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Final:
Matthew makes history with world
title
Richard Eaton reports
Nick Matthew, who thought he might never play again after a
shoulder injury three years ago, made history by becoming the
first Englishman to become World Open champion.
The 30-year-old top seed did that by beating his fellow
Yorkshireman James Willstrop 7-11, 11-6, 11-2, 11-3 in the first
all English final, and looked an almost certain winner from the
midway stage onwards against a brave but tiring opponent.
When his triumph arrived Matthew offered supportive words for
the fellow Yorkshireman with whom he shared the piece of
history, and, unusually for him, had moments in the on-court
interview when emotions overcame him.
Matthew admitted that he had thought about becoming world
champion during the last few points. "You are only human," he
said.
"At that stage you are playing against yourself instead of your
opponent. You are sort of fighting the demons in your head.
"You see the finish line and as it comes closer in terms of
score it gets further away because you are drifting in your
thoughts. With every single thought I tried to tell myself 'next
rally, next rally'."
Matthew had more time than most to think about impending victory
because his ability to dispose of earlier opponents efficiently
had given him a significant advantage.
He had won all his previous matches in straight games, including
a semi-final against the defending champion from Egypt, Amr
Shabana, and had entered the final relatively fresh.
Willstrop by contrast had two matches of more than 80 minutes
against two other fellow Englishmen and halfway through the
second game of the final was starting to flag.
 But
Matthew, who had also beaten Willstrop in the last two British
Open finals and in the final of the Commonwealth Games in Delhi
in October, again showed what a remarkable late developer he has
become.
His fluent movement was as good as ever, while his ability to
finish off rallies was more varied and well-disguised than at
any time in his career.
Willstrop played a superb first game - beautifully accurate,
carefully paced, and superbly timed in the moments when he went
for winners.
He went from 6-7 to 11-7 with a sequence in which he won points
which included a drive to dying length, a thumping volley and a
delicate front court exchange.
For a while he created tension in Matthew's mind, and when he
managed a behind-the-back drive combined with another drop shot
winner to reach 5-5 in the second game the crowd briefly
wondered about an upset.
But once Willstrop's energy lessened, Matthew had the reserves
to increase the pace and keep it higher than his opponent's. He
also had enough control to cut off the volleys, and caress the
drops into corners without the enormity of the impending result
affecting his skill.
"I didn't play badly in the first game but James was just
immaculate," said Matthew "He was unlucky that he had had those
hard matches which took it out of him.
 "I
never in my wildest dreams thought that all this would happen to
me. As for that shoulder injury, it taught me to keep things in
perspective - not to get too low on the low points, and not to
get carried away either with the high if I am in a big final."
The success carried Matthew back to the top of the world
rankings above Ramy Ashour, the Egyptian whose damaged hamstring
caused his second round retirement - though the list will not
become official until after next week's PSA Masters in Delhi.
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Semi-Finals
Shabana prevented from winning a
fifth world title; England sure of their first
Richard Eaton reports
Squash legend Amr Shabana lost his title when he was
beaten in straight games by Nick Matthew in a World Open
semi-final which ensures that an Englishman will win the title
for the first time.
Shabana, whose four world titles have only been exceeded by the
two Pakistani greats, Jansher and Jahangir Khan, could not match
the movement of the tenacious Englishmen or convert the crucial
game balls he had at 10-9 in both the second and third game.
The 31-year-old from Cairo played more of the inventive squash
in a fine match with a fascinating contrast of styles, but was
slightly below the physical peak of his title-winning years. It
was an important factor a 11-6, 12-10, 12-10 defeat.
At the end Shabana smashed his racket over his knee in
frustration – though his was never a bad-tempered performance
and he remains one of the sport's most popular players.
"There was absolutely nothing in it," said the top-seeded
Matthew, who has won the last two British Opens and took two
Commonwealth gold medals at Delhi in October.
"I got off to a good start, and when that happens it doesn't
matter who you play against - you have a comfort zone," the
Yorkshireman added.
"But he's an unbelievable player. He was killing me on the
forehand side. I said to him afterwards 'you are a legend.'"
