Australian Open Preview: Sobhy Aiming To Continue U.S. Open Form

The Australian Open will be the biggest tournament of the week on the Challenger Tour this week. The Challenger 30 level event will take place at the University of Sydney, starting on Wednesday, October 26.

Colombia’s Miguel Rodriguez will be the top seed in the men’s event, with the former World No.4 facing competition from England’s Adrian Waller, who claimed the title at the Jansher Khan Canberra Open last week.

Scotland’s Greg Lobban and Canadian No.1 David Baillargeon make up the rest of the top four seeds, with England’s Charlie Lee, the USA’s Andrew Douglas, Czechian Martin Svec and home hope Rex Hedrick also seeded for the competition.

Belgium’s World No.13 Nele Gilis will lead the way in the women’s draw, with the American duo of Sabrina Sobhy and Olivia Clyne, along with England’s Jasmine Hutton, in the top four seeds in the draw.

We spoke to Sobhy ahead of the tournament, and after beating World No.3 Hania El Hammamy on home soil at the U.S. Open, she feels like she is constantly improving her game.

“I have been putting a lot of time and energy into improving my game and I think last week at the U.S. Open proved that some improvements have been made!” Sobhy explained.

“I am aware that every time on court will not be like that. There are days when I feel great playing and others I feel like a beginner – hopefully other pros can relate! Feeling optimistic and trusting that there will be some more solid performances like that in the future! 

“That experience was one I was craving for a long time. I have been close to beating some top pros recently, however, I have kept falling short. It gets discouraging when you keep missing out on victories like that by a few points. 

“Having a win against one of the best players in the world on home-soil made up for some of those gutting losses last year! It was unbelievably out of this world. I think because I didn’t expect anything to come from the match, and just focused on playing my best game, everything else was able to fall into place.”

She comes into the Australian Open as the No.2 seed, but she does not go in with expectations. The American just has a feeling of she wants to play, and then the rest will follow for her.

“I am not heading in with expectations. I do have goals for the event. Mainly, I just want to feel at ease while competing, similarly to last week at the U.S. Open. Focusing on staying in the moment and playing an enjoyable game of squash. If I can do that, and find my creativity and physicality on court, then I am excited to see the outcome,” she said.

This will be Sobhy’s first trip Down Under, and the American is looking forward to a run that will see her compete in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore over the next few weeks.

“I am looking forward to competing in new areas. I think a lot of players can agree that the travel to new countries is a large part of why we do what we do. Last year made the travel a bit stale, heading to the same locations and tournaments all the time. Hoping that some novelty and foreign environments will revive me some more!”

Finally, at the end of 2022, Sobhy is almost guaranteed to be a part of the American quartet at the Women’s World Teams Championships in Cairo, something she is looking forward to with a strong group of players.

“I am excited for the World Teams! We have such a skilled and driven team at the moment. Definitely one of the best of all time in my opinion!” Sobhy admitted.

“It is really motivating to be a part of this team. Seeing how much my teammates care and commit to improvement and growth, makes me want to match their passion! Hoping for a memorable performance in Cairo in December.”

Australia’s Donna Lobban and Sarah Cardwell will be among the top eight seeds, with Japanese No.1 Satomi Watanabe and German No.1 Saskia Beinhard. In total, there will be eight Aussies in the women’s draw, including former World No.1 Rachael Grinham.

The event takes place from Wednesday, October 26 to Sunday, October 30 at the University of Sydney. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates from the event.

Action from Sydney will be streamed throughout the week on the PSA Challenger Tour YouTube channel, where you can watch Challenger Tour action, and interviews with rising stars.

Men’s First Round Draw: Australian Open
[1] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) – [Bye]
[WC] Oscar Curtis (AUS) v [9/16] Rhys Dowling (AUS)
[9/16] Sandeep Ramachandran (IND) v Owain Taylor (WAL)
[7] Martin Svec (CZE) – [Bye]
[6] Andrew Douglas (USA) – [Bye]
Amaad Fareed (PAK) v [9/16] Tom Walsh (ENG)
[9/16] Ryunosuke Tsukue (JPN) v Wee Ming Hock (MAS)
[4] David Baillargeon (CAN) – [Bye]
[3] Greg Lobban (SCO) – [Bye]
[WC] Nicholas Calvert (AUS) v [9/16] Daniel Poleshchuk (ISR)
[9/16] Valentin Rapp (GER) v Temwa Chileshe (NZL)
[5] Charlie Lee (ENG) – [Bye]
[8] Rex Hedrick (AUS) – [Bye]
Joseph White (AUS) v [9/16] Lwamba Chileshe (NZL)
[9/16] Simon Herbert (ENG) v Zahir Shah (PAK)
[2] Adrian Waller (ENG) – [Bye]

Women’s First Round Draw: Australian Open
[1] Nele Gilis (BEL) – [Bye]
Jacqueline Peychar (AUT) v [9/16] Nadia Pfister (SUI)
[9/16] Alex Haydon (AUS) v Au Yeong Wai Yhann (SGP)
[7] Saskia Beinhard (GER) – [Bye]
[6] Satomi Watanabe (JPN) – [Bye]
[WC] Sze Yu Lee (AUS) v [9/16] Salma Eltayeb (EGY)
[9/16] Jessica Turnbull (AUS) v Erin Classen (AUS)
[4] Jasmine Hutton (ENG) – [Bye]
[3] Olivia Clyne (USA) – [Bye]
[WC] Sophie Fadaely (AUS) v [9/16] Rachael Grinham (AUS)
[9/16] Kaitlyn Watts (NZL) v Noor ul Huda (PAK)
[8] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) – [Bye]
[5] Donna Lobban (AUS) – [Bye]
Yasshmita Jadishkumar (MAS) v [9/16] Akari Midorikawa (JPN)
[9/16] Ooi Kah Yan (MAS) v Katerina Tycova (GER)
[2] Sabrina Sobhy (USA) – [Bye]