Mohamed puts the record straight about Asal

As we was walking to the bus to go straight to the Airport, Mohamed spoke with Fram about the match but also about Mostafa Asal and his relationship with the young Champion.

Mohamed

It’s the first time we played each other and we both played well at the same time. The two times he beat me, I didn’t play well. And the two times I beat him he didn’t play well.

So it’s the first time we actually had a crack at each other. And even during the match, because he gave me so much respect, so there was always someone soft in the match. We didn’t have a real go at each other.

Today, during the match I told him on there: It’s a FORKING WAR! Let’s have a go at each other, I’m done. Last time I was so soft because he was giving me so much respect in Houston, he beat me 3/0. So I told him “I don’t give a sh** about the respect you give me anymore, just have a f**** go at me, then I can have a f**** at you back basically!

I thought it was such a high quality match. I don’t give a sh** about all this movement thing. My mentality is find a f****g way and beat him. And that’s the mentality I learnt from the Greats of the Game like Nick [Matthew] and Greg [Gaultier] and Ramy and Shabana. This is how you deal with situations like these, not by going on interviews and f**** complain about it, and moan about it on social media.

I don’t agree about this. Today, we were two warriors on court. They had a go at each other, and the better player won! And I respect this. I have no problem with that.

All the players on court have their tricks. I know all the tricks of every single player I play against. He is young and he is going to learn, he is so much better in this event to be fair, he’s been playing so much better. You can’t expect him to be perfect all the time because none of us are.

It was a brutal match, in brutal conditions. I’m very proud with the way I delt with it from 2/0 down and came down to 2 all. I didn’t play a good 5th game. But this is the first time I’ll be able to watch the match and learn how to play him. But the other times, I didn’t play well enough to learn how to play him.

I’m going to do my studies now, go back and see why he was 2/0 up against me, why I came back to be 2/2, and why I had a very poor start in the 5th. I need to learn these things.

But let me tell you one thing: he is a f****g champ, the way he delt with it in that 5th game, that was not easy, and I KNOW from experience. I was once 22 years old playing the likes of Nick and Greg, playing the Greats of the game and to be able to deal with a 5th game, I used to go through those challenges with him, he did this with me today.

And this is not easy.

To have the ban, and try to come back and prove he is still one of the best, if not the best, it is not easy for him. Whether the ban was right or wrong, that’s not the discussion. The discussion is the way he is playing right now, only champs do this, and people need to give him credit for it.

And I’m going to give him credit for it. I don’t give a sh** about what everybody talks about. None of us are perfect, and all of us have our tricks. Let’s go back years ago and watch all the greats of the game with all the tricks on court they were using! I don’t want to mention names but there were so many players adulated by fans who used to do worse.

The difference, social media and TV weren’t around, that’s all.

He is going to learn, he is going to get better, the sport needs to teach him how to be better,  we need to teach him how to be better. I know they are trying to make him be better, he is proving he wants to get better in this tournament.

The better he is going to become the more dangerous he’ll be to play. This guy is going to become one of the greats of the game one day if he takes care of himself.

But enough talking about him, let’s talk about me, me, I need to go back and learn how to beat him!