Shabana led 7-2 in the second game and 9-7 in the third, and
although he was breathing more heavily than Matthew, he was
playing well enough to haul the deficit back.
 But
Matthew kept the ball superbly tight, and the pace high, and
also attacked sensibly when there were opportunities to do so.
He saved the game point in the second game with a cleverly
directed drive from the front court straight at Shabana's body,
which forced a volleying error.
And he saved the other in the second when he sent up a steepling
lob from which Shabana dumped an overhead into the tin.
The champion's error ratio did creep up as the match progressed
and it was testimony to Matthew's fitness and strength of mind
that, despite covering more of the court than Shabana, his did
not.
He concluded the match with three or four dramatic retrieves
which set up a front court opportunity that he took with a fast
trickle round the forehand side wall to the front. It left
Shabana stranded.
Matthew's ecstatic screech, euphoric expression, and triumphal
hugging of his coach David Pearson hinted that he had just
cleared the biggest obstacle to becoming world champion.
That may be so, but his next opponent is one with whom he has
been having tough battles ever since they were juniors together
in Yorkshire.
 That
is James Willstrop who won 6-11, 14-12, 11-4, 11-8
against a third member of England's 2007 world team title
winning squad, Peter Barker.
The match was notable for mental toughness, accurate hitting and
counter-hitting into the back corners, a colossal collision on
the second of three rallies at match point, and the referee
telling both men to go and change their shirts because of the
amount of sweat they were dripping on to a slippery floor.
Willstrop needed to save a game ball at 11-12 in the second game
to avoid going two down. He did that with a typically silky
volley drop which treacherously clung to the wall.
"If I had gone two down against so physical a player as Pete I
would have been in big trouble," Willstrop said.
Both players were accurate and tenacious and the contest lasted
almost an hour and a half. There seems little doubt who will be
the fresher finalist. That though may commit Willstrop to more
enterprise in employing some of the finest skills in the game.
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Quarter-Finals:
Gaultier's pain is
Shabana's gain
Richard Eaton
Titleholder Amr Shabana came back from the brink of
likely quarter-final defeat in one of the most melodramatic
semi-finals there has ever been as Gregory Gaultier's
hopes ended in pain, tears, noisy controversy, and yet another
of many injuries .
The great Egyptian was three times within one blow of going two
games down against the gifted Frenchman before Gaultier,
overcome by powerful emotions, suffered a damaged hamstring to
give Shabana a 6-11, 13-11, 4-0 victory.
It was particularly unsettling setback to endure because within
five minutes of being on the verge of a commanding lead, the
former world number one from Aix-en-Provence found himself
landed with another unlucky World Open near miss.
Gaultier put his hand to his forehead, sagged at the knees,
smashed his racket, and squatted on the court in a crumpled heap
- until Shabana hugged him, picked him up, and helped him out.
"Squash players have to be among the best athletes in the whole
of sport. It's a damned shame and my heart goes out to him,"
said Shabana generously of an opponent who held five match
points in the 2006 final.
It maintained the champion's hopes of a fifth World Open title,
although Shabana deserved plaudits for his comeback from 6-9 and
8-10 in the second game when a brilliant flowering of his
strokeplaying talents emerged from the soil of his accurate and
disciplined rallying.
Shabana also block edout the distraction of Gaultier's
confrontations with referee John Massarella.
Several times Gaultier left the court to contest decisions, once
the Frenchman asked the Englishman to tell stewards to control
wandering spectators, and once Massarella threatened him with a
code-of-conduct penalty if he did not get back on court.
Gaultier first seemed in trouble immediately after the
disappointment of losing the second game when he took a
three-minute injury break at 0-1 for what looked like a
hip-and-groin problem.
Three points later, as he ran for a Shabana drop in the top
right corner, he pulled up, grimacing and clutching his thigh.
He sat in his corner with a towel over his face to hide the
tears and there never seemed any chance that he would continue.
Remarkably, an hour later, something similar happened to
Karim Darwish. The former world number one from Egypt was
one game all and even-steven in the third game with Peter
Barker when he performed the splits trying to retrieve from
a back corner.
