Cannon Kirk Gillen Markets Irish Squash Open: Preview & How to Watch 

The Cannon Kirk Gillen Markets Irish Squash Open kicks off in Dublin this week, streaming live on the SQUASHTV Live Streaming YouTube channel around the world from quarter-finals day onwards, and on Premier Sports 2 (Sky 419 & VM 417) in the Republic of Ireland across the first two days.

The 20k men’s and women’s event takes place at the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club, with a mix of World Tour stars and talented young players on display. 

The men’s draw boasts a particularly exciting draw, with two of the most exciting junior prospects in the game – Mohamed Zakaria and Jonah Bryant – joining the likes of Nick Wall, Declan James and former World No.1 James Willstrop. 

Wall and Willstrop could meet in round two, should the latter get past the lefty James Peach in round one, with 18-year-old Bryant and 20-year-old Finnlay Withington also in their quarter of the draw. 

Withington – the 2023 British junior champion – is the No.8 seed so has a first-round bye, but he will face Bryant – the 2024 British junior champion – in round two, if Bryant beats Viktor Byrtus on day one. 

The top half of the draw also features a matchup between former the in-form James and Scotland’s Alasdair Prott, who produced an entertaining five-game encounter when they met in Odense a few weeks ago. 

James has been in red-hot form ever since, going on to win the Odense Open before reaching the semi-finals of the GillenMarkets London Squash Classic at the start of this month. He then added the Garavan’s Bar West of Ireland Open trophy to his resume last week, and will start this event among the favourites, despite being outside the seeds.

The bottom half of the men’s draw features its fair share of intrigue, too, with Zakaria kicking off his quest for glory against England’s Stuart Macgregor, knowing that Pakistan’s Muhammad Asim Khan is awaiting in round two. 

A win for Asim Khan could set up an all-Pakistani clash with Noor Zaman, should the 20-year-old beat wildcard Sam Buckley in round one and then the USA’s Todd Harrity in round two, while England’s George Parker and Ben Smith are on a collision course of their own for the quarter-finals. 

In the women’s event, Nada Abbas is the No.1 seed and will begin her quest for glory just three days after competing in the El Gouna International Squash Open. 

The World No.19 reached the third round of that event in Egypt, where she was eventually beaten by World No.1 Nour ElSherbini, and comes into this tournament as one of two Egyptians in the hunt for glory. 

The other is fourth seed Rana Ismail, winner of her last two Challenger Tour events, and the pair would face off in the semi-finals should both players get that far. 

The bottom half of the draw, meanwhile, has thrown together the tantalising prospect of a quarter-final matchup between English duo Torrie Malik and Asia Harris. 

The pair – seeded No.3 and 5 respectively – have enjoyed a long-time rivalry through the junior ranks of English squash and have met four times already on the PSA Tour, with Malik winning three of those encounters. 

Both players are inside the world’s top 75 – Malik at No.60 and Harris at No.73 – and they’ll meet in the last eight here if they both get through round two. 

2022 runner-up Emily Whitlock is also in the draw once again, hoping to go one better than two years ago. The Welsh No.2 lost 3-1 to Belgium’s Tinne Gilis in that final, but is back here as the No.2 seed, with her second-round opponent set to be either Scotland’s Alison Thomson – winner of the BRESS Breda Open last week – or wildcard Hannah McGugan. 

We will have in-depth coverage on site from the Cannon Kirk Gillen Markets Irish Squash Open all week long on the PSA Challenger Tour social channels and the PSA website. 

You can also click here to watch the livestream from court 1 from the quarter-finals onwards.