Thu 2nd Nov – Semi-Finals
Elshorbagy and Momen set up all-Egyptian final
Mohamed Elshorbagy reached a remarkable sixth Qatar – and a sixth PSA – final in a row as he beat top seed and world #1 Gregory Gaultier in straight games in a repeat of their 2015 final here.
The first two games could have gone either way, but having edged both of them to take a decisive lead, Elshorbagy romped through the third with Gaultier clearly hampered in his movement.
“Yesterday I had a tough match, and of course I was tired today,” said Elshorbagy. “But if I want to be back where I belong at the top spot, I have to accept everything. I feel like I’m better every tournament and every match.”
Gaultier reflected: “I gave everything I could today, but I could see how far off I was. I cannot expect playing as well as I did three months ago.”
Elshorbagy will meet Tarek Momen in an all-Egyptian final after the eighth seed beat Simon Rosner in straight games.
With both players looking to reach their first World Series final, it was Momen who dominated, taking a good lead in each of the games, and although Rosner closed the gap in the first two, there was no stopping Momen today.
“It’s my first ever World Series finals, It’s been long over due, “said a delighted Momen.
“I think I prepared well today. I really wanted to win, I saw the opportunity and wanted to make the most of it – and you cannot under estimate the effect of the crowd. And as I told them in Arabic, they are the reason why I’m in the final today.”
lots of updates on our “NOW in Doha“ twitter feed, plus match reports and more on the Qatar Classic BLOG
[3] Mohamed Elshorbagy (Egy) 3-0 [1] Gregory Gaultier (Fra) 14/12, 11/9, 11/1 (55m)
[8] Tarek Momen (Egy) 3-0 Simon Rosner (Ger) 11/9, 11/5, 11/7 (40m)
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