Darwish left the court less dramatically than Gaultier, but it
was not long before his drawn and anxious face told a story of
another retirement. Before long he had withdrawn to an outside
court to shed his tears in private.
"I was right in there in this match, but I didn't want to get
through like this," said Barker. "It shows how tough it is for
players at this stage of the season."
His point was illustrated by this being the fourth retirement
with a hamstring injury during this World Open. Ramy Ashour, the
world number one from Egypt, and Adrian Grant, the world number
14 from England, both suffered a similar fate in the second
round.
Later England produced three of the semi-finalists for the first
time and became sure of at least one finalist when James
Willstrop overcame Mohammed El Shorbagy, the former
world junior champion from Egypt, by 11-9, 11-8, 11-8 to earn a
meeting with Barker.
Willstrop was one point down in the later stages of all three
games, but kept it tight to the walls with his drops and usually
produced the most effective shot for each situation during these
critical phases.
"I had to push, push, push," he said. "I dug it out and got
lucky against him. But he was pretty impressive for a
19-year-old."
The third English semi-finalist was Nick Matthew, who is
quashing the sceptics by looking more and more like a genuine
top seed.
The twice British Open champion and double Commonwealth Games
gold medallist took full advantage of a jaded-looking Thierry
Lincou, overcoming the popular Frenchman 11-3, 11-5, 11-2.
Matthew kept the pace high and was a far more creative player
than he was a year or two ago. He was also watchful.
"We all know what a fighter Thierry is. He has come back from a
game or two games down maybe more than anyone else in the
history of squash.
"So I kept really focussed, and it worked. I'm absolutely
delighted to reach this stage of the tournament and still feel
so fresh."
He will be even harder to beat from now on. His semi with
Shabana could prove the match of the tournament.
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Day Six:
Darwish signals World Open warning
Richard Eaton reports
Karim Darwish, who came up on the rails to snatch the
season-end number one ranking while winning the Saudi
International on this court two years ago, gave his clearest
signal yet that he can also win the World Open on it this week.
The 29-year-old from Cairo did that by reaching the
quarter-finals with an unexpectedly emphatic 11-4, 11-3, 11-3
win over his compatriot Wael El Hindi, who has twice
before reached the last eight himself.
It took only 38 minutes, which meant that Darwish simultaneously
preserved precious energy during a long tournament and further
boosted confidence which is already rising after recent title
successes at El Gouna, Egypt, and Qatar.
"I am more mature now," said Darwish, who still sometimes rings
his wife Engy Kheirallah, a top 20 player herself, to seek
tactical advice as well as moral support.
"I am in good shape physically and when you get a few wins it is
always good for your confidence – and this could be the four
most important days of my life."
It was nevertheless surprising how completely Darwish outplayed
an opponent with a reputation as a tough and sometimes
contentious battler and who two months ago was in the world's
top ten.
Darwish not only moved better, he attacked with fluency and
variety, scoring points as frequently in the front court as at
the back.
El Hindi received a heavy shunt in the back early in the second
game, which made him wince and caused a minute's delay, but he
had already begun to look fatalistic and the expected fight-back
never materialised.
Darwish now plays Peter Barker, the world number eight
who clinched the world team title for England three years ago,
and who despatched Stewart Boswell, the top 20
Australian, with professional efficiency.
Barker has been making good use of the tournament's three rest
days. "It's day off, day on, day off, day on – it's unusual," he
said. "It's new for everyone. It's different and it's something
a lot of players like.
"But you have to maintain some sort of standard on the days off,
some sort of fitness. You have to pay careful attention to
detail.
"Every round is massive, and you have to pace yourself. So I'm
really pleased to have come through without dropping a game."
If Darwish gets past this far-from-easy hurdle, he may go on to
a semi-final with another Englishman, James Willstrop.
However Willstrop's progress was more tortured than Darwish's.
It took him fully 80 minutes to get past his compatriot Daryl
Selby 11-8, 7-11, 11-9, 11-7, and required a significant dip
into his fuel tank to achieve it.
