DSQV Sportwerk Preview: Kandra Back On Tour After Four Months

There is just the one event on the PSA Challenger Tour this week, with the second DSQV Sportwerk event of the year being held in Hamburg, Germany.

Like all events on the Challenger Tour currently, the DSQV Sportwerk has been limited to domestic entrants only, meaning only players residing in Germany have been allowed to enter.

World No.28 Raphael Kandra will be the top seed for the tournament, with the German No.1 featuring for the first time on Tour since the Qatar Classic in November 2020.

Kandra will be lining-up on Tour for the first time in four months, but he is hoping to continue his good form, which saw him make the last 16 of the Platinum level event in Doha at the end of last year.

“I always try my best on court and if I can play like I did in Qatar I am more than happy,” Kandra said.

“It’s more practice, more routine and the matches especially on a glass court that count for me. I hope I will feel more ready with that tournament in the bag.”

The German may not have played in a tournament since November, but he explained that he has kept himself busy, and made sure that he is ready for the event with a strict training regime.

“I know my body quite well nowadays. So I focused a lot on condition training, gym, athletic training and ball control. On top of that I bought a smart trainer for my bike, so I guess my quads are slightly bigger now!”

The event takes place from Friday 5 to Sunday 7 March at the Sportwerk Hamburg, where Kandra is the top seed for the tournament. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates from the event.

There will also be streaming from the tournament, which will be available on the PSA Challenger Tour Youtube channel throughout the weekend.

Men’s Draw: DSQV Sportwerk
[1] Raphael Kandra (GER) – [Bye]
Fabian Igelbrink (GER) v [9/16] Jan Wipperfurth (GER)
[9/16] Hendrik Vossing (GER) v Paul Ecker (GER)
[7] Julius Benthin (GER) – [Bye]
[6] Tobias Weggen (GER) – [Bye]
Carsten Schoor (GER) v [9/16] Robin Ebert (GER)
[9/16] Lennard Hinrichs (GER) v Max Plettenberg (GER)
[4] Valentin Rapp (GER) – [Bye]
[3] Roshan Bharos (NED) – [Bye]
Felix Gobel (GER) v [9/16] Dennis Welte (GER)
[9/16] Christoph Bluhm (GER) v Paul Wingelsdorf (GER)
[5] Tarek Shehata (EGY) – [Bye]
[8] Fynn Schuck (GER) – [Bye]
Nils Schwab (GER) v [9/16] Norman Junge (GER)
[9/16] Willi Wingelsdorf (GER) v Nils Herzberg (GER)
[2] Yannik Omlor (GER) – [Bye]

Women’s Draw: DSQV Sportwerk
[1] Aylin Gunsav (GER) v Anna Karina Moreno Kopp (GER)
Mai-Ly Nguyen (GER) v [3] Katerina Tycova (GER)
[4] Lea-Iris Murrizi (GER) v Lucie Mahrle (GER)
Laura Rodig (GER) v [2] Saskia Beinhard (GER)