Victoria Open Preview: Chileshe Aiming For Maiden Tour Title

The first of three tournaments getting underway on Wednesday on the Challenger Tour will be the Challenger 5 level Victoria Open, which will feature both a men’s and women’s draw at the Mulgrave Country Club in Melbourne, Australia.

The top four seeds in the women’s draw will be the same four that made it into the semi-finals of last week’s City of Greater Shepparton International, with home favourite and World No.80 Sarah Cardwell leading the way as the tournament’s top seed.

Japan’s Akari Midorikawa, who won the City of Greater Bendigo International two weeks ago, along with Hong Kong’s Wai Sze Wing and Toby Tse, the latter of which claimed her maiden Tour title in Shepparton on Sunday, make up the rest of the top four seeds.

Malaysia’s Yasshmita Jadishkumar, the Pakistani duo of Aiman Shahbaz and Noorena Shams, and England’s Ellie Jones will also be seeded for the women’s tournament, with South Korea being the other nation represented in the draw, with Bendigo finalist Mingyeong Heo being one to watch in the event.

After participating in the New Zealand National Championships, Lwamba and Temwa Chileshe will be the top two seeds for the event, with the Kiwi brothers having met in the finals of their last two tournaments on Tour. We spoke to the younger of the pair, World No.139 Temwa, ahead of the tournament.

“I feel I'm currently playing reasonably well. I was hoping to pick up a title earlier this year in New Zealand but I haven't quite managed to do so,” he explained.

“I'm looking to be more consistent with my level through the back end of 2022 starting with the Victoria Open next week, and hopefully, I can do enough to get a good result from this event.

“I've definitely been able to pick up a lot of momentum from the last couple of events that I've played in New Zealand and I'm looking to take this momentum into my next block of events in Australia.”

Chileshe is still yet to win on Tour, but it has not been for a lack of trying. The Kiwi has featured in six finals, losing out to his older sibling on four occasions. He is still taking the positives from those losses, though, and is looking at climbing back up the rankings as his squash continues to improve.

“Having been in six finals now and yet to take a maiden tour title, it's been tough mentally,” Chileshe admitted.

“But I've still taken a lot of positives from my last couple of losses in these finals. I'm still young and learning more and more each tournament so let's hope it's only a matter of time before I go all the way.

“I actually think I've gone up a level with my squash, even though my ranking has dropped. But I need to be a bit more consistent and also get a bit tougher mentally and physically to break down for me to move into that top 100 bracket.”

Chileshe will also be playing at the Commonwealth Games for the first time later this month, featuring in both the men’s singles and doubles events in Birmingham, England. He will feature alongside his brother in the men’s doubles, something he is excited about doing for his country.

“I am super excited for the Commonwealth Games and for a chance to represent New Zealand on the biggest of stages. It's a huge privilege wearing the fern and I can't wait to get to Birmingham and compete against the world's best,” the Kiwi explained

“Playing alongside my brother in the doubles will be amazing. Getting to share the court with him and be on the same team for once is really exciting for me and getting the chance to play singles is going to be a great experience.”

The Chileshes are the top two seeds, but they will have to match out for former World No.48 Rex Hedrick, with the 33-year-old also among those seeded for the tournament. Compatriot Nicholas Calvert, along with Malaysia’s Bryan Lim Tze Kang and Hafiz Zhafri, both winners on Tour in July, will be seeded.

The event takes place from Wednesday July 13 to Sunday, July 17 at the Mulgrave Country Club in Melbourne, Australia. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on *Twitter* and *Facebook* for daily updates from the event.

*Men’s First Round Draw: Victoria Open*
[1] Lwamba Chileshe (NZL) – [Bye]
Andes Ling (HKG) v [9/16] Damon MacMillan (AUS)
[9/16] Tomotaka Endo (JPN) v Aaron Liang (SGP)
[8] Shady El Sherbiny (EGY) – [Bye]
[5] Bryan Lim Tze Kang (MAS) – [Bye]
Jamie Pattison (AUS) v [9/16] James Lloyd (AUS)
Dylan Molinaro (AUS) v [9/16] Benjamin Ratcliffe (AUS)
[4] Nicholas Calvert (AUS) – [Bye]
[3] Rex Hedrick (AUS) – [Bye]
Cameron Darton (AUS) v [9/16] Lam Shing Fung (HKG)
[9/16] Laouenan Loaec (FRA) v Moeen Ud Din (PAK)
[6] Hafiz Zhafri (MAS) – [Bye]
[7] Naoki Hayashi (JPN) – [Bye]
[WC] Javed Ali (AUS) v [9/16] Ho Ka Hei (HKG)
[9/16] David Turner (AUS) v [WC] Harvey Allan (AUS)
[2] Temwa Chileshe (NZL) – [Bye]

*Women’s First Round Draw: Victoria Open*
[1] Sarah Cardwell (AUS) – [Bye]
Jennifer Condie (AUS) v [9/16] Grace Pattison (AUS)
[9/16] Sophie Fadaely (AUS) – [Bye]
[5] Yasshmita Jadishkumar (MAS) – [Bye]
[8] Ellie Jones (ENG) – [Bye]
Caitlin Purvis (AUS) v [9/16] Sunghee Oh (KOR)
[9/16] Mingyeong Heo (KOR) – [Bye]
[4] Wai Sze Wing (HKG) – [Bye]
[3] Toby Tse (HKG) – [Bye]
Carina Loi (AUS) v [9/16] Jihyun Lee (KOR)
[9/16] Lam Po Ying (HKG) – [Bye]
[7] Riffat Khan (PAK) – [Bye]
[6] Aiman Shahbaz (PAK) – [Bye]
Courtney Scholtz (AUS) v [9/16] Yura Choe (KOR)
[9/16] Maria Kalafatis (AUS) – [Bye]
[2] Akari Midorikawa (JPN) – [Bye]