Challenger Events
Challenger Tour Weekly Preview: Khan Back in Action, Fouts Targeting First Title
The action ramps up on the PSA Challenger Tour this week, with six events taking place across five different countries.
Chronicle Wealth Guilfoyle PSA Squash Classic
Action keeps on coming from Canada with the Chronicle Wealth Guilfoyle PSA Squash Classic, a 9K men’s event in the Canadian city of Toronto.
Egyptian’s Ibrahim Elkabbani is the No.1 seed ahead of England’s Perry Malik, who heads up the bottom half of the draw as he searches for his first PSA Tour title.
Salah Eltorgman’s late withdrawal means Cory Mccartney is the highest-ranked Canadian player in action, and he will get his tournament underway in round one against Mexico’s Luis Aquino.
Elliott Morris Devred will also be back in action, hoping to follow up his impressive run to the final of the Goodfellow Classic last week.
PSA Poznan Open
The PSA Tour heads to Poland for the first time in 2024, with the PSA Poznan Open taking place at the 11Punkt Squash Klub.
Czech pair Daniel Mekbib – a semi-finalist at the MRU Open last week – and Jakub Solnicky are the top two players, with the remaining six seeds all hailing from different countries.
Among them are Scotland’s Alasdair Prott at No.3 and New Zealand’s Elijah Thomas at No.4, with Egypt’s Mostafa Elsirty also among those entering the competition on day two, as the No.6 seed.
Squash Inspire – Men’s Pro Challenger Tour presented by Play Squash Academy
World junior champion Hamza Khan plays on the PSA Tour for the first time in 2024, looking to claim a first Challenger Tour title at the Squash Inspire – Men’s Pro Challenger Tour presented by Play Squash Academy.
The 18-year-old has not played on the Tour since November, but will look to kick off 2024 in style, as he takes on the USA’s Jahangir Naseem in round one.
Khan is one of four Pakistani players among the top 16 players, with Muhammad Asim Khan and Muhammad Ashab Irfan the No.1 and No.4 seeds respectively.
Egypt’s Seif El-Shenawy is the No.2 seed with Gautemala’s Alejandro Enriquez at No.3 and the USA’s Christopher Gordon at No.5.
PSA Club Euro Sport
Ivan Perez leads the Spanish charge at the PSA Club Euro Sport, which takes place in the Catalonian coastal resort of La Pineda.
Perez will make the short trip south from his home in Barcelona for this event, where he is the No.2 seed, just behind the Czech Republic’s Martin Svec, who tops a seedings list which features eight different nationalities.
Among the other players to watch out for will be rising French star Melvil Scianimanico, who – like Hamza Khan – is playing his first Challenger Tour event of 2024 this week.
The 18-year-old did, however, take part in the British Junior Open at the start of January, reaching the semi-finals before being beaten by Mohamed Zakaria.
Nilo Vidal and Pablo Quintana Estevez will also have home support behind them, with both players in action from day one.
Underhill Geomatics Sport Central Open
Rising American star Caroline Fouts headlines the entry list at the Underhill Geomatics Sport Central Open, a 9k women’s event in Richmond, Canada.
The 18-year-old has enjoyed an impressive start to 2024, earning a win as a wildcard at the J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions, before reaching her first Challenger Tour final at the 15k Squash Inspire – Women’s Open presented by Expression Networks LLC & Play Squash Academy.
She will now have her sights set on a first Tour title, entering this event as the No.1 seed, with Egypt’s Rana Ismail at No.2
Ismail – whose sister Hana won her first Tour title last week – already has one 9k crown to her name this season, the International Tournament Madeira Island, and will be making her first appearance on Canadian soil here.
American teenagers Riya Navani and Avery Park – neither of whom have hit their 18th birthday yet – are among the other names to keep an eye on.
WR Sturricks Design and Build Lexden RFC Open
The final event to take place this week is the WR Sturricks Design and Build Lexden RFC Open, a men’s and women’s 3k event in Colchester, England.
Malaysia’s Darren Pragasam and Wales’ Lowri Roberts are the respective No.1 seeds, with Will Salter and Jared Carter heading up English hopes in the men’s draw.
Salter is the No.4 seed while Carter is at No.5, with the pair having been drawn in opposite halves of the draw, but there are no English players among the top eight women’s seeds, with Polly Clark and Olivia Besant the highest-ranked players playing on home soil.
Hana Ismail is also back in action, targeting a second straight title after claiming the East Glos Open last week.
You can stay up to date with all the results on the PSA Challenger Tour here.