"He gave me little to play with and I had to dig, dig, dig,"
Willstrop said. "I was a bit disconsolate about that, but
perhaps I shouldn't have been. It's still good that I could win
this way."
The sixth-seeded Yorkshireman now plays Mohammed El Shorbagy,
the former world junior champion from Egypt who manages to do a
degree in business studies at Bristol University and maintain a
place in the world's top 12.
El Shorbagy won 11-8, 11-6, 11-8 against Aamir Atlas Khan,
demoralising the Pakistani with the pace and consistency of his
attack. That was something he had discussed with Jonah
Barrington, the squash legend from Ireland who coaches him.
"We thought that if I played fast he would give up, and that's
what happened," said El Shorbagy, who has progressed in the
quarter vacated by his injured compatriot, the world number one
Ramy Ashour.
"It's tragic what's happened to Ramy," he said. "I just hope
that I can make up for it."
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Day Five:
Gaultier overcomes
injury and controversy
Richard Eaton reports
Gregory Gaultier, who was denied five times on match point by
David Palmer in the final of the World Open four years ago,
reached the quarter-finals by beating him in the longest match
so far in this year's World Open.
The former world number one from France overcame the twice
former world champion from Australia 9-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-2,
with a performance which showed how surprising it is that he has
yet to become champion.
After an attritional opening phase, the match burst to life with
some stunningly athletic rallies, several contentious incidents,
and an injury time out for Gaultier in a 93-minute thriller.
"It became a huge, huge battle," said Gaultier. "It got faster
and faster, and tougher and tougher.
"At the beginning I was talking too much with the referee – I
was stupid. When I kept my cool I hit the ball better. What I
need to do is shut up and play."
Referee Roy Gingell clearly agreed with that, twice telling him
to stop arguing, but Gaultier's bigger problem appeared to be a
painful hip which got worse after three melodramatic falls
during as a result of collisions with Palmer.
When Gaultier returned after an injury break, the match began to
change course. From a game and 4-5 down the man from
Aix-en-Provence edged towards parity at a game all, and then
Palmer made a seriously tenacious stand in the third game.
However after an amazing 100-shot rally the Aussie slipped to
3-8 down but fought back to 7-9, rallying with great
consistency, before Gaultier snatched that pivotal game.
In the fourth Gaultier was much more often in charge, carving
winners with increasing frequency. Palmer claimed he was not
tired, but twice tripped and fell as his brave resistance
lessened.
Gaultier next faces the titleholder Amr Shabana of Egypt.
Shabana had to fight very hard to beat Azlan Iskandar of
Malaysia 11-4, 11-8, 10-12, 7-11, 11-5. There were moments when
it seemed the champion might be in trouble.
"He's a very strong player and I had to give a hundred percent,"
Shabana said. "He beat me the last time we played and so I knew
I had a hard opponent.
"Luckily the tournament organisers are trying to give the
players the rest they need to get the right quality of squash,"
he added, referring to a unique schedule with three rest days.
Earlier the top seed Nick Matthew saved two game points in the
third game of his 11-8, 11-6, 13-11 win over Hisham Ashour, the
elder of the two Egyptian brothers, to earn a quarter-final with
Thierry Lincou, the former world champion from France.
"Hisham has been feeding off this tournament and I felt like I
was playing against two of them," Matthew said, referring to the
fact that Hisham was receiving help from younger brother Ramy,
the world number one whose tournament ended in injury yesterday.
Lincou meanwhile required all his resilience to win 11-5, 11-9,
7-11, 11-9 against Alister Walker, the world number 20 from
England who is also his best buddy on tour.
"It was pretty difficult to play him," the Frenchman admitted. I
could feel a bit of pressure on me tonight: I didn't really want
to lose, and tried really hard. I had to think very carefully
about what shots to play."
Asked if he could win the World Open again, at the age of 34,
Lincou did not rule it out. "I will say what most of the players
will say," he said.
"There are so many good players in the draw. There is nothing
you can predict, except that I will give it all I can."
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Day Four:
World number one Ashour
forced to quit
Richard Eaton reports
World number one Ramy Ashour gave up on his bid to
win back the World Open title after only six minutes of the
second round when a hamstring injury forced him to call a halt.
