Coll beats Asal for biggest title since 2023
- Dave Worsley
- Oct 5
- 2 min read
New Zealand's Paul Coll has won his first major PSA title in almost two with victory at the PSA Platinum Qatar Classic in Doha.
Coll entered the match against No 1 ranked Mostafa Asal having lost his previous six matches against the Egyptian.
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However, a tidy performance from the 33-year-old saw him finally get his hands on a title at the Khalifa International Tennis & Squash Complex, winning 11-9, 6-11, 11-8, 11-5.
It’s been a roller coaster season so far for Coll, who began with victory at the London Classic before suffering a huge upset when he lost to World No.252 Adam Hawal at the CIB Egyptian Open last month.
However, he bounced back in the best possible way, turning recent history against Asal on its head.
Coll put on a measured display which saw him get up the court and hunt the volley, trapping Asal behind to stop him from putting in one of his trademark powerhouse performances up front.
Asal threatened a shift in momentum after winning the second game, but Coll’s accuracy and court craft were near perfect as he pulled away to secure his 30th PSA title.
“I was on top of the world in London and then probably one of the darkest I’ve ever been after [the loss to Hawal],” said Coll.
“I went back home and punished myself. I went back to my roots and did court sprints, a lot of work went into this and I’m absolutely stoked.
“I told myself to stay in front of the ’T’, not behind it, because I knew he was going short. I had to get up the court and had to counter everything. If he went ahead of me he could spark up, so I wasn’t switching off.
“It felt uncomfortable, I said to Rob [Owen, Coll’s coach] that I get stuck down the backhand side and I can’t inject any pace in the game, he [Asal] just controls me. He told me to get up the court and volley. He’s so good, it’s unbelievable how he can whip those kills in. I had to make it all about me today.
“It’s a long time [since winning a major] so I’m stoked.”
It’s Coll’s first Platinum PSA title since the Hong Kong Open in December 2023.
