QTerminals Qatar Classic Semi-Finals: Player Reaction

The semi-finals of the QTerminals Qatar Classic take place today, with action beginning at 17:00 (GMT+3) at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, with the last four aiming to reach the finals in Doha.

Just one of the top four seeds has made it through to the last four, with World No.3 Mostafa Asal now the highest-ranked player left in the Platinum level tournament. He will face England’s Mohamed ElShorbagy, a three-time winner in Doha, while 2019 World Champion Tarek Momen will take on Frenchman Victor Crouin, who is playing in his first Platinum-level semi-final.

We’ll be bringing the results and player reactions as they happen right here, while you can catch all the action live on SQUASHTV. You can also keep up with the live scores from the event here.

Here’s the Order of Play
(All times are local – GMT+3)

Crouin Produces Another Shock to Reach First Platinum Final

World No.18 Victor Crouin produced another incredible performance as he shocked No.6 seed Tarek Momen to reach his first ever Platinum-level final. 

Crouin, who last night reached his first Platinum-level semi-final by knocking out Qatar’s Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi in straight games, looked confident from the beginning as he made an aggressive start.

This was countered well by Momen, who enjoys playing on the Doha court and won the 2019 World Championship here, with the 34-year-old exposing Crouin’s movement and capitalising on a spell of poor shot selection from the Frenchman to open up an 8-5 lead.

Crouin, however, then rediscovered the tidy, organised squash that took him to this stage and pulled back to 8-8 before taking the first game with a terrific winner.

The 23-year-old maintained this momentum in the second game and stormed into an 8-4 lead. Momen began to fight back and narrowed the gap to just one point at 8-7, before the outstanding Crouin pulled away to take a 2-0 lead with an 11-7 win.

At 2-0 up and leading 3-0 in the third, Crouin appeared to be cruising into a maiden Platinum final.

Momen, however, is no stranger to overcoming adversity. The Egyptian, who twice came from behind on his way to the final here in 2019, fought back well after returning from an injury break at 4-2 down and rattled off eight quick points to move 10-4 up.

Crouin saved one game ball, but could not prevent the energised Momen wedging a foot in the door as the No.6 seed wrapped up an 11-5 win that only minutes ago seemed extremely unlikely.

After Crouin requested a new ball for game for game four, the Frenchman looked back to his best and went 8-4 up, with the 23-year-old reaping rewards from his precise volleys at the front.

Crouin then had a golden opportunity to reach his first Platinum final when he had four match balls at 10-6 up. Incredibly, Momen saved all four, with the Egyptian forcing a tie break after showing brilliant movement and mental fortitude.

The World No.18, however, marshalled his nerves excellently and went 11-10 up after an enthralling rally before sealing the match with a bitterly contested ‘no let’ decision by the video referee.

Afterwards, he said: “There have been too many speeches this week! I’m not used to speaking so much. It feels like everything’s fitting into place. On court, today I felt like I wasn’t as good as in previous days and I hit the tin a little more, but that’s probably because Tarek was putting a lot of pressure on me. I kept telling myself to be proactive and aggressive, because that’s how you win rallies. I’m just enjoying it on court. Not overthinking, just hitting my targets and it’s working. One more push tomorrow.

“[The lob] is a shot I’ve naturally played since I started playing squash. On this court it’s very effective because the ball doesn’t bounce in the back corners and I can recover and give myself time to collect my thoughts for the next shot. It’s a shot that’s working well and I’m using it as much as I can.

“Thank you so much for coming. It’s nice to have the support, even if most people are cheering for the Egyptians! It’s nice to have a few voices.” 

Result

Victor Crouin (FRA) bt [6] Tarek Momen (EGY) 3-1: 11-9, 11-7, 5-11, 12-10 (68m)

Excellent ElShorbagy Comeback Sinks No.3 Seed Asal

In the second semi-final, an excellent Mohamed ElShorbagy came from behind to beat No.3 seed Mostafa Asal.

While Asal had spoken ahead of match about his respect for No.5 seed ElShorbagy, who he describes as being ‘his idol’, the World No.3 didn’t let any reverence for the three-time winner dilute his attacking instincts in the opening exchange.

Game one showcased the best of Asal, with the 21-year-old playing fast-paced but controlled squash that was too much for the Englishman – who departed from his quarter-final tactic of slowing the game down by trying to match Asal blow-for-blow – to handle.

After taking the opening game 11-3 in just eight minutes, Asal started well again in the second game.

ElShorbagy, however, looked more measured as he dropped the tempo, and the pair traded the lead through longer rallies on the way to 6-6. At 7-6 down, former World No.1 ElShorbagy’s experience came to the fore, as the 31-year-old remained patient while Asal began to rush, with the 31-year-old levelling the match with five unanswered points to take game two 11-7 in 23 minutes.

ElShorbagy was on top form in the third game, while Asal struggled for accuracy at the front of the court.

Time and again ElShorbagy punished heavy touches from Asal, with ‘the Beast’ putting together another brutal scoring run to move from 3-1 down to 8-3 up on his way to a comfortable 11-4 victory.

ElShorbagy continued to look strong in the fourth game, while Asal’s struggles with the racket resumed. Despite Asal’s desperate best efforts, ElShorbagy was able to keep out of reach throughout, eventually wrapping up a relatively comfortable victory with another 11-7 win.

Speaking after the match, ElShorbagy said: “I don’t think Asal gets the credit he deserves. He’s only 21 years old. He played Ali [Farag, World No.1] and Paul [Coll, World No.2] in the last two tournaments of the year, who were the best in the world and he played them back-to-back and dropped just one game.

“For me, he’s the current best player in the world. When I came on court today, [coach Gregory Gaultier and I] trained to be up against the best of the best. I don’t think people realise how much pressure he had once Ali and Paul were out. To be the highest seed at a Platinum event, there’s so much pressure on him. I went through the same thing he did so I knew everything he was going through. Once I was down in the first game, I had to give a ‘Nick Matthew performance’ – make the second game as tough as possible as that’s exactly what he would have done. I felt at 7-7 he had the lapse of concentration and then in the third and fourth I always had the advantage.

“I’m very happy and very pleased to win.”

On his final against Victor Crouin. “It’s different generations [of French talent]. A few years ago I was playing Thierry Lincou, who was 12 years older than me and tomorrow I’m playing Crouin who’s eight years younger! I’m very proud to compete against generations and test myself again with them. The first time we ever played was in the World Championship in 2019 and after I won I told my team ‘this guy’s going to be a danger one day.’ It doesn’t surprise me what he’s been doing this week. He had everything in his game and is such a nice guy. I’m really happy for him. I think France, after Gaultier, needed a superstar and they have one now and need to take care of him because he’s going to be here for a long time.

“Thanks to everyone who came to watch today!”

Result

[5] Mohamed ElShorbagy (ENG) bt [3] Mostafa Asal (EGY) 3-1: 3-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-7 (60m)