R1: Ghosal 3-0 Khan, Bonmalais 3-0 Harrity, Kandra 3-0 Wall, ElSherbini 3-2 Salazar,
Saurav Ghosal, Sebastien Bonmalais and Raphael Kandra in three and a comeback from Mohamed ElSherbini …
Saurav Ghosal (Ind) 3-0 Faraz Khan (Usa) 11-9, 11-4, 11-4 (30m)
Sebastien Bonmalais (Fra) 3-0 Todd Harrity (Usa) 11-4, 12-10, 11-6 (44m)
Raphael Kandra (Ger) 3-0 Nick Wall (Eng) 11-4, 12-10, 11-3 (32m)
Mohamed ElSherbini (Egy) 3-2 Cesar Salazar (Mex) 11-13, 6-11, 11-3, 11-7, 11-3 (60m)
Sebastien Bonmalais (Fra) 3-0 Todd Harrity (Usa) 11-4, 12-10, 11-6 (44m)
Sébastien : A good start in the event I would say.
Rather happy with my performance. I was able to play with good intensity, good accuracy and I well quickly in the match as well.
The second game is crucial to cut any velleity he could have had to come back in the match. Happy with the way I handled the end of the game. It’s all positive, it’s a good result after a hard training.
Saurav Ghosal (Ind) 3-0 Faraz Khan (Usa) 11-9, 11-4, 11-4 (30m)
I hadn’t really watch him play much. He is very unpredictable, and I had never played him. And to be honest, I was not exactly understanding what was happening. But thankfully I won the first one, then relaxed a bit more, things were a bit better after that.
My form at the moment is the result of a lot of work in fact. There is also a big shift mentally, I am finally believing in what I can do, and that I can compete with whoever I’m playing. I kept repeating myself that but until I actually believed it, deep down, it was not sinking in.
In terms of recovery, most players keep saying it’s a much a mental state of mind than a physical state. I know that my game is good enough to handle whatever someone can throw at me.
It’s also how you handle the every day training, because what we do every day is not easy. I have to try and be better, and add different things to my game, even at that age, staying fresh, mentally motivated, keeping the enthusiasm up, then physically, things fall into place.
Of course you need to keep your body in good shape, but I can say that since I came to England, I took care of my body pretty well, I learned so much from James [Willstrop] he is the epitome of what you need to do to stay fit. Also, I have been training with the same fitness coach Damon Brown for what 10, 15 years. And he has to be thanked for putting me in that physical space.
As James keeps saying, things just don’t happen like that. You put in the work for a long time, and suddenly, one day, you feel that suddenly, it’s there. And for the past two years, I feel that I can play with who ever. I can produce some good quality of squash, but I need to be able to produce on a more consistent basis….
And that’s not easy to do. That what separates the Best from the Really Good…
