Doha — For the third match in a row, Scotland’s Greg Lobban came back from the brink of defeat to win against last year’s Qatar Classic finalist Victor Crouin.
Having fought back twice at 0-1 and 1-2, world No.25 Lobban showed great maturity in his composure to outlast the calm-natured Crouin, as the Scot saved match balls at 10-8 in the fourth to take to a fifth and advance to his first top tier quarter-final.
“It feels amazing. I was match ball down in my first match and to be sitting here three days later in my first Platinum quarter-final feels crazy. I’m just happy it’s happened. I’ve been trying to reach the quarters for every year for the last twelve years.
“I’ve felt like I was (the) second best player in all three of the matches this week but I’ve managed to find a way through. It’s something I’ve struggled before. I struggle mentally when I’m not playing my best squash, but this time I’m fighting for every point and beliving I can find a way through. I think the first match (round) taught me that”, said a clearly elated Lobban.
Tinne Gillis made her second Platinum quarter-final of the calendar after she came from two games down to oust Kiwi Joelle King. Playing at her career high ranking of 10, the Belgian number two had to dig deep to overcome the loss of the first two games.
“It was frustrating not to have taken at least one of them first two games. But I’m just happy to have Gina (Kennedy) at my corner today to like, try to lift me up again even though I was 2-0 down. It’s always hard, extra hard mentally when you’re 2-0 down. I’m very proud that I managed to stay mentally focussed today”, Gillis said afterwards.
After a mammoth win over Paul Coll the previous day, Joel Makin had a relatively easier match today as he ended the run of Egyptian Mohamed El Sherbini and will now play Lobban.
Fellow Egyptian Salma Hany had a better day in the office, scoring a clinical win over Canada’s number one Hollie Naughton in three.
It was only yesterday when Nour El Sherbini was advising Rowan El Araby in her corner. Today is a different scenario as the pair locked horns for a place in the quarter-finals.
Paris Open champion Sherbini, a hot favourite here in Qatar took quite a while to get into the match, which cost her the opening game against good friend Araby. Both the former world junior champions were neck to neck, with Araby winning the important points in the end for the lead. But the next three games truly belonged to Sherbini as was in total control and never behind.
At the post-match interview, Sherbini said, “I didn’t have a lot of chance to play on this glass court, so I was a bit slow and perhaps not as focussed from the first point. I’m really, really glad that I regrouped and came back with a good game plan and stuck to it to in the next three games”.
In the Tarek Momen-Abdulla Al Tamimi match, the stands were filled, understandably. Tamimi is a celebrity here and has always played above himself on this court. Having said that, this is also the very court Momen had won his World Championships in 2019, and enroute to that, he had to stave off the challenge of Tamimi.
Momen did exactly the same thing today. Having gone two games up, the crowd fired Tamimi up and true to his superstar-stature, gave them lots to cheer for by taking the third game. But Momen was ready for the onslaught and halted the comeback to break local hearts.
“It wasn’t easy for sure. I knew this was going to be a tricky one. I obviously have been in this situation before a few years ago when we played in the World Championships. I always know he brings up the best in him when he plays here in front of the home crowd.
“I’m very happy with the way I played from the beginning of the match. I felt like I played really well throughout the whole match and with everything that was going on, I think I handled it pretty well”, said Momen, who next plays top seed Ali Farag.
Farag overcame a tricky encounter against the very talented Fares Dessouky in straight games in the last match of the day.
Just before that, Nele Gillis won in three against Nada Abbas to put two Gillis’ through to the quarters.