Gutsy Coll goes down fighting
Kiwi squash ace Paul Coll has come up one match short of reaching the PSA World Squash Championship final.
Despite a gutsy comeback from Coll, as he threw his body all over the court, he has been beaten 3-1 in 51 minutes by Mohamed Elshorbagy in Chicago yesterday.
Elshorbagy, the former world No 1 who then regained that tag by beating Coll, took the opening game 11-5 and the second 11-3.
But Coll, the world No 4, found his rhythm to win the third 11-4 and save match points in the fourth before eventually going down 11-8.
The 29-year-old who hails from Greymouth, won through to the semifinals after a stunning come from behind victory in the quarterfinals over Karim Abdel Gawad the previous day.
Fellow Kiwi and reigning Commonwealth Games champion Joelle King wasn’t able to join Coll in the semifinals, beaten by second seed Nouran Gohar of Egypt.
Gohar won the match over King, who is ranked eighth in the world, by an 11-5 11-7 8-11 11-7 scoreline.
In a good battle, the Egyptian was able to win the vital points when it mattered.