The 23-year-old from Cairo left the court with an agonised
expression after losing one game which was so painful it
suggested he would have been better never to have taken the
court.
It was won 11-2 by Aamir Atlas Khan, the Pakistan number
one who now goes through to play another fine Egyptian,
Mohammed El Shorbagy, the former world junior champion.
Ashour's retirement cost the tournament someone who was
simultaneously its most charismatic player, an unofficial
favourite for the title, and a local hero with strong
connections to the city.
"I'm very sad. I don't know what to say. It means so much to
me," Ashour said, close to tears. "I felt it first in training
back in Egypt a week ago.
"I was going to hospital every day, every day, and I hoped it
would be all right when I got here. There was no way I was going
to miss the World Open.
"I really wanted to play and stay world number one. But when I
was here I felt it go again.
"I somehow managed to get through my first match (against
Kristian Frost of Denmark) and I thought that with a rest day,
if I prepared carefully, I might get through another one. It was
no good - I just couldn't move."
Ashour is sponsored by ATCO, whose Vice Chairman Ziad
Al-Turki is responsible for bringing a world championship to
Saudi Arabia for the first time.
It was in this same arena a year ago that Ashour won a thrilling
final in the Saudi International against England's Nick Matthew
to snatch the year-end world number one spot.
Matthew, the top seed, could now become the main beneficiary of
Ashour's ill fortune, and has a last 16 encounter with Hisham
Ashour, Ramy's elder brother, on Monday.
Others who may benefit include another of Ashour's compatriots,
Amr Shabana, the 31-year-old defending champion, who
plays Azlan Iskandar of Malaysia, and a fourth Egyptian,
Karim Darwish, who progressed safely to the third round
with a 11-8, 11-9, 11-5 win over Tom Richards of England.
Darwish, who became world world number one for the first time at
this venue two years ago, is moving well. He also called his
wife Engy, who has been playing for Egypt during the
world team championships in New Zealand, and whose birthday it
is today.
"I would really like to have her here, but she had to be at the
world teams," said Darwish.
"We've not been talking about squash, we'd rather not do that
really. But maybe now it's getting to the serious rounds we will
talk about each player."
Another front runner to impress was James Willstrop, the
world number five from England, whose 11-6, 11-3, 11-3 win over
Borja Golan of Spain appears to have opened up a route through
to the semi-finals in place of Ashour.
"He's coming back from a big injury and I know what that's
like," said Willstrop.
"I've been playing 12 months on the tour non-stop and am in decent shape
and it makes a difference."
Another player forced to quite through injury was Adrian
Grant, the world number 14 from England, seemed to be edging
to victory against Stewart Boswell, the former world
number four, before he was halted by a combination of the
Australian's enduring skill and two injuries.
Grant was apparently able to cope with the groin strain but when
he unluckily got another muscle problem in another extremely
awkward place, his armpit, it all became a bit too much.
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Day Three:
Palmer fights for climactic farewell
Richard Eaton reports
Former world champion David Palmer had to battle the full
distance to avoid a premature second round defeat. The
34-year-old Australian badly wants a climactic end to a decade
and a half on the tour but there were moments during his 11-4,
3-11, 11-7, 10-12, 11-4 victory over England's Jonathan Kemp
when it seemed he might not get it.
Palmer let slip a lead of 6-4 in the fourth game, and delivered
an uncharacteristically indifferent serve at 10-10 which enabled
Kemp to volley drop a winner.
That allowed the world number 27 to acquire the momentum to take
it to a decider against one of the millennium's greats, an
opponent who won two of the most exciting World Open finals of
all and four British Open titles.
"It was frustrating to allow him back like that – I should have
wrapped that up," said Palmer, who remained self-critical
despite the calm and ruthless way he punished Kemp's errors in
the fifth.
This hinted at a lingering feeling that he may still be good
enough have an influence on the destination of the title.
We may know more about that after his last 16 encounter against
Gregory Gaultier of France, which will be a repeat of
their sensational World Open final at Giza in 2006 when Palmer
saved five match points and snatched an improbable triumph.
