Canadian Senior Championships Preview: Naughton Pushing Towards Top Ten

The Oxford Properties Canadian Senior Championships presented by Slaight Music gets underway this week, featuring both men’s and women’s Challenger 10 events. The tournament will take place from Wednesday 20 to Saturday 24 October at the Yorkdale Mall in Toronto.

The tournament also doubles up as the Canadian National Championships, with only those currently based in the country being permitted to enter the event.

World No.17 Hollie Naughton tops the female draw with Danielle Letourneau her main challenger as No.2 seed. David Baillargeon is the top seed for the men’s event. He comes off the back of an impressive run at the Equinox Boston Open, where he lost out in the final to talented Egyptian Marwan Tarek. Baillargeon will come up against tough opposition if he is to capture the title, in the form of fellow top 100 ranked players Shawn DeLierre and Michael McCue.

Naughton is currently at her highest World Ranking and reached the last 16 of the U.S. Open presented by Truist in Philadelphia. We spoke to her prior to the tournament, and she is currently happy with her squash.

“I am happy with my game right now. I’m seeing improvements translating over to match play which is always a positive,” the Canadian No.1 said.

“I enjoyed Philadelphia, the new facility is quite spectacular and I was happy with my overall performance. I had my biggest win to date in beating the No.8 seed in round two.”

Naughton is a two-time Canadian National Champion and expressed how important the tournament is for her but isn’t satisfied with her current position as she looks to push on up the rankings.

“It’s always great to win a national title, being the best in your country is a great honour. It’s always a fun event too as it brings us all together,” she explained.

“As I look ahead, I’m just trying to keep implementing the things my team and I have been working on and if I keep doing what I know, the results will take care of themselves. Reaching the top ten would be the next big one on my list.”

The event takes place from Wednesday 20 to Sunday 24 at the Yorkdale Mall in Toronto, where Hollie Naughton is the top seed for the women’s event. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates from the event.

Action from Toronto will be streamed from the Yorkdale Mall on SquashTV.

Men’s First Round Draw: Oxford Properties Canadian Senior Championships Presented by Slaight Music
[1] David Baillargeon (CAN) – [Bye]
Dominic Wren (CAN) v [9/16] Elliott Hunt (CAN)
[9/16] Maximilien Godbout (CAN) v Blake Renison (CAN)
[5] Cameron Seth (CAN) – [Bye]
[8] Darosham Khan (CAN) – [Bye]
[WC] George Crowne (CAN) v [9/16] Noel Heaton (CAN)
[9/16] Liam Marrison (CAN) v Jason Sano Herring (JPN)
[4] Nick Sachvie (CAN) – [Bye]
[3] Michael McCue (CAN) – [Bye]
Mahmoud Abo Iail (EGY) v [9/16] Charles De La Riva (CAN)
[9/16] Rafi Khan (PAK) v [WC] Andrew Schnell (CAN)
[7] Cory McCartney (CAN) – [Bye]
[6] Connor Turk (CAN) – [Bye]
Salah Eltorgman (CAN) v [9/16] Jayden Shortt (CAN)
[9/16] Graeme Schnell (CAN) v [WC] James Flynn (CAN)
[2] Shawn DeLierre (CAN) – [Bye]

Women’s First Round Draw: Oxford Properties Canadian Senior Championships Presented by Slaight Music
[1] Hollie Naughton (CAN) – [Bye]
[WC] Leah McGillicuddy (CAN) v [9/16] Iman Shaheen (CAN)
[9/16] Niki Shemirani (CAN) v [WC] Giselle Delgado (CHI)
[5] Catherine Giachino (CAN) – [Bye]
[7] Amal Izhar (CAN) – [Bye]
[WC] Laura Savage (CAN) v [9/16] Molly Chadwick (CAN)
[9/16] Erisa Sano Herring (JPN) v [WC] Seanna Keating (CAN)
[4] Nikki Todd (CAN) – [Bye]
[3] Nicole Bunyan (CAN) – [Bye]
[WC] Melanie Jans (CAN) v [9/16] Sara Khan (CAN)
[9/16] Samantha Cornett (CAN) v [WC] Shirin Batra (CAN)
[8] Hannah Guthrie (CAN) – [Bye]
[6] Hannah Blatt (CAN) – [Bye]
[WC] Holly Delavigne (CAN) v [9/16] Sydney Maxwell (CAN)
[9/16] Maria Toorpakai Wazir (PAK) v [WC] Stephanie Hewitt (CAN)
[2] Danielle Letourneau (CAN) – [Bye]