Edmonton Squash Club Open Preview: Allpress Looking To Build In Canada

The Setanta Edmonton Squash Club Open will be the last of five tournaments on the. Challenger Tour this week, with action coming from the Edmonton Squash Club from Thursday, April 21.

The Challenger 3 level men’s event will feature 16 players, the top five seeds all hailing from Hong Kong. World No.141 Tang Ming Hong will be the top seed for the competition, with Harley Lam as his nearest challenger for the title. Matthew Lai, Chung Yat Long and Wailok To will also feature.

England’s Aaron Allpress, Colombian Nicolas Serna and Czech Republic’s Petr Nohel make up the rest of the top eight seeds. We spoke to the Englishman prior to the event starting, and he is happy to be back on court again after injuries.

“It’s been an interesting start to the year due to injuries, but I managed to play my first event back at the University of Birmingham Satellite at the beginning of April,”Allpress said.

“Although I lost in the quarter finals to the eventual winner 11-9 in the fifth, being pain free on a squash court has been quite a relief and I look forward to building on this out in Canada.

“I enjoy the pressure and the competition, I don’t really feel pressure is a negative thing. If I’m enjoying the match and having fun then I think it brings out my best squash.”

Allpress, who currently sits at a career-high World No.294, will be aiming to secure a first Tour title this week. He will also be looking forward to the end of the year, when he can play squash full-time following the conclusion of his academic studies.

“To take a first tour title would mean a lot. No one gives you anything on the tour and it takes consistency over four or five matches against quality opponents to take a tour title,” the Englishman explained.

“I try not to look at the rankings too much, I feel like we can all get a bit caught up in them, as long as I’m improving my game and controlling the things I can control, the results will follow.

“I am looking forward to September 2022 when I finish my studies at University and I can dedicate all my time to playing squash professionally, then maybe I’ll have a better idea of how far I can push.”

The event takes place from Thursday, April 21 to Sunday, April 24 at the Edmonton Squash Club in Canada. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on *Twitter* and *Facebook* for daily updates from the event.

First Round Draw: Setanta Edmonton Squash Club Open
[1] Tang Ming Hong (HKG) v Momo El Serafy (CAN)
Abdul Rahman Elnady (EGY) v [6] Aaron Allpress (ENG)
[5] Wailok To (HKG) v Mahmoud Abouelleil (EGY)
Evan Watson (CAN) v [3] Matthew Lai (HKG)
[4] Chung Yat Long (HKG) v Mathew Young (CAN)
Rafi Khan (PAK) v [7] Nicolas Serna (COL)
Peter Goodings (ENG) v [8] Petr Nohel (CZE)
Brett Schille (CAN) v [2] Harley Lam (HKG)