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TODAY at the Kuwait PSA Cup
Framboise reports, Steve clicks away
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Wed 13th, Semi-Finals
[1] Ramy Ashour (Egy)
3-0 [4] Grégory Gaultier (Fra)
11/8, 11/5, 11/2 (36m)
[3] James Willstrop (Eng)
3-0 [6] Mohamed El Shorbagy
(Egy)
11/5, 12/10, 11/8 (54m)
Ramy & James through in three
 Ramy
Ashour extended his unbeaten run to 35 matches with a
straight-game win over Grégory Gaultier in tonight's semi-final.
The world number one got the better of a tough first game
lasting 17 minutes, but from the outset of the second Gaultier's
level dropped.
A conduct stroke against the Frenchman early in the second for
throwing his racket in frustration didn't help, and Ashour
accelerated away to double his lead.
Gaultier barely competed in the third, serving a deliberate
fault at 2-10 and Ramy was in a Kuwait final for a fifth time.
"Yesterday’s match was definitely the hardest ever," said Ashour.
"Shabana is so smart, he plays every shot so cleverly, and I so
proud I was able to get out of his game. Today, I don’t think
that Greg was 100%, maybe something wrong with his legs."
 James
Willstrop also reached the final with a three-nil win, but
his match against Mohamed El Shorbagy, the young Egyptian who
beat Willstrop in the World Championship semi late last year,
was a much tougher affair.
Defending champion Willstrop won the first game reasonably
comfortably, even if he was having to do a lot of work
especially at the front of the court, but the next two games
were as tough as they come.
Willstrop needed to save a game ball before taking the second,
and was a couple of points behind midway through the third, but
powered through at the end of the game to clinch his place in
the final.
"Mohamed is in great form," admitted Willstrop, "so I needed to
bring out my A game and I did. It's great to be in another
Kuwait Cup final, it will be hard against Ramy who is in such
great form but I'll give everything to try to win another title
here."
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PSA Head 2
Heads
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[1] Ramy Ashour (Egy)
3-0 [4] Grégory Gaultier (Fra)
11/8, 11/5, 11/2 (36m)
RAMY IS AN ALIEN, GREG ON ONE FOOT…
Squash is a pool for amazing people. To start with, Greg, who
managed to get in the semis of a major tournament on one foot –
he rolled his ankle on Nick’s foot in Richmond and has been
unhappy with his movement, not being able to push off his foot
properly, not able to train properly since then, so reaching the
semis is quite an achievement.
 And
of course Ramy, bless him, squashed out in the second round and
quarters, looking yesterday like playing squash was for him as
fun as having a root canal without injection. And today,
‘gazelle-ing” away from the first minute on court, bouncing up
and down, like a kid in a bouncy castle.
In Greg’s game, one can know immediately if he feels confident
with his movement, because when he does, he keeps the errors to
a minimum, one or two per game in average. In the first game, he
did 4, 4 in the second, 4 in the 3rd, well, in the first rallies
of the third, as he basically stopped playing very early in that
final game.
The first game was the most disputed, 17m and some superb
rallies, an excellent start from Greg, 4/0, Ramy catches up 4/4,
6/6, and Ramy starts taking a lead that he won’t lose, game ball
10/7, game 11/8.
Frustration started quickly for Greg in the second, he just
couldn’t push off at all. “When you play against such a champion
as Ramy, and you can’t pick up two boasts in a row, it drives
you nuts,” Greg told me after the match. And it showed.
Gradually losing his focus, he even had a go at the crowd that
was – probably not cleverly – clapping enthusiastically each of
Greg's tins, with two loud “SHUT UP”!
Ramy led 8/2 to take the second game 11/5 in 8m and Greg just
didn’t show up in the third at all, 11/2, even sending the ball
out of court on his last serve at 2/10…
 "Yesterday’s
match was definitely the hardest ever. Shabana is so smart, he
plays every shot so cleverly, and I so proud I was able to get
out of his game.
"Today, I don’t think that Greg was 100%, maybe something wrong
with his legs.
"I grew up with the Al Arham tournament, watching legends like
Peter Nicol, Anthony Hill, Simon Parke, I’m sorry I missed JK,
but I’m now watching him on Ytube, and that’s why I started
playing squash. I picked things from each player, and then I
came up with my own style…"
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[3] James Willstrop (Eng)
3-0 [6] Mohamed El Shorbagy
(Egy)
11/5, 12/10, 11/8 (54m)
JAMES, MAGISTERIAL AND SCINTILLATING…
 I’ve
seen James’ game evolving for years – I met him first in 2004.
