Consistency is the Key for Marwan Ā Shorbagy
by Youni Ellous
World Championship runner-up Marwan ElShorbagy will return to the scene of one of his biggest ever victories on the PSA World Tour later this week when the Egyptian competes at the 2018 Windy City Open presented by the Walter Family & EquiTrust Life Insurance Company, PSA World Series tournament between February 22-28.
ElShorbagy reached his first ever World Series final at the 2017 installment of the Windy City Open, with one win in particular standing out ā his quarter-final triumph over older brother and then-World No.1 Mohamed, which proved to be one of the defining moments of the 2016/17 season.
Never before had Marwan taken more than a game against his sibling in seven previous meetings but, under the chandeliers of the University Club of Chicagoās Cathedral Hall, the 24-year-old defied expectations to take a huge win in four games ā leading to tearful scenes as the emotional weight of the result took its toll on both brothers.
āOf course it gave me a lot of confidence,ā said Marwan.
āPlaying my brother is always more difficult for me and to get that first win against him was really hard for me. I was very happy with the way I dealt with it emotionally until the end of the tournament and with how I backed it up the day after against Ali [Farag].ā
Marwanās win over Farag in the next round took him through to a maiden World Series final, where he eventually came unstuck against World No.1 Gregory Gaultier.
But that final proved to be something of a breakthrough for the Bristol-based Egyptian, who has won two PSA World Tour titles, reached the final of the PSA World Championships and reached a career-high World No.4 ranking, all in the past 12 months.
Marwan puts his rapid improvement down to an increase in consistency, saying: āI think I have been playing very well recently. I feel being inside the top four is making me more of a consistent player, which is something I have been working on lately on how to back up tournaments.
āIām just enjoying my time on court and hope to keep that form going.
āIām not putting any pressure on myself to win a first major [title], it will come at the right time for me. Right now, Iām just focused on being a better squash player every day.ā
Marwan will play Hong Kongās Leo Au in round one and is seeded to meet Farag in the semi-finals once again as he battles for a share of the $500,000 prize fund, which is split equally across both the menās and womenās draws and is a record amount for a PSA World Series tournament.
āI love going back to Chicago every year, itās one of my favourite events of the year,ā he said.
āI remember in 2011 I reached my first ever semi-finals at a World Series tournament and last year I reached my first ever final. It was a great tournament for me, and Iām so looking forward to coming back this year.ā
Source: Windy City Open















