Simpson wins his battle with squash's 'Superman'
A CLASH with world No. 1 Mohamed Elshorbagy tomorrow is Chris Simpson's reward for overcoming the 'most improved player on tour' yesterday in the first round of the El Gouna International.
New Zealander Paul Coll, who has earned the nickname of Superman due to his on-court dives to make remarkable retrievals, gave the Sarnian a tough test in sweltering conditions in Egypt, but Simpson came through 13-11, 11-7, 11-6 in 60min. including a gruelling 26min. opening game.
'It felt more like the first game 60min., and the following game 26min.,' said Simpson.
'This morning, in practice, it was really cool, and the ball was really dead, so I thought it was going to be short rallies. But with all the people there, it was boiling hot and the ball was flying.
'In Zurich, we were discussing with the players, and we all agreed Paul is the most improved player this season. So he is so hungry for a breakthrough, and so am I. So you have two very hungry players on court. As it should be.
'People get on and on about the fact he gets everything back, but it's not just that ... he just doesn't give you anything.'