I’ve seen him playing some extraordinary performance – against
Nick and Ramy in particular, or John White, or David Palmer.
I’ve seen get to number 2 very young, then stagnating a bit
ranking wise, then reach the top spot. And I saw the pressure
getting to him a bit, especially in Qatar, when everybody was
expecting him to take that elusive World Champs title.
His match against Mohamed will stay a classic in my mind, with
Mohamed managed to twisting and turning Dig In James for an
amazing 5 setter. Tactically, James said he didn’t play the
right tactic. And he is probably right. Needless to say that
today, James was waiting for his challenger with a bazooka
hidden in his Prince racquet. Baouuuuum, it went from the first
rally.
 Cubs
told me as we headed to our computers that he never taken so
many shots of James going for shots to the front. Perfect
analysis, Cubs. Mohamed didn’t do anything wrong, I mean, he
really didn’t put a foot wrong, he was not given any say in the
first game at all. It was James’ show, keeping the World
Vice-Champion on a string for the whole game. It was a
Masterclass, it was squash at its best, clever, accurate, length
perfect, drop shots idem, one foot of course, with James leading
4/0 then 9/2 before Mohamed’s pride pushed him to get a few
points, 11/5.
A festival. Fireworks. Magnifique.
All credit to Mohamed, boy did he pushed and really put James
through the mill in the second. He picked up the pace
dramatically, losing a bit of accuracy in the process (5 tins,
against 3 for James), leading 8/5 and looking good. But James
strung the points back to come back to 8/8, 9/9. Ridiculous
rallies one after the other, both sending the other one visiting
the corners back and forth. It was a gem of a match, very very
very few calls, fair game, good circulation, a joy for the eyes.
 Mohamed
– to the upmost delight of the crowd – sets up a game ball,
10/9, but it’s James’ show tonight, and with another three
amazing rallies, it’s the Englishman that closes it out 12/10 in
23 long minutes.
Again, all credit to the double world junior champion, he
doesn’t say die, changing his tactic by slowing down the pace
and he is still well in contention, 1/1, 2/2, 4/4, 5/, 6/6, 7/8,
fighting till death on each and every rally/point. But it is now
obvious there is only going to be one winner. James is just
flowing, flying, dominating, with the same panache he had in the
first game. And with a 11/8 in the third, James washes the
affront he suffered in Qatar.
As we say in French, he put the clocks back at the right time…
 I
had to be at the top of my game today. He’s been at a top 5, top
4 level for a while, and his performance at the World Champs was
pretty special. So tonight, I had to bring out the A game,
weather the storm, and play accurate squash to get in another KW
final.
I guess people remember our match from the Worlds, but for me,
it was just about the result, another semi final like any other.
Now, of course I was not happy to lose in Qatar, so I guess I
wanted a revenge.
 What
is the difference in my performance then, and today? Well, I
guess that today, I was more…. attuned. And in Qatar, it’s not
that I played badly, but it’s just that I played more high
shots, weak ball, and he took advantage of it, he is too good
with a racquet, and made me do a lot more work then.
Plus, the conditions were different, then I was world number 1,
expected to win the Worlds, and he was coming up, up for it, and
no pressure. This time, I’m not world number 1 anymore, and he
is suddenly expected to do something special, expected to win,
the pressure suddenly being on him, not on me.
Now playing Ramy tomorrow, of course a different tactic. Each
player is pretty different, unique. Last time I played him I
said at the time I quite couldn’t break the wall, so tomorrow it
will have to be different, as he is as unique as it gets.
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feel like he made me run and run and run in the first game, I
was not accurate enough, and I made too many errors.
At 8/5 in the 2nd, I really got tired, and I was really
disappointed to be tired at that stage of the match. I speeded
up the pace in the second, because I thought that my body would
hold it, but it didn’t. I know I had a few hard games before,
but still I was disappointed not to last.
So in the third, I slowed the pace right down, which I think was
the best tactic. So I guess it’s a bit of a lack of experience,
doubled with the fact he was so accurate, in great form on this
tournament, and all credit to him.
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