Challenger Tour Weekly Preview: Five Events In Five Countries

After just a single event last week, the Challenger Tour will see five tournaments taking place this week, across five nations around the world.

Saturday evening saw England’s Torrie Malik secure her fourth Tour title of the season, as she defeated Egypt’s Haya Ali in the final of the women’s event at the Mozart Open.

This week, the men’s draw take to the court in Salzburg, with the event taking place from Wednesday, March 29 to Saturday, April 1. The Liverpool Cricket Club Open, which features both a men’s and women’s Challenger 5 level competition, will also be held across the same dates.

The NextCloud Tekae TIPSSA Open also begins on Wednesday, with the men’s Challenger 5 level tournament lasting a day longer, through to Sunday afternoon in Mexico City. The Edmonton Squash Club Open begins on Thursday, with the Vikram Goyal SRFI Open then starting on Saturday. The women’s Challenger 10 level competition runs through to next Wednesday in Delhi, India.

Here is what is taking place on Tour this week…

Mozart Open (Men’s)
After the women’s event took place last week, the Europark Shopping Centre in Salzburg will this week play host to the men’s draw at the Mozart Open.

England’s Simon Herbert will be the top seed for the men’s Challenger 5 level competition, with compatriot Robert Downer also among the top eight seeds. The German duo of Yannik Omlor and Valentin Rapp, along with the Swiss pair of Yannick Wilhelmi and Robin Gadola will also be seeded. Wilhelmi was the runner-up at this venue last year.

Israeli No.1 Daniel Poleshchuk and Colombia’s Andres Herrera will also be seeded, while Aqeel Rehman, the Austrian No.1, will be the home favourite. Liechtenstein’s David Maier will be the tournament’s wildcard.

Liverpool Cricket Club Open
The only event this week to hold both a men’s and women’s draw will be the Liverpool Cricket Club Open, which will take place from Wednesday, March 29 to Saturday, April 1 in the English city.

After winning in Salzburg last week, England’s Torrie Malik will be part of the top four seeds for the women’s competition. New Zealand’s Kaitlyn Watts will be the top seed, with Australia’s Alex Haydon and another Englishwoman, in Alicia Mead, also in action. 

England’s Ben Smith will be the top seed for the men’s draw, with compatriot James Peach also in action and among the top four seeds. The Kiwi duo of Lwamba and Temwa Chileshe, along with Wales’ Emyr Evans and Owain Taylor will also be seeded in Liverpool.

NextCloud Tekae TIPSSA Open
The NextCloud Tekae TIPSSA Open is the third event to start on Wednesday, March 29. The men’s Challenger 5 level competition will be held at Squash Delta in Mexico City.

Six of the top eight seeds will be playing on home soil. Three-time winner on Tour this season, Alfredo Avila, will be the top seed, with compatriot Alejandro Reyes are his nearest competitor for the title this week.

Leo and Carlos Vargas, Miled Zarazua and Allan Nunez will be the other Mexicans in the top eight seeds. They will be joined by Colombia’s Edgar Ramirez Bautista and Guatemalan Luis Quisquinay. Paraguay and Germany will be the only other two nations represented.

Edmonton Squash Club Open
The Edmonton Squash Club Open returns to the Tour for the second time, with the Challenger 5 level men’s competition being held from Thursday, March 30 to Sunday, April 2.

Czech Republican Viktor Byrtus will be the tournament’s top seed, with Malaysia’s Sanjay Jeeva, Brazilian No.1 Diego Gobbi and Australia’s Joseph White also in the top four seeds. The Canadian duo of Liam Marrison and Connor Turk will be seeded, and the big hopes on home soil.

Hong Kong’s Matthew Lai and Harley Lam make up the rest of the top eight seeds for the competition, while compatriot Chung Yat Long will also feature. He made the final of last year’s event, when it was a Challenger 3 level title.

Vikram Goyal SRFI Open
The last tournament of the week will be a Challenger 10 level women’s event, the Vikram Goyal SRFI Open. The competition will be held from Saturday, April 1 to Wednesday, April 5 in the Indian city of Delhi.

The Hong Kong duo of Cheng Nga Ching and Ching Hei Fung, who met in the final of the Eastside Open in Australia last year, will be the top two seeds. Malaysia’s Ainaa Amani, who claimed her maiden Tour title last time out, will be joined by India’s Tanvi Khanna, the leading home hope, among the seeds.

The rest of the top eight seeds will be filled with Egyptian players. The quartet of Nadeen Kotb, Nour Ramy, Haya Ali and Salma El Aify will all fancy their chances. Ali reached the final in Salzburg last week, despite being unseeded for the competition.

This Week’s Schedule
Mozart Open (Men’s): Wednesday, March 29 – Saturday, April 1
Liverpool Cricket Club Open: Wednesday, March 29 – Saturday, April 1
NextCloud Tekae TIPSSA Open: Wednesday, March 29 – Sunday, April 2
Edmonton Squash Club Open: Thursday, March 30 – Sunday, April 2
Vikram Goyal SRFI Open: Saturday, April 1 – Wednesday, April 5