started to score well herself with deft front court touches as well as with her more orthodox line-and-length patterns supplemented with good movement.

Thereafter, despite a late rally by the former world junior champion from Cairo, it was more a question of when rather than whether Nicol would go through.

“Omneya had a big match yesterday,” Nicol said generously, referring to the 85-minute tussle against England’s eighth-seeded Laura Lengthorn in which she came from two games to one down and played one record tie-break of 24 points.

“She made a few too many shots and made mistakes which let me in, and let me off the hook.”

Nicol now faces Madeline Perry, the world number 14 from Ireland, whose career was almost ended by a horrific head injury last year, but who followed her shock win over Shelley Kitchen, the world number six, by beating a New Zealander for the second successive day.

This time it was Jaclyn Hawkes against whom she made the most remarkable of comebacks to win by 6-11, 5-11, 11-9, 12-10, 11-9.

As well as being two games down, Perry was 7-9 down in the third, 5-10 down in the fourth – in which she saved five successive match points, and 5-7 down in the fifth.

“I didn’t do it with good squash – I was playing rubbish. I just did it with determination,” said Perry, who believes she has acquired even more mental strength since the fall which left her with brain damage.

The other semi-final, which will be between Jenny Duncalf and Vicky Botwright, is bound to produce an English finalist for the first time in five years.

Duncalf, the England number one, followed her run to her first British Open final in May, by beating Natalie Grinham, the Australian-raised Dutch international who has contested both the last two world finals.

Botwright, who is playing in her last tournament, overcame Alison Waters, the British national champion 13-11, 3-11, 13-11, 11-9.

Shabana celebrated reaching the semi-finals by posing with Manchester United’s Premier League trophy.

The trophy was transported a couple of miles across the city from Old Trafford to the SportCity site which was the venue for the 2002 Commonwealth Games and where Shabana now gave a squash lesson to El Shorbagy.

“I used to play football but had to keep going away for squash tournaments,” said Shabana, before posing in the shirt of the Premiership joint top scorer, Amr Zaki, another Egyptian compatriot, who plays for nearby Wigan.

Shabana next plays Ramy Ashour who beat former British Open champion Nick Matthew in four games. — AFP