PMI Bellevue Squash Classic

[bellevueclassic]

PressAlert, Bellevue Reporter: Gaultier wins coveted squash tournament in Bellevue

Gregory Gaultier (France) defeated Ali Farag (Egypt) 3-0 (12-10, 12-10, 11-8) in the championship match at the inaugural Pacific Market International Bellevue Squash Classic on Saturday.

[bellevueclassic]

Ten from the Final

View the full Finals Gallery

[bellevueclassic]

Ali needed one of the first two

[1] Gregory Gaultier (Fra) 3-0 [3] Ali Farag (Egy)  12-10, 12-10, 11-8 (52m)

 “I had a good feeling today” smiled a disappointed but always cheerful Ali after the final. And to be honest, I thought he would finally get Greg to bow.

Why? First because I saw that Greg was having to push extremely hard at the end of the third against James. I’m not saying he would have lost the match had he lost the third, but I felt he was really having to give it a big push. Also, because I feel that Ali is probably one of the most dangerous players for the new world number 1. Ali is absolutely in his comfort zone at the pace Greg loves to play. And not many players are.

And three, because the greatest strength of Ali on court is his ability to straighten any shot his opponent sends at him. And that what I felt was putting Greg under the most pressure. The game started with two nervous players, 5 tins in 6 points. Not a good start. But quickly, very quickly, the level of squash went up up up – please check that first game on squashTV, you’ll learn a bit about consistency, attacking and retrieving, a bit of a masterclass from both.

Gruelling rallies, nothing between the players between 3/3 and 7/7. Greg gets to next gear, 9/7. But out of the blue, Ali seems to take the advantage, he looks sharper and that much fresher, hungrier. 10/9. Is Greg finally going to lose a game in the event? Course not. He just gets into his “TightTight” mode and takes the game 12/10 in 19m.

Ali needed that one.

But no matter. The Egyptian attacks again patiently. Sharper than in the first game, he puts Greg under a lot of pressure. The Frenchman loses his length and width a bit, Ali is in control, 2/2, 5/2, 6/3, 9/5! Looking good. The crowd is supporting the US College boy, and it’s a 10/6 for Ali. Who suddenly has got a flat moment. As he says, not sure if it’s mental or physical, but flat he was. Suddenly, no straightening of the ball anymore, just crosscourt that open the court nicely for Greg to get into his TIGHTTIGHT more again. Greg didn’t do anything special. He just kept the ball deep and tight, and put the Egyptian under pressure. One ball out of court, 3 tins, and 2 winners later, Greg was walking off court with a 2/0 lead. The game lasted 15m.

From that point on,  Greg was on a roll. Of course Ali didn’t throw the towel. He fought every shot, every ball, and even took an early lead, 3/1, 5/3, 6/4, only to see Greg consistent immaculate length and determination allow him to come back to 6/6, 7/7. A superb slide along the tin at the point from the French got Ali to stop and bow, Greg gave him a quick embrace, for the pleasure of the crowd, loving that sportsmanship moment. 9/7, 11/8 with a backhand crosscourt that dies at the back, and it’s 6th titles in a row for Greg, 31 victories and.. the world number 1 ranking again, confirming his end of the season supremacy. As the Egyptians would say: Chapeau.

[bellevueclassic]

Final, They Said:

[1] Gregory Gaultier (Fra) 3-0 [3] Ali Farag (Egy)  12-10, 12-10, 11-8 (52m)

Greg

Yesterday, I had a big spasm in the right quad, and it really worried me. So this morning, I talking with my physios back home to see what I needed to do, I had extensive physio treatments with Orla and Martin, I did a lot of bike to drain the acid lactic as well. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to play today really.

In the second, I was not really tired, but just flat I think. I was trying not to think about the pain, not to stress about that spasm, and just focus on the squash, relax and not think too much. When I was down in that 2nd, I just thought about keeping my shots tight, and make him work and work and work, make sure I was keeping up with him, he is using the four walls, very tricky, until he cracked up really. I’m very happy with that.

Hard luck to Ali, two finals in a row, but he is getting closer and sharper, I can see it on court!  He raised the bar, had a very consistent end of season. Well done for reaching two finals in a row.

We had the chance to spend a little time together just before the tournament, we travelled together, and as I’m one of the oldest, if I can pass on some experience to those young kids, that’s really good….

I didn’t have any kind of rest between Grasshopper and here, but I was really keen to come back here, to see the Khan family again, we exchange a lot of texts and emails, but it’s always nice to come back here – I came here 5 or 6 times now – to catch up with the whole family, and also with Scott Lee, one of the sponsors, and a dear friend.

