Nick Matthew Wins PSA World Series Allam British Open
PSA World Series Allam British Open, London, England
[3] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) 11-9, 11-4, 11-8
Piazza, O2 Arena, London. 18:00 Sunday 20th May: The finals of the Allam British Open Squash Championships came to a thrilling climax in front of a sell-out crowd in London today where World Champion England’s Nick Matthew took top honours.
Matthew’s victory guarantees him a place in squash history as the 32-year-old became the first Englishman to win three British Opens - and back-to-back titles - since the tournament began in 1931.
Sheffield-born Matthew produced a high level of accuracy throughout the match to win 11-9, 11-4, 11-8 in 49 minutes.
Ashour hit the tin 14 times during the match as Matthew’s precision squash forced him into mistakes. The 24-year-old from Cairo surrendered an 8-6 lead in the first game and was totally outplayed in the second as Matthew dominated the middle of the court and worked his opponent from corner to corner with tight drives, drops and volleys.
He continued to dominate in the third game and led 6-2 before Ashour responded with his best spell of the match to draw level at 8-8. However, Matthew regained control and more loose play from Ashour gave him the next three points.
As Matthew moved to match ball, Ashour demanded a video replay but the world champion the referee that the Egyptian had already used his appeal earlier in the game.
After collecting his trophy, Matthew thanked the title sponsor Dr Assem Allam for resurrecting the most celebrated tournament in squash.
Matthew said: “It’s great to have the British Open back on the calendar again and we owe a huge debt of gratitude to Dr Allem for making it happen.
“I am 32 in July and may not have too many more finals left, but Ramy has many more to come.
He is a genius and a magician with the racket but he made a lot of errors today. There is a fine margin with those shots and had they been a few millimetres higher they would have been winners.
“This was a brilliant tournament and I’m already looking forward to next year’s event in Hull.”
Ashour said: “Nick was really in the zone and was several steps ahead of me today in every department.
“I can’t be too downhearted because I have played well this week and am proud of what I did. There is a thin margin between success and failure at the top level and a lot of shots did not work for me today.
“I have been struggling a lot with injuries in the past year but I love this game and I consider squash one of God’s gifts.
“In the third game I did not want to give up and tried to get a grip on myself. The British Open is one of the most important titles in the world and although it was a painful lesson today you need to learn from your defeats.
“I am so glad that the British Open is back and stronger than ever.” Matthew’s historic triumph strengthens his hold on second place in the PSA rankings behind fellow Yorkshireman James Willstrop, who succumbed to Ashourss rampant racket skills in the best match of the tournament in the semi-finals.
Semi-finals:
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt [1] James Willstrop (ENG) 8-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-8
[3] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [6] Peter Barker (ENG) 11-5, 11-8, 11-6
Quarter-finals:
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) bt [7] Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) 11-4, 11-7, 11-9
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt [5] Amr Shabana (EGY) 11-8, 12-10, 5-11, 1-11, 11-4
[3] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [8] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) 4-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-5
[6] Peter Barker (ENG) bt [2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) 11-8, 2-11, 7-11, 11-9, 11-6
2nd round:
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) bt Alister Walker (BOT) 9-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-5
