Hong Kong Squash PSA Challenge Cup – 2nd Leg: Lap Causes Big Day-One Upset

Wild card Lap Man Au caused the biggest upset on day one of the Hong Kong Squash PSA Challenge Cup – 2nd Leg, beating [9/16] seed Harley Lam. 

Lam is ranked 181 in the world – almost 400 places above his opponent – but was no match for the 20-year-old, who was playing in just his second ever Challenger Tour event. 

The final line read 11-6, 11-4, 11-7 in just 26 minutes, with Lap’s reward a round-two match against Japan’s No.8 seed Tomo Endo. 

Wailok To was the only other [9/16] seed to lose out in round one of the men’s draw, going down 3-1 to Malaysia’s Duncan Lee, but Egypt’s Abdelrahman Abdelkhalek had to fight hard for his victory over Shota Yasunari, coming through 15-13 in the fifth after more than an hour on court.

France’s Baptiste Bouin also needed all five games to get past his round-one opponent, Lam Shing Fung, eventually taking game five 11-2.

In the women’s draw, 16-year-old Egyptian Jana Swaify showed a glimpse of her potential by beating fellow teenager Madison Lyon to reach round two. 

Swaify is playing just her third Challenger Tour event, having reached at least the quarter-finals of the previous two, and she swept aside the 18-year-old Australian in just 25 minutes here, winning 14-12, 11-6, 11-5. 

The Alexandria native will now play No.3 seed and World No.94 Ching Hei Fung for a place in the quarter-finals, with either Akari Midorikawa or Toby Tse awaiting. 

Tse, winner of the Hong Kong Squash PSA Challenge Cup – 1st Leg a few weeks ago, is the No.7 seed in this event and looked as though she may be facing the unseeded Thanusaa Uthrian in round two. 

The Malaysian held a 2-1 lead over fellow 18-year-old Midorikawa, but the Japanese player turned things around to take the next two games and book her spot in round two. 

You can see all the results from the PSA Challenger Tour here.