NZ's own Paul Coll ( left) and England's Mohamed ElShorbagy will be competing in the Robertson Lodges NZ Men's Open tournament this week. Photo / Sandra Conchie
NZ's own Paul Coll ( left) and England's Mohamed ElShorbagy will be competing in the Robertson Lodges NZ Men's Open tournament this week. Photo / Sandra Conchie
The New Zealand Squash Open tournament returns today after a 30-year hiatus.
Forty-eight of the world's biggest squash stars have arrived in Tauranga for the Robertson Lodges New Zealand Men's Open and the Barfoot & Thompson NZ Women's Open at TrustPower Baypark Arena.
Players will battle it out on the state-of-the-art all-glass court for the lion's share of a US$150,000 ($254,459) prize fund between November 8 and 13.
The last time the NZ Open was held in the country was in 1993.
It follows the four-day inaugural Carrus Nations Cup squash tournament held last week headlined by New Zealand's dynamic duo Paul Coll and Joelle King.
The pair will be playing again this week, looking for redemption after losing to England's Sarah-Jane Perry and Egyptian-English professional Mohamed ElShorbagy on a countback of points 44-45 after the matches were shared.
Tauranga squash legend Dame Susan Devoy, who was presenting prizes at the Nations Carrus Cup finals on Sunday night, said it was "fantastic" to watch so many world-class players.
"You can watch Paul and Joelle and the other world's best play on TV. But there is nothing like seeing them live as it gives you a greater appreciation of how gruelling a sport it is and also how they truly put their bodies on the line for every point.
"It's been fantastic squash and it gave me goosebumps watching Paul and Joelle playing at home. And I'm really looking forward to seeing them in action again during the NZ Open tournaments."
The tournament features players from all corners of the globe, with the men's draw headed by world No 2, British Open champion and Commonwealth Games men's singles and mixed gold medallist Paul Coll from Greymouth.
The men's field also includes players from Egypt, England, India, Qatar, Scotland, the USA, Hong Kong, Hungary, Argentina, Canada, Malaysia and Czechia.
NZ's Joelle King (right) ranked fifth in the world, is competing in the Barfoot & Thompson NZ Women's Open this week. Photo / Sandra Conchie
The women's draw top seed is Joelle King, ranked fifth in the world and a double gold medallist at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, winning the mixed doubles with Coll and the women's doubles with Rotorua's own Amanda Landis-Murphy.
Coll's big rival for the title, the legendary ElShorbagy, opens his tournament against either Charlie Lee from England or Addeen Idrakie (Malaysia) on Wednesday early evening.
In a written statement sent to the Bay of Plenty Times, Coll said: "It's going to be amazing.
"It's the first time in 30-odd years we've had the tournament and the likes of Dame Susan and Stu Davenport on the trophy. I'm just super excited about just getting started."
Other nations playing in the women's open field are England, Belgium, Egypt, Canada, Japan, Scotland, Germany, Australia and Hong Kong, Wales, and the USA.
NZ Open tournament director Wayne Werder. Photo / Sandra Conchie
Tournament director Wayne Werder said he was "very excited" about the impressive lineup.
"We are guaranteed to have another action-packed week of top-class squash with 24 of our world's best men and 24 of our best women's players playing in Tauranga.
"It's great to see Paul and Joelle leading the seedings but they will definitely have other nations' players challenging them for the title."
Werder said Trustpower Baypark Arena was the "place to be" this week and it offered a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see some of these players battle it out live.
There were still tickets available, he said.
NZ Open squash top seeds Joelle King and Paul Coll. Photo / Dscribe Media