Gaultier earned a chance to add to his excellent record against
the Aussie since then, producing a sparkling 11-6, 11-5, 11-4
victory over Farhan Mehboob, the Pakistani number two.
The match was full of fast attacking rallies, great movement,
and intriguing variety, with Gaultier making less errors and
looking more like the man who reached world number one late last
year.
"I had a nightmare flight, I felt stiff when I got here, and I
was struggling in practice even this morning," said the man from
Aix-en-Provence.
"But when I got into this match I felt different. I was moving
well and hitting well, and I tried to play it simple and tight -
and suddenly I feel fully recovered."
Gaultier was joined in the third round by his fellow Frenchman
Thierry Lincou, the oldest man in the tournament at 34
years and eight months but still looking sharp and lively in an
11-6, 11-8, 11-3 win over Omar Mosaad, one of six Egyptians in
the top 20.
"I don't think about my age, or retiring, or winning the title,"
said Lincou. "I am too focussed for that.
"That's the way I play best, and I don't want to put myself
under too much tension."
Two other front runners also progressed in straight games.
Nick Matthew, the top seed from England, beat Shahier Razik
of Canada 11-5, 11-1, 11-7, and Amr Shabana, the
defending champion from Egypt, overcame Ali Anwar Reda, his
21-year-old compatriot, 11-7, 11-1, 11-7.
Another important contender Ramy Ashour, the world number
one from Egypt, appeared full of smiles as he watched the action
on his rest day, apparently unconcerned about the hamstring
injury he sustained yesterday.
Instead Ramy enjoyed seeing his elder brother Hisham Ashour
cause a surprise - a 11-7, 11-9, 11-7 victory against Laurens
Jan Anjema, the Dutch player who has just reached the world's
top ten for the first time.
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Day Two:
Limping Ashour
survives
first round scare
Richard Eaton reports
World number one Ramy Ashour suffered an injury scare as
he limped into the second round with a faltering performance
against a lucky loser.
The brilliant Egyptian hurtled through the first game against
Kristian Frost of Denmark, but further damaged a hamstring
strain in the second and became involved in a dogfight in the
third and fourth before surviving 11-1, 11-5, 3-11, 11-9.
Ashour also needed a three-minute injury time out in the third
game before he could continue, and several times decided against
running or stretching for the ball as the contest moved into its
tense closing stages.
Perhaps the quickest he moved was after he had snatched victory
with a sensational backhand volley return of serve into the
sidewall nick, making the ball roll dead.
Then Ashour dashed from the court, apparently ken to avoid
discussing his ailment, and hastened away with his coterie into
an on-site cabana.
This clandestine getaway confirmed the feeling which had been
growing throughout a fraught contest that Ashour's challenge may
be under threat.
From the middle of the match onwards his movement looked
hampered, and his relief at surviving against the world number
76 caused him to hurl his racket away and face spectators with a
theatrical gesture and a fierce grin.
At least it earned Ashour what could be a vital day's rest
before taking on Aamir Atlas Khan, the talented Pakistani
number one who beat Steve Finitsis, an Australian
qualifier 11-5, 12-10, 11-5.
If Ashour survives again his third round could be with his
compatriot Mohammed El Shorbagy, whom many rate as a
future world champion and who beat Martin Knight, the
improving New Zealander, 11-6, 11-9, 11-9.
The biggest threat in Ashour's quarter though should be James
Willstrop, the sixth seed from England, who again showed
himself one of the most skilled players in the draw.
Willstrop recovered well from a difficult start to win 9-11,
11-4, 11-7, 11-2 against Nicolas Muller, a 21-year-old who has
just moved into the top 40 and looks the best prospect to have
come from Switzerland.
"In the past I've though about winning, winning, winning," said
Willstrop. "You want to be world champion and there's several of
us who can.
"But it's a question of getting it all right. It's such a
massive, huge thing and sometimes it gets on my mind – and
that's not good for me.
"I'm trying to take it bit by bit, and the good thing about
tonight's match is that he was so good, it made me do that. I
have to take the tournament in bite sized chunks."
