Challenger Tour Round-Up: Ling Upsets Lai in Hong Kong, Lethbridge ProAm Begins

Hong Kong Squash PSA Challenge Cup 2024 – 1st Leg 

Andes Ling caused the biggest upset on day three of the Hong Kong Squash PSA Challenge Cup 2024 – 1st Leg, knocking out No.2 seed Matthew Lai 3-0. 

Lai – the World No.100 – had knocked out Ling en route to winning the KCC PSA Challenge Cup 2 in September, but he was unable to repeat the feat this time around, going down 3-1 in 42 minutes to the No.7 seed. 

Ling’s reward for his victory is a semi-final clash with No.3 seed Wong Chi Him, while Tang Ming Hong and Leo Chung will face off in the other semi-final. 

Top seed Tang came from a game down to beat unseeded Japanese player Shota Yasunari, before Ching cruised past Ryu Jeongmin in just half an hour. 

In the women’s draw, three of the top four seeds will contest the semi-finals, with No.2 seed Ching Hei Fung the only exception following her round-two exit earlier in the week. 

Ching was beaten by the unseeded Kwong Ena, who continued her impressive run on day three by beating wild card Helen Tang 3-1, putting a disappointing second game behind her to win 11-5, 1-11, 10-12, 4-11. 

Lethbridge ProAm 

Maximilien Godbout caused the only upset of day one at the Lethbridge ProAm, beating [9/16] seed Martin Ross in a five-game thriller. 

Playing on home soil, Godbout held off a stirring fight back from the Scot to win 11-4, 13-11, 7-11, 7-11, 11-8 in just under an hour, setting up a second-round clash with No.8 seed Manuel Paquemar of France. 

The other seven [9/16] seeds all booked their spots in round two, with Jayden Shortt and Henrik Mustonen the only two needing more than three games. 

Shortt came out on top of an all-Canadian clash with Tyson Schille 3-1, while Finland’s Henrik Mustonen saw off Akifumi Murakami 11-2, 11-8, 6-11, 11-4. 

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