[9/16] Mohamed Abouelghar 3-0 Adrian Waller (Eng) 11-4, 11-3, 11-6 (27m)
[7] Mostafa Asal 3-0 [9/16] Youssef Soliman 13-11, 11-8, 2-1 retired (52m)
[3] Tarek Momen 3-0 Tom Richards (Eng) 13-11, 13-11, 11-5 (29m)
Tarek:
“I honestly didn’t know what to expect, but I knew Tom is capable of giving me a hard time on court. He did today, he played really well. I can’t say I’m really happy with my performance today, I’m not so please with it, but I’m happy I got through in three games.
“I remember in the last 16 of the Worlds, I almost got knocked out by Abdulla Al Tamimi. It wasn’t a smooth ride to the final, but I felt like we were a bit unlucky with the ball today, we played with the worst ball that was ever made. We both had to deal with it and he managed to adapt a bit better, but towards the end of each game I managed to close it out.
“It was bouncing funny and I felt it was very difficult to pick it up from the back corners and even from the front. It wasn’t because the court was too cold because it was cold from the very beginning and I am used to these conditions. Sometimes you get the unlucky ball in the box that bounces funny, and I think that’s the reason it was a bit scrappy today.
“Both of us were playing really short rallies with no structure or rhythm. It was down to who could close it out and I’m just happy I managed to close out the first two.
“I’m expecting a tough one. Two weeks ago, I had the right tactics and I was just a bit unlucky not being able to close it out in the end. I’m hoping to repeat my performance again and I’ll try to get through this time and get the win.”
Mostafa
“I’m very disappointed to win like that. It happened to me against Ali but it was like 9-5 and the game was going to end. I know the feeling when you can’t compete, and he was struggling from the beginning. He’s my partner at the Al Ahly club and I hope it’s not serious and he will recover very well.
“Youssef is a very tough opponent and we all like playing really great battles. I wish him a very speedy recovery.
“I was very disappointed last year that I didn’t come to Qatar. It’s very enjoyable and the way they treat the players is top. I’d like to thank everyone who is behind this tournament and also this amazing crowd which is always supportive of squash.”
Abou
“I’ve been trying to get my performance back and have been fighting to stay consistent and hit my targets the whole match. I’m happy with how I did it today. I was consistent until the end even though I had a little bit of a lack of focus at the beginning of the third game. I managed to get it back though and I’m very happy with that performance.
“The ranking is the best picture of how a player is playing. If you look at the top 10, they all deserve their places, and when I dropped out of the top 10 it was because I wasn’t good enough. I had to accept it and work.
“Now I feel like I’m back again and ready to break back through again, give them a hard time and hopefully get the wins. I’ve been struggling a lot to finish off 3-2s, which could have helped me with my ranking. But there is no looking back and I’m looking forward to what is ahead of me.”
Mazen Hesham 3-2 Youssef Ibrahim 9-11, 11-4, 11-13, 11-6, 11-8 (61m)
Raphael Kandra (GER) 3-2 [4] Marwan ElShorbagy 12-14, 11-3, 10-12, 11-5, 11-7 (58m)
Mazen said
“It required everything in the tank.
“I was surprised with how well I was moving and playing. Fingers crossed, touch wood, I don’t want to jinx anything, I’ve been injured for so many years and I’m really happy to be playing squash again and doing what I love, the way I love it.
“When I heard I was No.13 [in the world] last month, I woke up and thought that I didn’t want to be 13 again in my life, it’s a really bad number for me. Every time I hear about it or see it in elevators, I want to stay away from this number, so I’m trying my best to up there or down there, I don’t want to be at 13 again.
“I can’t believe it’s six years ago [Hesham reached his first major semi final at the Qatar Classic]. I was on the edge of quitting a few times, so I’m very thankful to Allah, of course, and my team.”