Challenger Tour Round-Up: Hani Wins First Title, Lake & Khan Set Up Vancouver Final

Richardson Wealth Van Lawn Open 

The top two seeds will contest the Richardson Wealth Van Lawn Open final, after both Nathan Lake and Faraz Khan won their respective semi-finals. 

No.1 seed Lake overcame the tricky test of rising Canadian star Salah Eltorgman, who had already knocked out No.3 seed Tang Ming Hong in round two. 

Lake, though, proved too strong for the 21-year-old, winning the first two games 11-8, 11-9, before running away with game three to take it 11-2. 

He was followed into the final by Khan, who enjoyed a similar victory in his semi-final, beating Mexico’s Jorge Gomez 11-8, 11-6, 11-2. 

Both players are targeting their first title of the season, with both have previously fallen at the final hurdle. 

Lake was a beaten finalist at the 30k Charlottesville Open in September, while Khan finished as runner-up at both the Nash Cup and Louisville Open. 

SACC Costa Rica Open 

Egyptian teenager Habiba Hani continued her impressive start to life on the PSA Tour, winning the SACC Costa Rica Open to secure a first tour title in just her second event. 

The 18-year-old was playing her first tournament since winning the 2023 Egyptian Junior Open, and came in as the No.8 seed. 

She knocked out No.1 seed Ineta Mackevica and No.3 seed Caroline Fouts in rounds two and three, though, dropping only one game in the process, and then beat Ireland’s Hannah Craig in the final to lift the trophy. 

Victory in this 12k event represents a first tour title for Hani, who finished as runner-up in her only other PSA Tour appearance, the 2023 PSNS President’s Trophy. 

The men’s event was won by Guatemala’s Alejandro Enriquez, who saw off Malaysia’s Sanjay Jeeva 3-0 in the final. 

Enriquez had beaten his namesake Josue Enriquez to reach the final, and took 48 minutes to get past Jeeva, wrapping up his second title of 2023 in the process. 

RGSA Open De Squash 2023 

No.1 seed Diego Gobbi capped a fine week on home soil, winning the RGSA Open De Squash in Brazil. 

The 28-year-old had won his only previous PSA Tour title in his hometown of Sao Paulo, and repeated the feat here, beating No.3 seed Francesco Marcantonio 3-1 in the final. 

The Brazilian No.1 will now look to secure back-to-back trophies, as he enters the upcoming Curitiba Squash Center Brazil Open as the No.1 seed. 

You can stay up to date with all the results on the PSA Tour here.