I am not going to say it was easy to keep fresh every day, I had to find a motivation every day but I did find it, and every day I was happy to come and play, I just forgot about being tired, about the little aches and pains, and just push myself on the day.

I came here to win. I guess I had more matches in the legs than most of the players, but I had confidence, my racquet and the head in the right place. That made the difference today.

I really need to thank the Khan family, and the sponsors, Rod Harris from PMI, Microsoft, and all the other sponsors for not only organising the Worlds 18 months ago, but also raising the prize money on this event. The players are extremely grateful, hopefully there will be more events soon, and we’ll be back very soon.

Also, I need to thank my family, and my team to whom I speak every day, and who devise sessions for me that allow me to keep fresh and healthy on court.  A big thank you to my sparring partners, in Aix and in Prague. And a huge thanks to SquashTV and Squashsite for covering the event of course.

And to finish, it was really nice to see Ramy back injury free, we hope he’ll be able to perform at his best in the coming season, and of course a huge thank you to my sponsors - in particular Hutkay.fit who came here to support me.

See you soon everybody

Ali

I had a good feeling today. You know, the minute I stepped off court at the Grasshopper final, I had a game plan, and I couldn’t wait to try it on court. I think I was unlucky in the first game, I was playing well, doing the right things, but I was not sharp enough. In the second, I was doing all the right things, but suddenly, I’m not sure what went first, the mind, or the body, which one that took the other one down. But that’s what happened. And that’s the moment he choose to get loose, and he played really well. To be fair, I never gave up, kept fighting in the 3rd, but he was too confident by then.

I want to thank the crowd for coming and supporting us all week. It's been a great atmosphere and without them it wouldn't have been the same so thank you very much for that.

Obviously I am disappointed today, but I'm happy with how I finished the season reaching two finals in a row.

A big thank you to Ramy and Haitham, they’ve been a big help this week, thanks Ramy today for advising me between the games too…

I would like to thank all of the organisers here, Shabana, Azam, Bobby, Latasha, Murad, everybody. I don't want to forget anybody because they did a terrific job to welcome us here.

I also want to thank the PSA and the referees, who always give you a hard time, we're sorry for this. And the one guy who holds the mic all the time, he doesn't get to be thanked, thank you very much for your efforts all week.

To the sponsors, PMI and Microsoft, they did a terrific job two years back and now they are continuing to do the same and hopefully there are many more to come.

[bellevueclassic]

PMI, our title sponsor

READ THE FULL STORY

[bellevueclassic]

SF: Gaultier v Willstrop Highlights

[bellevueclassic]

SF: Elshorbagy v Farag Highlights

[bellevueclassic]

FINAL PREVIEW: 

[bellevueclassic]

Bellevue EN BREF

An ever so discreet patron ...

READ THE FULL STORY

[bellevueclassic]

Ten from the Semis

Full semis gallery (150 photos)

[bellevueclassic]

Ali consistent, Marwan flat

[3] Ali Farag (Egy) 3-1 [2] Marwan ElShorbagy (Egy) 11-7, 11-4, 7-11, 11-5 (38m) 

It was going to be tough for Marwan to back his win against Ramy today. It’s the end of a long season, he is not at his best physically, and Ali was very hungry, probably hungrier than Marwan today.

Still, Marwan knows how to back it up, and Ali experienced it as he was beaten by Junior in Chicago the day after he beat Senior in a very emotional match!

So, weary and ready, Ali was. But from the start, Marwan was struggling, and it was obvious. He made a few uncharacteristic errors at the start, and Ali took full advantage of it. He made the rallies very intense, not that long, but seemed to read Marwan’s game rather well. A very close opener, great show for us, from 4/1 Ali, 4/4, 5/5, 6/6, 7/7.

The feeling on court was of respect and appreciation. Both saluting the other’s great shots, and smiles were frequent – for those who missed an episode, there is absolutely no hard feeling between the Shorbagies and Ali, and actually, Marwan coaches Ali on events…

Ali was on fire at the end of the game, Marwan extinct, and it’s 5 points from Ali to close the first game, 11/7 in 10m.

The second, Ali’s got the momentum, from 3/3, Marwan is off the game really, and it’s 11/4, still both doing a lot of work, 10m.

The third sees the first error from Ali – who hadn’t made a single one up to then, and makes all of the sudden 5! “I got tense” he admits. “I started focusing on what he was going to do instead of keeping to my own game.” At 7/3, Marwan seems to be in control, but Ali gives it a big push, will save 2 game balls to finally bow 11/7, 8m.

