Faltami Squash Inn Classic Preview: Gasca Motivated On Home Soil

The first of three tournaments taking place this week is the Faltami Squash Inn Classic, which will be held in Mexico City.

The Challenger 5 level women’s competition will be held at the Squash Inn Club from Thursday, January 26 to Sunday, January 29, with 16 women aiming to take home the title.

The majority of those will be from host nation Mexico, with top seed Diana Garcia being the nation’s No.1 player. Diana Gasca will also be among the eight seeds for the event, and we spoke to the Mexican prior to the tournament getting underway.

“I feel confident, in general about my technique and the effort I have put into improving my physical condition,” Gasca said.

“I would say that I feel more motivated than anything [playing on home soil], I normally don’t have the chance of playing in front of my family and friends, so I’m excited that we will share once again these moments.”

Gasca is currently the World No.142, despite only playing part-time at the moment alongside her architectural career. She is aiming to reach a first final on Tour this week, with the long term goal of making the top 100 by playing more events.

“It would mean a lot to me, it would motivate me even more than I already am because it has been really difficult to combine my professional architectural life with being a professional squash player,” she explained.

“I would say to continue focusing on my strategy [to improve her ranking], and to increase my experience by playing more tournaments, which has been difficult due to a lack of opportunities of playing Challenger 5s in America.”

Colombian sisters Laura and Maria Tovar, along with compatriot Lucia Bautista, will be among the top eight seeds for the event. Malaysia’s Yasshmita Jadishkumar, Hungarian Kincso Szasz and Guatemala’s Mary Mijas will also be seeded. South Korean Yura Choe will be the only other non-Mexican in the draw for this week’s event.

The event takes place from Thursday, January 26 to Sunday, January 29 at the Squash Inn Club in Mexico City. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates from the event.

First Round Draw: Faltami Squash Inn Classic
[1] Diana Garcia (MEX) v Margarita Gomez (MEX)
Sofia Chavez (MEX) v [8] Lucia Bautista (COL)
[7] Maria Tovar (COL) v Andrea Zamora (MEX)
Yura Choe (KOR) v [3] Yasshmita Jadishkumar (MAS)
[4] Diana Gasca (MEX) v Blanca Vallarta (MEX)
Julieta Mondragon (MEX) v [6] Mary Mijas (GUA)
[5] Kincso Szász (HUN) v Anita Inclan (MEX)
Ofelia Barriga (MEX) v [2] Laura Tovar (COL)