Women’s Squash Tour III Preview: Arseniev Ready For Home Event

The final event of the week on the Challenger Tour will be the Women”s PSA Squash Tour III, with action coming from Squash Club Moscow once again.

The venue, based in the Russian capital, is hosting its seventh event of the year, and once again, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament is being run with domestic restrictions.

World No.152 Varvara Esina will be the top seed for the Challenger 3 level tournament, with Maria Arseniev and Varya Kliueva as her nearest competitors, with the trio having an average age of just over 16.

Kseniya Borkova, Olga Kuznetsova, Ekaterina Glinchikova, Mariya Golubeva and Olga Esina will make up the rest of the top eight seeds for the event which starts on Saturday morning.

We spoke to the tournament’s No.2 seed, Maria Arseniev, prior to the event, and she believes she is ready to go in Moscow.

“I feel that I am in good physical condition now and ready to play this tournament,” she said.

“I’m glad to be playing not only in my home country, but also in my club since I don’t have to waste any time adjusting to the courts or a new environment. I expect to get to the finals, and afterwards, I’ll try and show my best.”

Arseniev only made her debut on Tour at the Squash On Fire Open earlier this year, and she admits that it was overwhelming at first, but she is now into the swing of things.

“The Squash on Fire Open was pretty overwhelming since it was my first PSA tournament, but I’ve played a couple more since then and I feel more comfortable playing professional tournaments,” the Russian explained.

“I feel that I’ve learned to deal better with the pressure and focus on my match instead of the results.”

The event takes place from Saturday 11 to Sunday 12 December at Squash Club Moscow in Russia. Follow the PSA Challenger Tour on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates from the event.

First Round Draw: Women’s PSA Squash Tour III
[1] Varvara Esina (RUS) v [WC] Naida Saidova (RUS)
[WC] Olga Arhangelskaya (RUS) v [5] Olga Kuznetsova (RUS)
[8] Olga Esina (RUS) v [WC] Anastasia Spitsina (RUS)
[WC] Alexandra Kotkina (RUS) v [3] Varya Kliueva (RUS)
[4] Kseniya Borkova (RUS) v [WC] Natali Sedova (RUS)
[WC] Alexandra Pikulina (RUS) v [6] Ekaterina Glinchikova (RUS)
[7] Mariya Golubeva (RUS) v [WC] Mariya Kozlova (RUS)
[WC] Ulyana Burlakova (RUS) v [2] Maria Arseniev (RUS)