World No.5 Mazen Hesham produced a scintillating spell of attacking squash to overcome defending champion Paul Coll in five games and advance to the semi-finals of the Comcast Business US Open Championships 2024.
Hesham, who had previously never beaten Coll from eight attempts on the PSA Tour, fought back from one game down, 8-1 down in the second, to eventually advance by a 5-11, 11-9, 2-11, 11-5, 11-4 scoreline at the Arlen Specter US Squash Center in Philadelphia.
As was the case in his second-round match against Joel Makin, Hesham was slow out of the blocks, with the first game-and-a-half of play being dominated by World No.3 Coll.
However, as has become custom in recent years, Hesham managed to ignite his attacking game in a flash, with his deception down the backhand wing, in particular, troubling the movement and rhythm of Coll.
‘The Black Falcon’ came from 8-1 down to pinch the second game from Coll’s grasp, before once again stealing the momentum of the match to power his way back from 2-1 down and progress to the semi-finals in Philadelphia.
“You have so many semi-finals and finals ruined because somebody had 2-3 hard matches early in the tournament… we need more rest days!” 🤔
Do you agree with the @Thesquashfalcon? 💬
Hear the Egyptian’s full U.S. Open QF post-match interview 👇#USOpenSquash pic.twitter.com/XNMoIEBqs3
— PSA Squash Tour (@PSASquashTour) October 24, 2024
After the match, Hesham said: “Paul was doing really well in the first two games. I didn’t do much wrong; I just had to tell myself that I needed to get him away from the ‘T’ and just try to push him a little bit into the back corners.
“I had to hang in there in the second and just try to get more rallies in. As soon as I got like four or five points, I thought I was in it again and just tried to push him and test him mentally. I think I did that really well for the rest of the match.”
World No.1 Ali Farag awaits Hesham in the semi-finals of the PSA Squash Tour Platinum event after the Egyptian came through a stern examination from Youssef Ibrahim to advance in four games.
Farag, the runner-up at the 2023 U.S. Open, was forced to display his very best defensive skills to withhold the attacking threats of Ibrahim, notably fighting back from two game balls down in the fourth game to seal victory on the all-glass court inside the Arlen Specter US Squash Center.
Meanwhile, in the women’s event, American No.1 Olivia Weaver progressed to her second consecutive semi-final at the U.S. Open Championships after defeating rising star Fayrouz Aboelkheir in four games.
The World No.4 was the only American player left in the draw going into the quarter-finals, but faced a tricky test in the form of 18-year-old Aboelkheir, who had upset Georgina Kennedy in round one.
After losing a tight opening game 11-8, Weaver drew on the home crowd to great effect, finding her targets more effectively and clinching a tight second game 11-9 to draw level.
From there, the momentum of the match continued to move in Weaver’s favour, with the No.4 seed moving away in the mid-phases of the subsequent two games to advance to the semi-finals in her home town of Philadelphia.
After the match, she said: “It’s not the ideal start time when you get on late, but this is part of the job, you have to be flexible, you have to be ready to go whenever.
“I was disappointed not to sneak out that first game but I was happy with how I didn’t panic and I just went back to my game plan. I just tried to find my targets on the court, which I don’t think were great in the first game.
“If you leave anything in the middle, she’s going to put it away, so I really just wanted to shut the court down, and I’m happy with how I adapted throughout the match.”
World No.1 Nour El Sherbini will be Weaver’s opponent in the last four after the defending champion held off No.8 seed Rowan Elaraby in a challenging five-game duel.
In a see-saw match that saw momentum switch hands on numerous occasions, it was El Sherbini who managed to eventually stretch her winning run over Elaraby to nine matches, taking the encounter by a 9-11, 11-1, 11-2, 11-13, 11-8 scoreline.
Results: Men’s Quarter Finals – U.S. Open Championships 2024
[1] Ali Farag (EGY) bt Youssef Ibrahim (EGY) 3-1: 11-7, 9-11, 11-7, 12-10 (59m)
[5] Mazen Hesham (EGY) bt [3] Paul Coll (NZL) 3-2: 5-11, 11-9, 2-11, 11-5, 11-4 (64m)
Results: Women’s Quarter Finals – U.S. Open Championships 2024
[1] Nour ElSherbini (EGY) bt [8] Rowan Elaraby (EGY) 3-2: 9-11, 11-1, 11-2, 11-13, 11-8 (60m)
[4] Olivia Weaver (USA) bt Fayrouz Aboelkheir (EGY) 3-1: 8-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-5 (42m)
Draw: Men’s Quarter Finals (Bottom Half: To Be Played October 24)
[4] Diego Elias (PER) v [8] Mohamed ElShorbagy (ENG)
Aly Abou Eleinen (EGY) v [2] Mostafa Asal (EGY)
Draw: Women’s Quarter Finals (Bottom Half: To Be Played October 24)
[3] Hania El Hammamy (EGY) v [7] Tinne Gilis (BEL)
[5] Nele Coll (BEL) v [2] Nouran Gohar (EGY)