Yorkshire’s world No 1 Matthew beaten in final of US Open

The 31-year-old world No 1, from Sheffield, admitted he wasn’t firing on all cylinders in Pennsylvania as he saw his rival deservedly clinch a 27th PSA Tour title in a 11-9, 8-11, 11-2, 11-4 victory.

It marks the third straight loss in a final in as many months for the Yorkshireman, having lost to world No 2 Ramy Ashour - who was not involved in Philadelphia - in both the British Grand Prix and the Australian Open.

It was also the first time Shabana had got the better of Matthew in two years, having last beaten him in the 2009 Malaysian Open final.

While acknowledging he was not at his best physically, Matthew was quick to point out how well his 32-year old opponent had played at the Daskalakis Athletic Center at Drexel University.

“I’m disappointed that my body let me down a little tonight,” said Matthew. “I was struggling to push off on my foot, but I gave it a good go and you have to be good enough to cope with these problems.

“It feels different from coming off court having given everything you have, but that’s not taking anything away from Amr, he played really well.

“His shots were firing in from all over tonight, and even at 100% I would have been struggling to cope with him. He was all over me by the end, and could have probably played some of those drop shots with his right hand, they were so good.”

Shabana - who took a six-month break from the PSA World Tour earlier this year to recover from injury, said he was pleased to have lifted a title again, his last having come with his fourth World Open triumph back in November 2009.

“It’s such a relief to win a major tournament again,” said Shabana, who also won the event two years ago.

“It’s been a tough couple of years, at times I thought I might never win again but I’ve been playing well this week and my body held up which is the important thing.”

Next up for Matthew, Shabana and the world’s other leading players is the $150,000 Qatar Classic the qualifying for which begins on Friday, October 14.

Harrogate’s world No 2 Jenny Duncalf will also be looking to bounce back in the Middle East after missing out in Philadelphia with a surprise semi-final defeat to compatriot and eventual winner Laura Massaro.