Nicolas Mueller (SUI) 3-1 Abdulla Al-Tamimi (QAT) 11-7, 11-7, 2-11, 3-11, 11-5 (51m)
Another mystery in Abdulla’s head: He was so comfortable in games 3 and 4 to force a decider, and he seemed also very comfortable in the 5th, 5/2, but then he just had one of his tin streaks—9 in a row, I’m told. “He is playing the best squash of his life; matches are tough as he is at his highest ranking, just hard 50/50 matches,” said his coach Jonathon Power.
Nicolas : “It started really well in those first two games and I played exceptional squash. I saw he was a bit nervous, it was a good opportunity for both of us and we’re good friends obviously.
“I hit a massive wall in the second and he started to hit some good targets and got into my legs. I knew I needed to have a good start in the fifth and luckily I managed to do that and have a gap, which kept me going.
On playing without a coach, in contrast to Al Tamimi, Mueller said: “The thing is, I never listen to what the coach says so it probably doesn’t make a difference really! I think I know better anyway, which is probably stupid! For me it was fine, I was very focused for most of the match.”
