Selby Snuffs Out Willstrop In Qatar Classic Shock by Howard Harding
photos courtesy Steve Cubbins
12 November 2013
- It was a case of 13th time lucky for Daryl Selby today in the Qatari
capital Doha where the world No 11 toppled England team-mate James
Willstrop in the second round of the Qatar Classic to claim his first
ever win over the world No 3.
The upset, which takes
Selby into the quarter-finals of the seventh PSA World Series squash
event of the year at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash
Complex, follows 12 successive Tour defeats by former world No 1
Willstrop since January 2007 - and further losses harking back to the
final of the British Junior U-12 Championship in October 1994 when
Selby mustered just two points!
"It's an amazing win
for me," exclaimed the 31-year-old from Essex (pictured above, right,
with Willstrop) after his 11-8, 11-5, 4-11, 9-11, 13-11 over the
event's second seed in 89 minutes. "I've lost 12 times on PSA against
James and about 100 times in other competitions - so I'm ecstatic to
win.
"I've come close before and thought I've done it, so it's a massive weight off my shoulders.
"It's a big
confidence-boost, especially coming off making the quarters of the
worlds last week. I want to keep going with the momentum and see where
it takes me. Tomorrow will be another tough day but I'll re-group and
go forward.
"There are so few
opportunities at this event, the guys behind the top eight are like a
pack of wolves itching to get into those spots and take the
opportunities when they appear."
Selby clinched match-ball with an incredible winner hit from behind his back!
"I've had big win but
not been able to follow them up before. I've only made one semi-final
in one of these big tournaments before but hopefully I can keep
progressing and see where tomorrow takes me."
Unseeded Selby will
now face fifth seed Mohamed Elshorbagy for a place in the semi-finals
after the world No 6 from Egypt beat Dutchman Laurens Jan Anjema,
ranked 12 places lower, 11-7, 11-6, 11-8.
"I like playing on
this court but I can't get over confident and I have to make sure that
I focus on what I have to do on court," said the 22-year-old from
Alexandria, who was a surprise finalist in last year's PSA World
Championship at the same venue.
"I was really happy
that I kept my plan going and I was really happy to finish in three
today - as, after a five-game match yesterday, I knew I needed to have
a quick game to be in with a chance of going all through the week.
"Hopefully I can keep
that momentum going now. I knew my body wasn't going to be 100 per cent
ready in the first round but I was fully there mentally. I was
expecting myself to be a little off key and the longer the game went on
the more accurate and I got and I was pleased that I managed to push
myself mentally that way and I'm proud of pushing myself through that
and I certainly feel up for it now."
There was another
significant upset earlier in the day when unseeded Egyptian Karim Abdel
Gawad pulled off a shock 11-9, 5-11, 11-9, 9-11, 12-10 victory over
eighth-seeded compatriot Tarek Momen.
"I'm very pleased with
my performance," said the world No 22 (pictured above, right, with
Momen) after his 82-minute win, his first over former world No 10
Momen. "I was expecting a very tough match - we have played many times
in practice over the years and he is a top 10 player in the world so to
win is very pleasing.
"This is I think my
first win over a top 10 player and I hope to be in the top 10 myself
soon so to beat a player like Tarek is a great achievement for me,"
added the 22-year-old from Cairo.
Gawad will now face a
further fellow countryman in the quarter-finals: Fourth seed Karim
Darwish, twice winner of the title, beat compatriot Omar Mosaad 11-9,
4-11, 11-6, 11-5.
There will also be
Egyptian interest in the other half of the draw where sixth seed Amr
Shabana takes on England's No 3 seed Nick Matthew in a mouth-watering
quarter-final between two former world number ones.
Shabana, the 2007
champion from Cairo, took just 28 minutes to subdue South African
Stephen Coppinger 11-3, 11-4, 11-5 - while 2009 champion Matthew,
winner of a third World Championship crown last week, defeated
Colombian Miguel Angel Rodriguez 11-6, 11-7, 13-11 in 54 minutes.
Event favourite
Gregory Gaultier also progressed after a straight games win - beating
top Australian Cameron Pilley 11-9, 11-6, 11-4.
The world No 2 from
France will now do battle with top-ranked Spaniard Borja Golan, the
seventh seed who beat England's Tom Richards 11-6, 11-7, 12-10.
RESULTS: PSA World Series Qatar Classic, Doha, Qatar
