North Coast Open Preview: No Pressure On Yuk As Top Seed 

The first of three tournaments taking place on the Challenger Tour this week will be the Costa North Coast Open, which will take place from Wednesday, August 17 to Sunday, August 21 at the Coffs Harbour Squash & Swim Centre in Coffs Harbour, Australia.

The Challenger 10 level tournament will feature both a men’s and women’s draw, with a pair of Hongkongers topping the draws. Henry Leung will be the top seed for the 24-strong men’s event, with Pakistan’s Muhammad Asim Khan as his nearest competitor for the title.

Malaysia’s Addeen Idrakie and New Zealand’s Lwabma Chileshe will be the other two members of the world’s top 100 in the men’s draw, and will make up the rest of the top four seeds. Hong Kong’s Chi Him Wong and Tang Ming Hong, along with Switzerland’s Yannick Wilhelmi, will also be seeded for the competition.

Joseph White, the Australian No.1, will be the leading home favourite in the draw, as the No.8 seed. He will be joined by former top 50 player Rex Hedrick, Rhys Dowling, Nicholas Calvert, Damon MacMillan, Dylan Molinaro and James Lloyd as the home hopes in the men’s competition.

Hong Kong’s Chan Sin Yuk, the World No.39, will be the top seed for the women’s event, and she will be the highest ranked player in action in Coffs Harbour. We spoke to the 20-year-old ahead of the Challenger 10 tournament, after she spent some time back in Hong Kong preparing for this event.

“I got back to Hong Kong in June and started working on my summer training, working with my coaches to improve my game alongside the physical side,” the World No.39 said.

“I also played in the Hong Kong National’s and although it wasn’t a great week for me, I’m sure that would be a good preparation for the coming tournaments in the season.”

Yuk, affectionately known as Simmi Chan to her friends, is a regular Stateside, and as a surprise victor at the J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions Challenger in April, which then gave her a wildcard spot in the Gold level J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions, where she made the last 16. She takes good memories from that week in New York City, one that boosted her up the rankings.

“It was an enjoyable week in New York. I enjoyed playing good squash against great players. I was fighting hard and enjoying the court and the crowds at Grand Central. It was an amazing experience,” she explained.

The World No.39 has been a few places higher in the World Rankings, but she started 2022 outside the world’s top 70. She is now experiencing being the top seed in a Challenger 10 level tournament, and admits that the pressure is not something that is getting to her right now.

“At this point, I don’t feel much pressure from being the top seed yet. Hopefully I can keep this up as I start playing. It’s never easy to get the world ranking up but I am looking to keep it up and hopefully I can get my ranking to a new high,” Yuk admitted.

She will face stiff competition for this week’s crown, with England’s Grace Gear and the Aussie duo of Sarah Cardwell and Alex Haydon making up the rest of the top four seeds for the draw.

Jessica Turnbull and former World No.1 Rachael Grinham will make up the rest of the Australian representation in the 16-strong draw for the women’s event, with Singapore’s Au Yeong Wai Yhann, Switzerland’s Celine Walser, India’s Urwashi Joshi, Malaysia’s Yasshmita Jadishkumar and Maltese No.1 Colette Sultana all flying the flag for their respective countries.

The event takes place from Wednesday, August 17 to Sunday, August 21 at the Coffs Harbour Squash & Swim Centre in Australia, where Chan Sin Yuk is the top seed for the women’s tournament. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates from the event.

Men’s First Round Draw: Costa North Coast Open
[1] Henry Leung (HKG) – [Bye]
Nicholas Calvert (AUS) v [9/16] Robert Andrew Garcia (PHI)
[9/16] Rex Hedrick (AUS) v Wailok To (HKG)
[8] Joseph White (AUS) – [Bye]
[5] Chi Him Wong (HKG) – [Bye]
Damon MacMillan (AUS) v [9/16] Abhay Singh (IND)
[9/16] Temwa Chileshe (NZL) v [WC] Elijah Thomas (NZL)
[4] Lwamba Chileshe (NZL) – [Bye]
[3] Addeen Idrakie (MAS) – [Bye]
Joel Arscott (NZL) v [9/16] Harley Lam (HKG)
[9/16] Rhys Dowling (AUS) v [WC] James Lloyd (AUS)
[7] Tang Ming Hong (HKG) – [Bye]
[6] Yannick Wilhelmi (SUI) – [Bye]
Chung Yat Long (HKG) v [9/16] Robin Gadola (SIU)
[9/16] Matthew Lai (HKG) v [WC] Dylan Molinaro (AUS)
[2] Muhammad Asim Khan (PAK) – [Bye]

Women’s First Round Draw: Costa North Coast Open
[1] Chan Sin Yuk (HKG) v Noor ul Huda (PAK)
Celine Walser (SUI) v [7] Rachael Grinham (AUS) 
[6] Cheng Nga Ching (HKG) v Aiman Shahbaz (PAK)
Colette Sultana (MLT) v [4] Alex Haydon (AUS
[3] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) v Tayla Mounter (ENG)
Urwashi Joshi (IND) v [8] Au Yeong Wai Yhann (SGP))
[5] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) v Yasshmita Jadishkumar (MAS)
Ching Hei Fung (HKG) v [2] Grace Gear (ENG)