The 4th is close, Marwan believes he still got the resources to push for a 5th, but from 3/3, 4/4, it’s all about Ali being at the front, and Marwan making quick errors, 4 in 4 points to finish the match, 11/5 in 5 short minutes.

Ali:

Last time we played was in Chicago, and he just beat his brother for the first time. He backed it up very nicely!

Marwan had a great win yesterday against probably one of the best players in the history of squash. I know how much that takes out of you mentally and physically. Its very draining and you could tell today that he was a bit flat.

I'm not taking anything away from myself, I'm very happy with the way I played, but I just have to give him credit for such a good tournament and such a good season. He's such an unbelievable player.

I don’t think about my past matches. I try to put everything in the past behind me because whoever is best on the day is going to win. Today I had my strategy, I knew what I needed to do and I tried to stay in front of him as much as possible.

In  the third, I just tensed up. That’s something I realise I do recently, instead of focusing on my own game, I start worrying about what my opponent might do when down, and put unnecessary pressure on myself.

You don't really try to do anything different with every player, you just try to dominate the 'T' position as much as possible. Marwan is so good at doing this, so I'm so happy that I kept him behind me for most of the match. Even though he was that flat, at the end he showed how threatening he can be.

As for tomorrow, it's embarrassing because the head-to-head is 5-0 to Greg. I'm very happy to reach a second final back-to-back, it's one thing to be able to beat the top players, but to do it consistently is another, but I'm very happy to be there. Hopefully I can go a step further this time.

Marwan:

All credit to ali he played very, wish him all the best for his final tomorrow against Greg. 

I felt a bit flat today from the start, mentally I wasn't sharp enough I think. I tried to come back in the 4th but ali played well at the end

[bellevueclassic]

Greg still kills it in 3!!!!

[1] Gregory Gaultier (Fra) 3-0 [4] James Willstrop (Eng)  11-4, 11-5, 11-8 (42m)

It’s an incredible run for the Frenchman, 31 matches if you include the European Teams. When I was watching the first game, where Greg went 8/1, I was thinking that if James had played any other player, he probably would be 8/1 up. And that’s exactly what I thought while watching Tarek in the quarters. Both Tarek and James were playing incredible squash in the first game, and barely got any reward for it. James was pretty tired at the end of the first, three tins in a row to finish, 11/4 Greg in 13m. That’s a lot of time spent on court for 4 points… The second was tighter at the start, 1/1, 2/2, 3/3, 4/4, but again, Greg absorbing everything James was throwing at him, 8/4 with no fault from the Englishman. But like in the 1st game, a lot of squash in the legs of James (160m spent on court for 82 Greg) and it’s 3 tins to finish again, 11/5 in 11m. The third saw Greg attacking at will, and James digging in, not able to put much pressure on his opponent, but still sticking close score wise, from 2/2, 4/2, 5/3, then a bit gap, 8/3, 9/5. James not bowing, still alive – barely – and kicking at 6/10 match ball, saving two of those, only to finally put knee on the floor, 11/8, the longest game of the match, 16m.

James

He was too good tonight really. Maybe I could have got it away against another player, who knows, we were close at same point of the match, but he is forcing to stretch just a little bit more than anybody else, and after 200 shots, it starts to be very difficult! I didn’t feel too bad today, but when you have played 2 five setters, you are thinking how your body is going to hold up, if you are going to be able to keep going, and how long. Whereas when you are fresh, you just go for it and don’t think about it. But to be honest, two five setters or no two five setters, it would have been extremely tough tonight. You cannot beat him if you are not 100% there physically, but even if you are, it’s very difficult, and that’s why he is such on a great streak of wins. I was very pleased to reach the semis, I could have gone home on Wednesday! So there is a lot of positive to take away from it, and I gave it everything I had.

 Greg

 It's a big effort that James had. Especially in the first two matches, being down in the fifth, that's incredible, to forget about the score and play your best shots at the end is unbelievable, this is what makes him so special. He's got all that experience because at the end he came through those moments to win the matches and all credit to him to give me another tough battle.

 As you said, he spent twice as long as me on the court and he was still playing hard until the last point. He is one of the top players and he's fabulous to watch, his hands are like magic and he's so accurate. He's very dangerous, when he puts the ball that close to the tin it's so hard to reach the ball.

You have to play at quite a fast pace to disrupt his game. You can't give him time because otherwise he is the best.

I'm happy with my performances this season. It's a big mental exercise for me to push through with almost no recovery between tournaments because we have such a short time to go home, we only have a couple of days before we go again. You get your head into competition mode again and it's really tough, but that's what I train for and I spend all my time making sacrifices to play at that level.

