Every year at the start of the season I try to focus an article on some of the players to watch on the PSA Squash Tour, and I think it's about time I did that again!
This season is a bit tricky for a few reasons, so, I wanted to wait for a few tournaments to be played before I wrote this article. The reason was that I wanted to see which players stuck out as being capable of making big progress this season.
Call me a pessimist, but if I'm being brutally honest, I don't think the top 10 or even the top 15 will change a lot this season in either the men's or women's rankings.
Players will, of course, move around within the top 15, but I can't see any major disruptions or changes happening to the players who are already there.
That's not to say we won't have any exciting revelations in the top 5, top 10, or even some new World No.1s, but, I want to use this week's article to focus on the underdogs, the players returning from injury, and the younger players who are flying up the rankings from a little lower down.
These players, in my opinion, are set to make big waves this season and they're certainly worth looking out for if you get the chance to watch them play (either in person or on SquashTV)...
So, let's dive in!
Here are my 6 players to watch this PSA Squash Tour season.
Jonah Bryant
There's a reason why Jonah is first on the list, and that's because he just had a major result in the 2024 PSA Budapest Open.
If you haven't heard of Jonah Bryant yet, it's a name you better get to know!
Born 15 Jul 2005, Jonah is currently 19 years old and he's already taken some pretty big scalps.
In Budapest, he overcame English compatriots Patrick Rooney (3-0) and Declan James (3-1) in the final. Now, it is important to mention that both Rooney and James are coming back from injuries, however, they're still unbelievably good squash players with a heck of a lot of experience under their belts.
At the time of writing this, Jonah sits at World No.64, and, according to his PSA profile, has 56 professional matches under his belt (winning a staggering 78% of them) as well as 10 titles.
Bryant is set for quite the career in professional squash which is great to see. Another factor that bodes very well for the young Englishman is the fact that he's coached by none other than Rob Owen.
For those of you who don't know, Owen is one of the best coaches in professional squash, coaching the likes of Paul Coll, Nele Gilis, Sarah-Jane Perry, Katie Maliff, and plenty more.
He has an undeniable impact on the games of any player he coaches, and, for Jonah to have been under Rob's wing from a young age is a very very good thing for his future.
I've had the pleasure of seeing Jonah play in person when he dismantled a friend of mine in an inter-counties competition last season.
He's got an incredible way of playing. He's patient, consistent, unbelievably fast, and, when he wants to, he produces some astounding racquetwork to hit winners from all over the court.
I'm pretty certain he'll make the top 50 this season, but, to see him reach the top 30 or even higher would be awesome and absolutely within his reach in my opinion too.
Make sure to look out for Jonah Bryant!
Lucy Beecroft
Lucy is another name I have to mention.
First off, Lucy is a sponsored member of our team (Team CT), so I must admit I'm a little biased, however, Lucy's progress last season was incredible and I think she has what it takes to keep the momentum going.
Lucy and I also grew up in the same town (Newcastle Upon Tyne, England), are similar ages, and attended a lot of the same junior tournaments around the country, so I've had a first-hand view of her progression over the years and it's been amazing to see.
Aged 28, Lucy currently sits at World No.27, however, just a couple of months ago she reached her highest ranking of 20. I believe she is suffering from an injury at the moment which may explain the slight drop, but, from what I know, she'll be back in action in no time!
Lucy has played 161 matches on the PSA Squash Tour, winning 90 of them, and, she's reached 13 finals and won 5 titles.
If you've ever watched her play, you'll have seen Lucy's trademark straight kill shot. She does this from all over the court, but, I find it most impressive when she plays it from the back.
Lucy plays with pinpoint accuracy, power, and a very fluid movement from corner to corner.
Towards the end of last season, she was pushing the later rounds of larger tournaments, and, she was also getting closer and closer to taking the scalps of some top-ranked players.
If I was a betting man, I'd say that this is Lucy's season to make a big push to reclaim her spot in the top 20 and then see how high she can climb!
Fingers crossed her injury is sorted as soon as possible, then, make sure to watch her if you get the chance.
Amanda Sobhy
Sobhy is another big name to watch this season!
Southpaw Sobhy as she's otherwise known, the USA-born left-hander is an absolute pleasure to watch. Her positive attitude combined with her fighting spirit has made her real force to be reckoned with amongst the top players.
Currently ranked at World No.10, Sobhy reached a career-high of World No.3 in October 21, and, since then, has consistently pushed and entered the top 5 again and again.
However, Amanda has unfortunately had horrendous luck when it comes to injuries.
She ruptured her achilles back in 2016 which required surgery and a heck of a lot of time off the squash court for rehabilitation (not to mention that being a particularly painful injury to endure).
