Paul Coll is through to the final of the Australian Squash Open in Brisbane after a four game win over third seed Marwan ElShorbagy of England.
The first game was a mammoth encounter, with both players covering the court in a 31-minute battle that tested their fitness to the limit.
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ElShorbagy made a great start to the first game, controlling the majority of the rallies. Despite leading for virtually the entirety of the opener and having two game balls at 10-8, ElShorbagy then had to face a game ball from Coll, who edged ahead for the first time with an 11-10 lead.
The Englishman dug in, fighting his way through a testing rally to save the game ball before converting his third at 12-11 to take the first game.
Top seed Coll had the better of most of the second game, repeatedly firing past ElShorbagy’s aggressive court positioning to level 11-6.
After the intense efforts of the opening exchanges, ElShorbagy fought hard, but struggled with his footing and complained furiously about the court conditions as he exited the court after Coll took game two 11-6.
The Englishman was conservative with his movement in game four, unwilling to risk lunges. Coll, meanwhile, dealt with the conditions better, and closed out the encounter 11-13, 11-6, 11-6, 11-7 in 75 minutes.
“It was tricky conditions, the court got drippy and hard to move. I was a bit edgy taking off from the T and he takes it in so well," said Coll.
“The atmosphere was awesome and I’m happy with how I stayed calm in the hot, tricky conditions and am looking forward to another final tomorrow."
Standing between Coll and a second title in a week is fellow former No.1 and 2016 world champion Karim Abdel Gawad,
The Egyptian battled through an uneven performance to record a 3-1 victory over Frenchman Auguste Dussourd.