Dubai: Egypt’s Mohammad Al Shorbagy declared himself back in love with squash after winning his first Professional Squash Association (PSA) World Series Finals at Dubai Opera on Saturday.
The 26-year-old world No. 3 overcame England’s James Willstrop 3-0 (12-10, 11-9, 11-8) to end a difficult season, where he struggled with the loss of his world No. 1 spot, which he had held for 28 months until March of this year.
“This season didn’t go the way I wanted it to go, I lost a lot of confidence and motivation,” he said. “But then a month ago I took a break to work out what I wanted to do with my life.
“I had been world No. 1 for 28 months and was physically and mentally exhausted. I felt like I didn’t want to play anymore and was drained. I started to lose and that affected me mentally.
“I said to myself that the reason I play is because I love winning and hate losing. I’m not born to go out in semis or quarters, I’m born to win finals.
“I would never have quit squash, but the reason I play this sport is because I love it and sometimes when you lose it turns into a job instead of a thing you love.
“I didn’t have the hunger and motivation I should have been playing with anymore and if you’re not enjoying it you don’t perform.
“I let a lot of people down but they all believed in me and never left my side and this reward today is not individual but for my team.”
El Shorbagy surrendered five match-winning balls to eventually beat Willstrop in the first set and then came from three points behind midway through the second. The man from Alexandria then pulled five points clear in the third but took four championship winning balls to finish the Englishman in what was a nail-bitingly close encounter, which the Egyptian went on to dub ‘the most emotional win of his career’.
“I didn’t play with my fighting spirit this season but this week I got it together again,” added Al Shorbagy, who topped his group with three straight wins over Willstrop 2-0, Ali Farag 2-1 and Gregory Gaultier 2-0 before coming from behind to beat Simon Rosner 2-1 in the semi-finals.
“I wanted to turn the worst season into the best and remember every loss and everything I’ve learnt to never let it happen again. I wouldn’t say it’s been good or bad, it’s just over, I’ve got out of that zone where I had no motivation or hunger and now I can’t wait for next season to start. I’ve already had my break and I’m ready to go again.”
