Motor City Open Preview: Elias Aiming For Three In A Row

The Sturbridge Capital Motor City Open begins on Wednesday, with Peru’s Diego Elias aiming to make it three wins in a row in Detroit.

The Peruvian, who also took home the title at the J.P. Morgan Tournament of Champions in New York City last week, will be the man to beat at the Birmingham Athletic Club in Bloomfield Hills, when the PSA World Tour Silver event takes place from February 1-5.

Elias took his first Motor City Open victory in 2020, when he beat surprise package Mohamed ElSherbini in the final. He then retained his crown two years later, getting the better of another Egyptian, in Fares Dessouky, to secure his second win in Detroit.

He will be the No.2 seed this week, and in the bottom half of the draw, where he could take on the likes of Frenchman Gregoire Marche and former World Champion Tarek Momen on route to a possible final. The final could see Elias meet top seed and World No.3 Paul Coll, who has made it to the final before.

Coll lost out to Marwan ElShorbagy in the 2018 final, where the Egyptian came out the victor in a mammoth 96-minute contest. The Kiwi will be looking to go one better as the top seed this week, and he could face last year’s runner-up Dessouky in the quarter finals. 

Colombia’s Miguel Rodriguez and Egypt’s Mazen Hesham, who played a great quarter final at Grand Central Terminal, could also meet at the same stage in Bloomfield Hills this week, while Shahjahan Khan and Faraz Khan will be the tournament’s two home hopes.

Former World No.7 Mohamed Abouelghar will be the wildcard for the tournament, as he continues his return from a knee injury. The Egyptian will take on Mexico’s Leonel Cardenas in the opening round, before possibly facing Elias in the second round, in a repeat of the 2019 final where he took victory.

Action from the early rounds of the tournament will be shown live on the PSA World Tour website for free, with the semi-finals and finals being streamed live on SQUASHTV.

You will also be able to follow live scores from Detroit here. For more on the Sturbridge Capital Motor City Open, you can visit the PSA website or follow the PSA on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

Men’s Draw: Sturbridge Capital Motor City Open
[1] Paul Coll (NZL) – [Bye]
Lucas Serme (FRA) v [9/16] Abdulla Mohd Al Tamimi (QAT)
[9/16] Cesar Salazar (MEX) v Karim El Hammamy (EGY)
[5] Fares Dessouky (EGY) – [Bye]
[7] Miguel Rodriguez (COL) – [Bye]
Aly Abou Eleinen (EGY) v [9/16] Nathan Lake (ENG)
[9/16] Mohamed ElSherbini (EGY) v Ramit Tandon (IND)
[4] Mazen Hesham (EGY) – [Bye]
[3] Tarek Momen (EGY) – [Bye]
Henry Leung (HKG) v [9/16] Youssef Ibrahim (EGY)
[9/16] Adrian Waller (ENG) v Faraz Khan (USA)
[6] Youssef Soliman (EGY) – [Bye]
[8] Gregoire Marche (FRA) – [Bye]
Tsz Kwan Lau (HKG) v [9/16] Shahjahan Khan (USA)
[9/16] Leonel Cardenas (MEX) v [WC] Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY)
[2] Diego Elias (PER) – [Bye]