MUMBAI: World number two Gregory Gaultier of France crashed out in the first round of the $152,500 PSA Masters squash on Sunday, losing to Daryl Selby of England.
Gaultier, the top seed here after world number one Karim Darwish of Egypt withdrew with a back injury, failed to hold on to a 2-1 lead and went out in a five-game thriller that lasted an hour and 23 minutes.
The 11th-ranked Selby won 12-10, 1-11, 11-13, 11-6, 11-6 in the glass court erected on the lawns of the Bombay Gymkhana here.
This is my best win ever, said a delighted Selby. Greg is such an amazing player. When he gets confident, he gets on a roll.
I am sure he will say he was not 100 percent, but that is in his head. That s the weakest point in his game, as the squash he plays is close to perfection really.
I just tried to get in his head tonight.
Gaultier, who lost his temper frequently during the long match, walked off in a huff after the loss without speaking to reporters.
The 32-man tournament, featuring the world s top players, marks the return of the Masters on the Professional Squash Association calendar for the first time since 2006.
In another close match, 16th seed Ong Beng Hee of Malaysia overcame Joey Barrington of England 11-9, 10-12, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9 in an hour and 36 minutes.
Beng Hee trailed 1-2 before winning the last two games to advance to a second-round meeting with Frenchman Thierry Lincou.
Unbelievable match, I enjoyed it, said Beng Hee. It s a great feeling passing the first round of a platinum event, something I have not done in the past three events.
Joey put me under a lot of pressure today. I was very hungry to win, but I was too relaxed also at the same time.
Barrington said he played his best squash in the match. At 9-9 in the fifth game, it was a bit of a lottery really after such a long match, he said.
World number four Nick Matthew of England thrashed Renan Lavigne 11-9, 11-5, 11-7 to set up a second-round clash with compatriot Adrian Grant.
Grant fought back after losing the first game to Chris Ryder to win 6-11, 11-7, 11-3, 11-9.
Another Englishman to move up was eighth-seed Peter Barker, who brushed aside Julian Illingworth of the United States 11-4, 11-6, 11-4.
Lincou, seeded seventh, beat Olli Tuominen of Finland in four games – 11-3, 11-5, 10-12, 11-5. -AFP
