Squash: Heartbreak for Matthew as he loses City Open final

The Sheffield star, competing in his 70th PSA World Tour final of his career, lost 3-1 to 23-year-old Egyptian Ali Farag yesterday.

In a gruelling 50-minute battle, Matthew was edged out 11-7, 5-11, 11-6, 11-7 by the world No 23.

It completed a hat-trick of impressive wins for Farag, who saw off Mohamed Elshorbagy and Mathieu Castagnet in the last eight and semi-finals of the tournament respectively.

Matthew, a three-time world champion, said: “He was on a roll. The crowd was feeding on him. The last few points was the first time I felt tired all week. Credit to him for getting me to that point.”

Farag described it as the “best week” of his fledgling career.

“I’ve showed myself that I can compete with these guys and have the mental toughness to do it three days in a row,” he said. “Hopefully this is going to be the beginning of a good future for me.

“If you ask any player, they would tell you that this is one of the best tournaments on tour.”