“Emotionally, it wasn’t easy…” – Mohamed ElShorbagy on his switch to England

April 26, 2023 - 3:00am
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Watch: former world champion and world No.1 Mohamed ElShorbagy tells Squash Mad about the ‘tough decision’ to switch from Egypt to England.

As he prepares to make his official England debut at the European Team Championships in Finland, Squash Mad caught up with world No.2 Mohamed ElShorbagy.

It is 10 months since ElShorbagy dropped the bombshell of his switch of allegiance from his birthplace Egypt to England, where he has lived since the age of 14.

Since then, he has become an integral and influential member of the England training camp under national coach David Campion. In November, he competed alongside Sarah Jane Perry at the experimental Nations Cup in New Zealand with the red cross on his chest.

Now, this week in Helsinki, he will make his first ‘official’ appearance in an England jersey as England bid to win the men’s European team title for the third successive time, and 43rd overall.

As he told our reporter Camille Serme in an interview during the recent Canary Wharf Squash Classic, the decision to switch to England was “not easy.” He even admits that agonising over it affected his form.

However, with some encouragement from his coach, former world champion Gregory Gaultier, ElShorbagy is now settled and ready to pull on the red cross.

The 32-year-old admits he hopes to compete on squash’s biggest stage, the Commonwealth Games, in Victoria, Australia in 2026.

Watch the full interview above or on the Squash Mad YouTube channel.

The post “Emotionally, it wasn’t easy…” – Mohamed ElShorbagy on his switch to England appeared first on Squash Mad.

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