World No.1s Mostafa Asal and Hania El Hammamy will headline the the Tournament of Champions squash tournament, one of the most prestigious events on the PSA Squash Tour.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asal has 14 major titles to his name but the Tournament of Champions is not one of them. The current men’s world champion is yet to reach a final in New York and will be determined to make 2026 his year as he hunts a 15th major title. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asal will face Fares Dessouky in round one before a potential second-round clash with world Junior champion and World No.11 Mohamad Zakaria.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another player yet to taste victory at the Tournament of Champions is No.2 seed and former World No.1 Paul Coll. The New Zealander will be featuring in the event for the sixth time in his career and would love to claim a first win in the iconic venue and a second major event win of the season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
After an opening round clash with Auguste Dussourd, Coll may potentially face three-time event winner Mohamed ElShorbagy in round two. This year will be the first time that Elshorbagy is not a top 8 seed in a major event since 2010.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are only two other former champions in the men’s draw aside from Elshorbagy. One being Peruvian Diego Elias, who is set to return to major event action for the first time since the season-opening Egyptian Open. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The former world champion is a strong performer in New York, reaching the final in the last four editions, winning in 2023. He’s up against Switzerland’s Dimitri Steinmann in his first round match and sits in the same half as No.2 seed Coll.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
World No.4 Joel Makin and 2017 champion Karim Gawad complete the top 5 seeding positions. Makin is still looking for his first Platinum event win. The Welshman thrives with an energetic crowd and will be looking to use the atmosphere in the Vanderbilt Hall to his advantage. Gawad, on the other hand, is looking to build on his strong form from this season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Egyptian has won a Gold event and reached two major event semi-finals. He’ll be determined\u00a0to start 2026 on the front foot and regain a place in the world’s\u00a0top four.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
New World No.1 Hania El Hammamy tops the women’s draw as she looks to defend her 2025 title and continue her dominance on the female tour. El Hammamy has referenced her Tournament of Champions win last season as a big turning point for her career and a moment that allowed her to go on and achieve the World No.1 ranking. She’ll be determined not to let her ranking slip in the new year, starting with another win in New York. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
World junior champion Amina Orfi has emerged as the main challenger to El Hammamy this season, featuring in two major finals and capturing three titles at Gold and Silver level. El Hammamy is the only player to beat Orfi this season but a maiden Platinum title seems like only a matter of time for the 18-year-old. She’ll take on a qualifier in the opening round before a potential meeting with either Farida Mohamed or Nele Gilis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Five-time event champion Nour ElSherbini is entering this year’s event at her lowest seeding since 2016 as the No.3 in the draw. The Egyptian has dropped to World No.4 after a slightly below par start to the season, but the eight-time World Champion certainly can’t be discounted, especially at a venue where she has had so much success throughout her illustrious career. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
She is situated in the same half of the draw as top seed El Hammamy with the pair set to meet in the semi-finals if they avoid defeat in the early rounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The leading home player in the competition is World No.5 Olivia Weaver. The 30-year-old often saves her best squash for events on home soil, February 2024 was the last time that she failed to reach the semi-finals or better in a US PSA event. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Still yet to reach a Platinum final, Weaver will be hoping to harness the home crowd support to give herself a chance of a major title. As the No.4 seed, she’s in the same half of the draw as No.2 seed Orfi but may need to defeat No.5 seed Sivasangari Subramaniam in the last eight if the pair progress to that stage.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
More home players who will be well backed by the New York crowd are Amanda Sobhy, Marina Stefanoni and Timothy Brownell. Plus wildcards Dillon Huang and Laila Sedky. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is a further wildcard spot up for grabs in each draw, which will be decided through a qualification event.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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