Tom Richards and Olivier Pett both registered first round wins in the PSA World Tour International 70 squash in Canberra.
Third-seeded Englishman Tom Richards survived a heavy collision with the side wall during his 11-7, 11-7 14-12 win over Malaysia’s Kamran Khan.
At 9-9 in the third, Richards was wrong-footed and dived into the wall, resulting in a three-minute injury break. But when he returned he was able to save game ball and eventually win a tense match in the tie-break.
“The tour is so strong now that there are really no easy matches at big tournaments,” Richards said. “I skipped the Olympics and spent some time in Malaysia so I could get my body used to the time zone.”
And, young Englishman Olivier Pett was very impressive in his 11-4, 11-5 11-7 win over Hong Kong’s Dick Lau and will play Ramy Ashour in the second round.
RESULTS: PSA International 70 Hi-Tec Australian Open, Canberra, Australia
1st round (top half of draw):
1 Ramy Ashour (EGY) bt [Q] Kashif Shuja (NZL) 11-6, 11-6, 11-6
Olivier Pett (ENG) bt [Q] Dick Lau (HKG) 11-4, 11-5, 11-7 (29m)
Leo Au (HKG) bt [Q] Aqeel Rehman (AUT) 11-7, 11-7, 10-12, 11-6 (47m)
6 Nicolas Mueller (SUI) bt [Q] Aaron Frankcomb (AUS) 11-5, 11-7, 11-6 (38m)
8 Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (MAS) bt [Q] Gonzalo Miranda (ARG) 11-7, 11-5, 11-5 (25m)
Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY) bt Campbell Grayson (NZL) 11-3, 2-11, 11-7, 11-7 (52m)
Zac Alexander (AUS) bt Rex Hedrick (AUS) 11-8, 7-11, 11-2, 11-3 (51m)
4 Cameron Pilley (AUS) bt Matthew Karwalski (AUS) 11-7, 11-5, 11-7 (34m)
1st round (lower half of draw):
3 Tom Richards (ENG) bt Kamran Khan (MAS) 11-7, 11-7, 14-12 (59m)
Ryan Cuskelly (AUS) bt Muhd Asyraf Azan (MAS) 11-5, 11-9, 11-8 (50m)
Martin Knight (NZL) bt [Q] Justin Beard (AUS) 11-5, 11-9, 9-11, 11-4 (49m)
7 Alan Clyne (SCO) bt Siddharth Suchde (IND) 11-7, 11-5, 11-8 (41m)
5 Ong Beng Hee (MAS) bt Ivan Yuen (MAS) 12-10, 11-8, 11-7 (47m)
Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY) bt [Q] Evan Williams (NZL) 12-10, 11-5, 11-8 (33m)
Jan Koukal (CZE) bt [Q] Mike Corren (AUS) 11-5, 11-2, 11-4 (27m)
2 Omar Mosaad (EGY) bt Max Lee (HKG) 11-2, 12-10, 11-4 (37m)
2nd round line-up:
1 Ramy Ashour (EGY) v Olivier Pett (ENG)
6 Nicolas Mueller (SUI) v Leo Au (HKG)
8 Mohd Nafiizwan Adnan (MAS) v Omar Abdel Aziz (EGY)
4 Cameron Pilley (AUS) v Zac Alexander (AUS)
3 Tom Richards (ENG) v Ryan Cuskelly (AUS)
7 Alan Clyne (SCO) v Martin Knight (NZL)
5 Ong Beng Hee (MAS) v Amr Khaled Khalifa (EGY)
2 Omar Mosaad (EGY) v Jan Koukal (CZE)