Joel Makin (WAL) 3-2 Mohamed Elshorbagy (ENG) 8-11, 15-13, 11-3, 8-11, 11-2 (85m)
Second seed Joel Makin dethroned two-time champion Mohamed ElShorbagy to claim his second British Nationals title in a five-game, 85-minute epic at St George’s Hill Lawn Tennis Club.
ElShorbagy stormed to a 5-0 lead in game one as he played aggressively and tried to put pressure on the Welshman. Makin rallied back to 8-10, but the defending champion kept composed and took a 1-0 lead.
In the second game, both competitors were inseparable as they traded points in attritional rallies to a tie-break. ElShorbagy had the first four attempts to convert the game, but Makin dug in and saved four game balls before taking the game on the first time of asking at 15-13.
Makin looked fresher as the third game commenced, and quickly put pressure on the 33-year-old as he pulled away on the scoreboard from 3-3 to 11-3, to go a game away from the title as the World No.8 requested a new ball.
The new ball seemed to benefit the former World No.1, and he entered the court for game four with an intensity that Makin struggled to match as he controlled the rallies to take quick-fire 8-2 lead.
The Welshman lengthened the rallies and battled back against the No.1 seed to 8-10, but ElShorbagy held on to his lead to take the match to a decisive fifth game.
The Englishman looked the more fatigued of the pair as the clash continued past 80 minutes in the fifth game, and the Wales No.1 picked up point after point to win the dramatic final and claim his first Nationals title since 2021.
“It wasn’t looking good for the first half hour,” said Makin after the match. “I had to bite my tongue a bit and dig in. He can put these tactical matches together, he’s impressive. He nullified me and controlled the pace. He was clinical and I had to wait for him to deviate and me to find my spots.
“I was really happy with the way I found my way back into the match. For the past two years he’s put on unbelievable performances. I’ve taken those losses and come back. I was almost there again, I was 7-3 down in the second and I was just going to dig down and try and find my way back into the match so it was a massive one to win and was so happy to get over the line.
“It was massive to win the first one, but this is almost a new era now. We have Mohamed and Marwan [ElShorbagy] both in the draw and to come through a week where you’ve got to beat both of them back-to-back… It’s something I’m very pleased with because these are world-class players and have been for years.
“To turn it around was the biggest thing, the match wasn’t going the way I wanted, and I had to find my way back in and overturn the deficit.
“We haven’t had much of an off-season. It’s been very busy even until the end of last season and then starting right away again. I just wanted to carry the momentum on from the end of last season. I’m happy with that, but the season starts now and gets busy; there’s going to be tournaments back-to-back so it’s good to get a head start and get good match practice ready for the season.”
Result – Men’s Final: 2024 British National Squash Championships
Joel Makin (WAL) bt Mohamed Elshorbagy (ENG) 3-2: 8-11, 15-13, 11-3, 8-11, 11-2 (85m)
