‘I’ve had 11 good seasons on Tour so I can forgive myself one bad one’
By ALAN THATCHER (Squash Mad Editor)
Marwan ElShorbagy spoke highly of his work with coach Rodney Martin after reaching the semi-finals of the U.S. Open by beating fellow Egyptian Youssef Soliman.
ElShorbagy, who meets top seed Ali Farag in the semi-finals in Philadelphia tomorrow, revealed: “Last season was really hard on me. Dealing with with it, I lost a lot of motivation, but I never gave up.
“I was still pushing myself in training, but I wasn’t really getting the results. I’ve been on the PSA for 12 years. I’ve had 11 good seasons so, one bad season, I’m sure I can forgive myself for that.”
Former world champion Martin also works with women’s world No.1 Nouran Gohar and ElShorbagy says that teaming up with the Australian legend, who was rated one of the most skilful players of his generation, has helped to revive his career.
Marwan, aged 29 and based in Bristol, added: “I’ve made a lot of changes, and started training with Rodney, which is to be honest one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life.
“I really enjoy working with him, his training is so intense but we get through the session with a smile on our faces always because we’re still enjoying it.
🗣"I've been on PSA for 12 years. I've had 11 good seasons and 1 bad season. I'm sure I can forgive myself for that"@maelshorbagy reflects on last season and what changes he's made to find better form on court ⬇️#USOpenSquash pic.twitter.com/Z8q274JSVq
— PSA World Tour (@PSAWorldTour) October 13, 2022
“He’s been great for me on and off court and I’m so grateful and thankful to get to know him as a person and I really am enjoying working with him.
“He understands the game so well, his tactics are always spot on and and I’m here to listen to him. He’s been there too and he’s been world champion so he knows a lot.”
ElShorbagy has a superior head-to-head record against Farag, winning eight of their 14 PSA encounters, but has lost his last two matches against the 30-year-old.
ElShorbagy is aiming to reach his first U.S. Open final after starting the season strongly and reaching two finals so far. He was runner-up to Victor Crouin in Nantes and lost to his brother Mohamed in the final of the Oracle NetSuite Open in San Francisco.
Mohamed, now representing England, plays world No.1 Paul Coll tonight in the bottom half of the U.S. Open draw.
World No.7 Joel Makin, from Wales, tackles No.4 seed Diego Elias from Peru, with the winner facing Mohamed or Kiwi Coll.
The quarter-finals of the U.S. Open continue today (October 13). All of the action will be shown live on SQUASHTV from 17:30 local time (GMT-4).
Last night’s action from the U.S. Open:
Husband and wife Ali Farag and Nour El Tayeb, winners in 2017, reach U.S. Open semi-finals: report
Pictures courtesy of PSA World Tour