Kempsell Beats Larkin in Mammoth Melbourne Matchup

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Douglas Kempsell overcame Joshua Larkin in a gruelling 149 minute encounter in the semi-final of the Greater Shepparton City Council International, PSA M5 event to move in to the showpiece finale – becoming the fifth longest professional squash match ever recorded in the process.

Larkin, the only remaining Australian left in the tournament, started well and took the opening game before Kempsell turned the match on its head with fantastic performances in the second and third games. Aiming to reach his third PSA World Tour final, Larkin battled back to level things up but, after an energy sapping fifth and final game that went all the way to a tie-break, Kempsell emerged victorious to bring an end to the mammoth match with a 6-11, 11-6, 11-6, 9-11, 13-11 scoreline.

The other semi-final tie saw Joshua Masters reach his maiden PSA World Tour final with a sumptuous performance against number one seed Jaymie Haycocks.

The all-English encounter was dominated by Masters throughout with the Maidstone-born World No.188 in fine fettle after dispatching third seed Joel Makin earlier on in the event. The 20-year-old secured a 11-7, 15-13, 11-5 triumph to move on to the final.

Results – Semi-Final: Greater Shepparton City Council International 2015
Joshua Masters (ENG) bt [1] Jaymie Haycocks (ENG) 3-0: 11-7, 15-13, 11-5 (35m)
[5] Douglas Kempsell (SCO) bt [4] Joshua Larkin (AUS) 3-2: 6-11, 11-6, 11-6, 9-11, 13-11 (149m)

Draw – Final
Joshua Masters (ENG) v [5] Douglas Kempsell (SCO)

The five longest matches ever recorded are:
2015: Leo Au (HKG) bt Shawn Delierre (CAN) 3-2: 11-6, 4-11, 11-6, 7-11, 16-14 [170m] (Gas City Pro-Am)
1983: Jahangir Khan (PAK) bt Gamal Awad (EGY) 3-1: 9-10, 9-5, 9-7, 9-2 [166m] (Chichester Festival)
2013: Shawn Delierre (CAN) bt Adrian Waller (ENG) 3-2: 11-13, 12-10, 14-12, 4-11, 14-12 [157m] (National Capital Open)
2008: Shawn Delierre (CAN) bt Shahier Razik (CAN) 3-2: 9-11, 8-11, 11-7, 13-11, 11-5 [150m] (Baltimore Cup)
2015: Douglas Kempsell (SCO) bt Joshua Larkin (AUS) 3-2: 6-11, 11-6, 11-6, 9-11, 13-11 [149m] (NSA Open)