Another notable winner was Karim Darwish, who became
world number one for the first time on this court here two years
ago, and hopes the memory might inspire him to his first world
title.
However he found Julian Illingworth in tenacious mood,
and the leading American kept the fourth-seeded Egyptian on
court for 50 minutes before giving best 11-3, 11-5, 11-13, 11-3.
Earlier there had been a surprise when Cameron Pilley,
the top 20 Australian, was beaten in four games by Mathieu
Castagnet, a 24-year-old qualifier from Le Mans.
With Renan Lavigne announcing his retirement, and
Thierry Lincou likely to continue only for one more year, it
was good timing for another Frenchman to push himself forward.
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Day
One:
Shabana disposes of
hair and opposition
Richard Eaton reports
Amr Shabana began the defence of his World Open title with a
familiar clean sweep in three games and a clean pate for the
first time in his life.
The four-time champion from Egypt was content with his
performance during a well-paced 11-7, 12-10, 11-8 win over Chris
Simpson, a qualifier from Guernsey, but less so with the stark
outcome of a hairdressing session on the morning of the match.
 The
close shave was applied at his request by Wael El Hindi, a
fellow top 20 Egyptian, but Shabana will be seeking to avoid
anything like that in his next encounter with another
compatriot, in the second round on Saturday with the improving
Ali Anwar Reda.
The 31-year-old squash legend's intention had been, he said, to
make his appearance younger. Asked whether he now does, Shabana
quipped: "No – I still look 31."
But he sometimes played like someone of fewer years, moving
lightly, accelerating well at 5-7 in the second game against
Simpson, and playing brilliantly in the last three points of the
contest.
Shabana probably has enough youth and skill to win the title
again if he is fully fit and healthy - but at this stage only he
knows whether he is.
Two other squash greats also started satisfactorily. David
Palmer, the twice former world champion from Australia,
recovered from 6-9 down in the third game to win 11-3, 11-2,
12-10 against Stephane Galifi, an Italian qualifier.
And Thierry Lincou, the only Frenchman to win the World
Open, came from 6-7 down in the third to win 11-4, 11-4, 11-7
against Kashif Shuja, a New Zealand qualifier.
Both are 34-year-olds and both showed the ability to apply
subtle extra pressure when it mattered.
"Probably no-one is giving me a chance this week, which is fair
enough," said Palmer, who has says this is probably his last
tournament.
"But if I get through the first two rounds without damage, I
might be able to show I'm still a dangerous," he added. Palmer
next plays Jonathan Kemp, the left-handed Englishman who has
spent much of the last five years just outside the top 20.
Lincou says he regards this as like any other tournament. "Of
course I know it's the World Open. But I just want to be
consistent as I have in most other tournaments this year," the
world number seven from Marseille said.
Lincou next faces Omar Mosaad, the 22-year-old Egyptian who
broke the top 20 for the first time last month.
Earlier Alister Walker progressed in an unusual way.
Coppinger lost a long tough four-game match to the 16th seeded
Englishman after leading by a game and 10-8, and then conceding
a conduct penalty stroke on match point.
That happened when the South African whacked his racket against
his shoe, eliciting a second conduct warning from Egyptian
referee Nasser Zahran, and bringing an automatic penalty point
to conclude a 12-14, 12-10, 11-9, 11-9 defeat.
Jan Koukal couldn't make it – trapped at Leeds airport because
of the unseasonal volume of snow. Azlan Iskandar, the 14th
seeded Malaysian gets a walk-over which, in a larger than usual
64-draw, with six matches in a tournament, could prove an
advantage.
Later another Frenchman, Gregory Gaultier, also won,
overcoming Mohammed Taher Al-Saif, the wild card from Saudi
Arabia, 11-3, 11-5, 11-8.
The former world number one from Aix-en-Provence was followed
into the second round by Nick Matthew, the top seeded
Commonwealth champion from England.
Matthew arrived late on a snow-delayed flight from Manchester,
but even with only a few hours to prepare, got past Ryan
Cuskelly, an improving young Australian, by 11-4, 11-5, 11-6.
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