Rafael Rallies To Birthday Win In Losone

Rafael F Alarcon celebrated his 29th birthday in appropriate style by battling through to his eighth PSA Tour final in the Losone Swiss Classic in Switzerland.

But the second seed from Brazil was taken the full distance by Egypt's Omar Mosaad before beating the fifth seed 6-11, 11-5, 10-11 (2-4), 11-10 (4-2), 11-10 (2-0) in a 95-minute semi-final marathon - after saving three match balls in the fourth game.

Mosaad, 18, from Cairo, had reached the semi-finals after upsetting his third-seeded compatriot Amr Mansi in the quarter-finals.

New Zealand's Kashif Shuja caused the biggest upset in the quarter-finals when he defeated top-seeded Welshman Gavin Jones. But the Pakistan-born seventh seed met his match in the semi-finals when he went down 11-7, 3-11, 11-2, 11-8 to France's No4 seed Laurent Elriani.

Elriani, 29 and based in England, is celebrating his first PSA Tour final appearance since reaching the climax of the Exterieur Open in his home country in August 2000.

Semi-finals:
[4] Laurent Elriani (FRA) bt [7] Kashif Shuja (NZL) 11-7, 3-11, 11-2, 11-8
[2] Rafael F Alarcon (BRA) bt [5] Omar Mosaad (EGY) 6-11, 11-5, 10-11 (2-4), 11-10 (4-2), 11-10 (2-0) (95m)