Final : Coll beats Cardenas to collect title
World #4 Paul Coll captured his first title of the season after defeating Mexico’s Leonel Cardenas in a marathon 91-minute encounter at the DR21 Motor City Open in Detroit.
No.2 seed Coll, a strong favourite in the 25th edition of the Silver-level event after the withdrawal of four-time champion Diego Elias, was pushed all the way throughout the brutal encounter at the Birmingham Athletic Club, eventually taking the match by an 8-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-9 scoreline.
The four-game win was a demonstration of Coll’s relentless hitting, physical power and mental steeliness, with the New Zealander having to fight back from 1-0 down, game ball down in the second, on his way to capturing the title.
Narrow margins separated the two players throughout the match, but it was No.2 seed Coll who managed to draw upon his experience at the pivotal moments. The 32-year-old moved away from 7-7 and 8-8 in the third and fourth games, respectively, to claim his first Motor City Open title at the third time of asking.
“It’s been pretty tough for me all week,” said Coll after picking up the 26th PSA Tour title of his career. “I haven’t been on my top form, but I’m very proud of how I got through it mentally. To get the title here today in my third final here at the Motor City Open, I’m really happy.
“Leonel was impressive. I thought he was getting very tired, but he never gave me any cheap errors. I had to hit winners to win it. Credit to him because he was playing very well and very tough. It was nice to see him playing like that. He made it very tough today, a bit tougher than I would have liked, but it was a good battle.”
Coll’s name will now join an elite list of champions on the Motor City Open trophy, with the likes of David Palmer, Jonathon Power, Amr Shabana, and Mohamed ElShorbagy, having all won the Detroit-based event in the past.
Semis : Cardenas and Coll to contest Detroit final
World #18 Leonel Cardenas advanced to his maiden Silver-level final after delivering a superb performance to defeat third seed Eain Yow Ng in straight games in Detroit.
Mexican #1 Cardenas barely put a foot wrong throughout the 49-minute encounter, claiming an 11-7, 11-4, 11-4 victory to set up a title decider against second seed Paul Coll at the Birmingham Athletic Club, after the New Zealander came through his match with Aly Abou Eleinen in four games.
“I feel great,” Cardenas said. “I just want to get ready for tomorrow and enjoy my win of today. “I just wanted to play freely today and be solid. I wanted to have a good match, hit good shots and play freely.
Coll, a two-time runner-up at the Detroit-based event, had been put through his paces in the previous two rounds, having spent double the amount of time on court as Eleinen, but the extra workload didn’t stop the second seed from coming through a physical 67-minute battle with fourth seed Eleinen, taking the match by a 9-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-6 scoreline.
Quarters : Coll comeback denies Steinmann
Second seed Paul Coll staged a dramatic comeback to close out quarter-finals day at the DR21 Motor City Open, saving three match balls on his way to a thrilling victory over Swiss #1 Dimitri Steinmann in Detroit.
Coll, a runner-up at the Silver-level event last year, had to display all of his battling abilities at the Birmingham Athletic Club, fighting back from 10-8 and 11-10 down in the fourth game before eventually claiming a five-game victory after 85 minutes of breathless action to seal an 11-13, 11-9, 8-11, 13-11, 11-5 victory.
Coll’s opponent in the semi-finals will be fourth seed Aly Abou Eleinen, who battled past Egyptian compatriot Mohamed ElSherbini in four games.
In the top half of the draw Mexico’s Leonel Cardenas progressed to his maiden Silver-level semi-final on the PSA Squash Tour after winning an all-South American duel with Colombia’s Juan Camilo Vargas in straight games. Cardenas’ next opponent will be third seed Eain Yow Ng, who ended the impressive run of Baptiste Masotti in four games.
Round Two : Masotti outlasts Rodriguez as quarter-finalists decided in Detroit
France’s Baptiste Masotti prevailed in a gruelling 95-minute encounter against fifth seed Miguel Rodriguez on a dramatic day of second-round action at the DR21 Motor City Open in Detroit.
Unseeded Masotti, who played his 300th PSA Tour match earlier this week, came through a thrilling fifth game to record a 12-14, 11-3, 8-11, 11-6, 11-9 victory over former British Open champion Rodriguez, setting up a quarter-final with third seed Eain Yow Ng.
“I’m so happy,” Masotti said. “It was really tough today. Miguel is 39 years old, and he is running so much, and he made it so tough. I needed to be so accurate and confident in my physical abilities.
A lot of things were going through my mind in the fifth game. I knew I had been on the court for 95 minutes and I just didn’t want to lose.”
Elsewhere there were a host of action-packed matches that left the crowd entertained, with second seed Paul Coll notably holding off rising star Jonah Bryant in a gripping four-game duel and seventh seed Leonel Cardenas coming from 2-1 down to defeat Nathan Lake.
Coll, now the highest remaining seed after the withdrawal of four-time champion Diego Elias before play, was forced to battle all the way throughout his 86-minute encounter with the 19-year-old.
Coll now meets Swiss Dimitri Steinmann, while the other bottom half quarter-final will be an all-Egyptian affair between Aly Abou Eleinen and Mohamed ElSherbini, who ousted eighth seed Greg Lobban.
Round One : Tsukue & ElSherbini Claim Five-Game Wins
Ryunosuke Tsukue and Mohamed ElSherbini claimed entertaining five-game wins on the opening day of the DR21 Motor City Open 2025, defeating Timothy Brownell and Rui Soares as the 25th edition of the PSA Silver-level event got underway in Detroit.
Japanese #1 Tsukue, who is currently placed 23 spots behind Brownell in the world rankings, delivered a performance full of terrific shotmaking to defeat the U.S. #1 11-8, 4-11, 11-13, 11-4, 11-7 in front of a full house inside the Birmingham Athletic Club.
Egypt’s Mohamed ElSherbini survived a major scare against Portugal’s Soares in the last match of the day, fighting back from 8-4 down in the fifth to record a thrilling 13-11 victory, booking himself a second-round tie with eighth seed Greg Lobban.
Elsewhere teenage star Jonah Bryant, who last month reached the quarter-finals of the Silver-level Squash in the Land, continued his rich vein of form with a straight-games win over Hong Kong’s Alex Lau to set up a second-round outing with last year’s runner-up and second seed Paul Coll.