Gaultier Over Ashour in British Open Semis, Matthew Survives Elshorbagy by Nathan Clarke May 17, 2014
- Squash World Champion Nick Matthew and World No.1 Gregory Gaultier
will contest the final of the prestigious 2014 Allam British Open
Squash Championship at the KC Sports Arena in Hull, tomorrow (Sunday
May 18).
Matthew earned his
place in the final following a gruelling 104-minute, 3-2 win over
Egyptian World No.3 Mohamed Elshorbagy while Gaultier impressed as he
ruthlessly put defending British Open Champion Ramy Ashour to the sword
in an emphatic 3-1 win.
Three-time British
Open champion Matthew will be hoping home-support propels him to glory
in a repeat of the performance that saw him beat the Frenchman 3-2 in a
dramatic finale to the 2013 World Championships in Manchester last
November - a victory that saw the Sheffield-man claim his third World
title.
"The pace throughout
the match today was relentless and I felt like I was running on fumes
at the end," said Matthew, who's aiming for British Open title number
four.
"Mohamed is one hell
of a player but I'm pleased with how I used my experience today to get
the win. The crowd were amazing throughout the match today and they
were really supportive of both players.
"They (the crowd)
really willed me on when I played Greg in the World Championship final
last year and pulled me over the line so hopefully I can give them more
to cheer about tomorrow."
Gaultier, a British
Open winner in 2007, will be hoping to overturn his recent form against
Matthew, having also lost to out to the World No.2 in December's Hong
Kong Open and February's CASE Swedish Open.
"Nick is an unbelievable player and he's had an amazing career," said Gaultier.
"He has achieved so much but he is always still hungry and he has a real fighting spirit which he showed today against Mohamed.
"He always tries to
the last point but I'm here to win and this tournament is one of my
main targets for the season. Winning the title for a second time would
be just as amazing as the first so I'll give it everything tomorrow."
2014 Allam British Open - Semi-final Results: [1] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [4] Mohamed Elshorbagy (EGY) 3-2: 4-11, 14-12, 3-11, 11-7, 11-8 [104m] [2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [3] Ramy Ashour (EGY) 3-1: 11-7, 12-10, 3-11, 11-7 [72m]
2014 Allam British Open - Final Draw: [1] Nick Matthew (ENG) v [2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