 I'm exhausted because of the season, but I keep pushing through and trying to forget about my body. I try to enjoy the moment and even joke with the people and the refs, but it's just because I'm relaxed and I don't think about the points, the money or the rankings.

 Everybody is calculating the rankings, but I don't care at all, I'm 34 years old and I've achieved everything I wanted in life. I have a beautiful family, beautiful friends, so all I do is enjoy it and when I enjoy it my game is very fluid and I'm playing well.

 I hope we'll have a good match and especially hope that Marwan and Ali are going to tire themselves out so I can have a bit of an advantage. We'll see, they're both fantastic players, with these Egyptians they have a unique style and they are fabulous to watch. You're going to see two different styles, but I'm sure that they're going to put on a great show. Hopefully it's going to turn out to be a big battle and you guys are going to enjoy it.

[bellevueclassic]

QF: Elshorbagy v Ashour Highlights

[bellevueclassic]

QF: Willstrop v Golan Highlights

[bellevueclassic]

QF: Gaultier v Momen Highlights

[bellevueclassic]

Quarter-Finals Ten

[bellevueclassic]

Marwan finally gets his win

[2] Marwan ElShorbagy (Egy) 3-1 [5] Ramy Ashour (Egy) 11-8, 12-10, 5-11, 11-6 (39m)

It felt to me when the match started that neither of them wanted to play the other one. Marwan has got a very deep voice which means I think he is fighting a cold, and it’s the end of a very long season. As for Ramy, he caught a virus on the plane coming here, was barely able to move yesterday, wasn’t able to train today, and thought about pulling out. But he still went on court to try and play the Man of the Hour, Marwan who is squash wise in the best form of his life.

“I didn’t have a game plan” admitted Marwan to the MC at the end. “it showed” I mumbled. I couldn’t see a game plan from either of them. They just reacted to what the other one was doing – or not doing. First game was pretty close, short rallies, winners, strokes or tins really. 2/2, Marwan a couple of points ahead, then 6/6, 8/8, and Marwan pulls away with 3 successive winners, 11/8 in 9m.

Ramy, who told his ballfeeder/friend Haitham not to come at the interval, comes back on court positive, having chatted with himself for  a bit. 3/1 Ramy courtesy of 2 tins on the return of serve from Marwan

Marwan is back in the game quickly though, 3/3, 4/4, 5/5, 6/6. Ramy finds some lovely winners of his own, 9/6. Two great responses from Marwan, and a no let – confirmed by the video ref  that seemed a simple let from the position I was in, 9/9. 

Ramy gets a game ball, he goes to walk off court as he thinks Marwan’s shot, a crosscourt, is down. Marwan is adamant his shot is good. Ramy insists the sound was the sound of a down ball. The ref – after consulting the video replay, decides the ball is good. Marwan wins the next two points, very quickly, 12/10, the game lasted 12m. As he comes back on court, Marwan complains to the ref that Ramy is taking far too much space in the second game,”I’m watching” replies the Ref. Ramy is not commenting or reacting, only strings the points, 5/1, 6/2, 8/4, a few unforced errors from Marwan, Ramy seems in control, 11/5 in 6m, with a loud support from the crowd, all behind Ramy it seems.

At 3/3 in the 4th, it looks like we may go to the 5th, and the crowd is pushing for that. But at that point, Ramy complains that Marwan prevented his access to the ball - a backhand drop shot. The Ref warns Marwan to watch his movement off the ball, otherwise he would have to use code of conduct. But the decision is still“No let”. Ramy then starts talking to Marwan in Arabic. Marwan doesn’t engage, and keeps addressing the referee. Ramy keeps talking in Arabic, and Marwan still ignores him. Marwan wins the next 5 points very quickly. Finding his concentration back, Ramy starts to come back, 6/8, but Marwan is now full of confidence, his shots are going in nicely and he takes the match on his first attempt, 11/6 when Ramy tins his last shot.

 Marwan I was nervous today, it's quite hard to play Ramy because you don't know what to expect most times. I felt like I had no game plan and I was a bit annoyed with that, but it did work. Sometimes you have to keep digging in and that's what I did. I'm really happy with the win today, Ramy is a great player. The only time I beat him, he couldn't finish the match because he got injured.

 I'm really happy to win the match, but it was really hard for me today. I watched Ramy so many times when I was growing up so to get that first win against him means a lot to me.

I've been working really hard, I've got to number five in the world and a lot of things happen off the court. To be able to play my 14th tournament of the season and to stay on my feet and be healthy means a lot to me. I feel blessed to be here, so there's no pressure and I'm just enjoying it. I've got another tough match tomorrow against Ali.