Yorkshire rivals prepare to battle each other again

The duo have been involved in some epic contests in recent years, the most memorable of which was the ill-tempered British Open final in 2009 which saw Sheffield’s Matthew prevail after two gruelling hours.

The 31-year-old world No 1, has held the upper-hand over his Leeds-based rival since then, beating Willstrop six times on the world men’s tour last year.

Matthew ensured himself of a place in the last four on Monday night, defeating up-and-coming Egyptian star Mohamed El Shorbagy 11-5, 9-11, 11-3, 11-6.

Willstrop struggled early on in his quarter-final with fellow Englishman Peter Barker before triumphing 7-11, 11-5, 11-6, 11-7 in just over an hour.

Matthew’s victory avenged his loss to the young Egyptian in their previous meeting in the 2009 Canary Wharf Classic in London.

“He seemed to decide he could take me on down the backhand wall, and he got the better of that battle in the second,” said Matthew. “But that effort maybe took something out of him, he wasn’t able to press as hard after that.

“He’s like all the Egyptians though, they can score two or three quick points out of nowhere, whereas we English like to build the rallies more, so you have to be on your toes all the time.

“I managed to keep the momentum for most of the match, and he was having to work harder than me, but he still managed to make me feel old and slow at times!

“He’ll be around for a long time – well after I’ve gone, and he’ll be a nightmare to play against.”

Willstrop admitted he found it tough going against Barker, but said he felt in good shape ahead of Wednesday night’s showdown with Matthew.

“You have to work it out,” said the world No 4. “It’s a mental and a physical battle, we were both getting control of the ‘T’ at times and matches like that come down to very fine margins but I managed to take the important points tonight.

“I’m feeling pretty fit at the moment, but then we’ve had a summer’s training and the season’s only just begun. If you don’t feel fit at the moment you’ve got no chance.”

World No 2 Jenny Duncalf, from Harrogate, saw her hopes of taking the women’s title soar when world No 1 Nicol David suffered a shock quarter-final exit to Australia’s Kasey Brown.

Duncalf was due to play her last-eight match against Hong Kong’s Annie Au in the early hours of Tuesday morning (UK time).