[7] Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) bt Adrian Grant (ENG) 12-10, 11-4, 11-8
[5] Amr Shabana (EGY) bt Olli Tuominen (FIN) 12-10, 11-4, 11-4
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Borja Golan (ESP) 7-11, 3-11, 11-9, 11-1, 11-6
[3] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt Tom Richards (ENG) 11-5, 8-11, 11-4, 11-6
[8] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) bt Stephen Coppinger (RSA) 12-10, 9-11, 11-2, 11-3
[6] Peter Barker (ENG) bt Saurav Ghosal (IND) 7-11, 11-2, 11-6, 11-6
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt [Q] Jonathan Kemp (ENG) 11-5, 11-8, 11-7
1st round:
[1] James Willstrop (ENG) bt Simon Rosner (GER) 11-3, 11-5, 11-7
Alister Walker (BOT) bt [Q] Chris Simpson (ENG) 11-7, 11-6, 11-7
Adrian Grant (ENG) bt Adrian Waller (ENG) 11-6, 11-8, 11-4
[7] Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY) bt [Q] Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) 11-7, 9-11, 11-7, 12-10
[5] Amr Shabana (EGY) bt Tarek Momen (EGY) 11-7, 7-11, 6-11, 11-3, 11-6
Olli Tuominen (FIN) bt Mohd Ali Anwar Reda (EGY) 11-6, 12-10, 11-6
Borja Golan (ESP) bt Cameron Pilley (AUS) 12-10, 12-10, 11-4
[4] Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt Daryl Selby (ENG) 8-11, 11-7, 11-5, 16-14
[3] Nick Matthew (ENG) bt [Q] Max Lee (HKG) 11-8, 11-4, 11-6
Tom Richards (ENG) bt Ong Beng Hee (MAS) 11-7, 10-12, 11-4, 11-4
Stephen Coppinger (RSA) bt [Q] Alan Clyne (SCO) 11-9, 11-13, 11-6, 11-3
[8] Laurens Jan Anjema (NED) bt [Q] Gregoire Marche (FRA) 11-2, 11-1, 11-5
[6] Peter Barker (ENG) bt [Q] Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) 11-3, 11-9, 11-9
Saurav Ghosal (IND) bt [Q] Marwan El Shorbagy (EGY) 11-7, 11-6, 11-5
[Q] Jonathan Kemp (ENG) bt Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL) 11-5, 11-6, 8-11, 9-11, 11-1
[2] Gregory Gaultier (FRA) bt Nicolas Mueller (SUI) 11-6, 11-4, 11-3
Qualifying finals:
Alan Clyne (SCO) bt Siddharth Suchde (IND) 11-6, 11-5, 11-7
Chris Simpson (ENG) bt Zac Alexander (AUS) 11-4, 11-7, 12-10
Jonathan Kemp (ENG) bt Robbie Temple (ENG) 11-8, 11-7, 13-11
Marwan El Shorbagy (EGY) bt Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) 13-11, 11-4, 9-11, 8-11, 11-9
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) bt Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (MAS) 11-13, 11-9, 8-11, 11-8, 12-10
Max Lee (HKG) bt Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) 5-11, 11-8, 11-5, 13-11
Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) bt Abdullah Al Muzayen (KUW) 5-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-7
Gregoire Marche (FRA) bt Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) 12-10, 9-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-8
1st qualifying round:
Alan Clyne (SCO) bt Mark Krajcsak (HUN) 7-11, 11-2, 11-2 ret.
Siddharth Suchde (IND) bt James Earles (ENG) 11-5, 11-6, 11-1
Chris Simpson (ENG) bt Olivier Pett (ENG) 11-7, 11-3, 11-1
Zac Alexander (AUS) bt Kamran Khan (MAS) 11-7, 11-8, 11-8
Robbie Temple (ENG) bt Chris Ryder (ENG) 12-10, 11-4, 11-4
Jonathan Kemp (ENG) bt Charles Sharpes (ENG) 11-7, 11-7, 11-6
Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) bt Matthew Karwalski (AUS) 11-13, 8-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-4
Marwan El Shorbagy (EGY) bt Kristian Frost Olesen (DEN) 11-9, 6-11, 11-9, 11-4
Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (MAS) bt Ivan Yuen (MAS) 10-12, 11-6, 11-2, 11-8
Mathieu Castagnet (FRA) bt Alex Phillips (ENG) 11-4, 11-2, 11-9
Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) bt Leo Au (HKG) 11-6, 11-6, 9-11, 12-10
Max Lee (HKG) bt Joey Barrington (ENG) 11-3, 11-9, 11-3
Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) bt Muhd Asyraf Azan (MAS) 11-7, 9-11, 11-6, 11-4
Abdullah Al Muzayen (KUW) bt Joe Lee (ENG) 11-2, 6-11, 10-12, 11-9, 11-8
Gregoire Marche (FRA) bt Eddie Charlton (ENG) 11-3, 11-8, 11-1
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) bt Ben Ford (ENG) 11-9, 11-8, 9-11, 11-0