Sobhy's bounce back from that injury was absolutely astounding, by 2019 she was back in the top 10 and did drop out of it again until...
Amanda unfortunately ruptured her other achilles in the 2023 Hong Kong Open final against Egypt's Hania El Hammamy. This was one of the most heartbreaking things I've seen in professional squash.
I remember watching the match and seeing her go down. Sobhy knew straight away what had happened (since she'd experienced the same injury before), and she was understandably absolutely devastated.
At the time, Sobhy had been producing some unbelievable squash and was really making moves to penetrate the rock-solid women's top 3.
For those of you who don't watch as much professional squash, for the past few years, the women's top three has been dominated by three Egyptian players in particular, Nour El Sherbini, Nouran Gohar, and Hania El Hammamy.
I was rooting for Sobhy every time she came up against one of the big three, and, this Hong Kong final was a big chance for the American to make a major statement against El Hamammy.
But, it wasn't meant to be and, since then, Sobhy has been in recovery mode yet again. She posted regular updates to her social media to show her progress, and, this is why I like her so much as a player.
I can't even imagine how tough it must have been to accept the fact that she was going to have to go through all that rehabilitation yet again. It's a mental challenge that not many sports professionals in the world will ever have to endure.
But, she remained positive and upbeat, and she's now back in action yet again on the PSA Squash Tour. What's even crazier is that she only dropped to World No.11 once while injured, and, now she's back playing she's already back in the top 10.
Some Sobhy stats: with 16 years on the tour, Amanda is an experienced veteran with a lot more in the tank, she's played a whopping 435 matches (winning 301 of them), she's also made 29 finals throughout her career and won 20 of them.
I've managed to watch a couple of Sobhy's matches since she returned to the tour again and she's looking very strong. She's absolutely one to watch this season and I'm really hoping to see her pick up where she left off before the injury.
I'll be rooting for Amanda to reach that top 5 again and I'd love to see her start pushing and beating those top three players too.
Photo credit: Steve Cubbins
Curtis Malik
Yes, I know I'm being biased by including yet another English player, however, Curtis Malik is going to be a big name on the PSA Squash Tour by the end of this season, I would bet my bank on it.
Curtis was usually in one age group below mine when I was a junior. I think I may have played him once or twice in tournaments where he played an age group higher (since he was too good for his age group).
I'm unsure whether I ever beat him or not, but I do remember him always being at the very top of his age group.
Aged 25, I think Curtis has been on the PSA Squash Tour for a good few years, however, I believe that it's the past couple of years in which he's gone all in on professional squash.
He's flown up the rankings incredibly fast. Currently ranked at World No.35, Malik has taken some major scalps so far and is starting to push those big names more and more.
He has played 181 and won 110 of them. He's also made 22 finals and won 13 titles already. These are numbers I expect to increase massively.
In the past year, Curtis overcame the likes of Greg Lobban, Cesar Salazar, and Mohamed Abouelghar.
Having watched him play this year at our inter-county competition, Curtis is extremely patient, unbelievably fast, and has a grit and determination that only comes from relentless and consistent training.
I can honestly say that Curtis, and indeed the entire Malik family, are absolute squash machines.
Team Malik, as they are named on their website (yes you heard that right, the Malik family squash website), consists of Curtis, Perry, Torrie, Bailey, and Heston.
The family does a heck of a lot in the world of squash, doing family coaching events and sessions at various clubs as well as running charity events under the name of 'Sunshine 4 Sumner', in memory of Sumner Malik who passed away on the 11th August 2018 from a rare brain tumour known as DIPG.
This is a family that lives, breathes, and gives everything to, the world of squash.
This season, I'd say that Curtis is one of the biggest names to watch and I think he's going to advance a heck of a lot further up the rankings. I think he could be top 20 pretty soon if he keeps going the way he is.
And, indeed, the entire Malik family is also worth keeping an eye on. In the women's rankings, Torrie has already reached her highest world ranking of 55, and, the younger brothers will be climbing and improving more and more with age.
Mohamad Zakaria
Now, we look at an even younger up-and-comer, Egypt's Mohamad Zakaria is a superstar and could very well be the future of the game.
Aged just 17, Mohamad is now ranked 41 in the world with 49 matches under his belt, 38 wins, 8 final appearances, and 6 titles.
He's off to a pretty cracking start for someone who is still a junior.
I haven't had the pleasure of watching Zakaria play yet, however, when I told a friend of mine about the topic I was writing about this week, he said I had to mention Mohamad.
I have heard a lot about the young Egyptian and his name has been popping up all over my social media. I've seen a good few clips of him too, but, I've never actually watched one of his matches, so I'm not in much of a position to talk about his game style.
With that said, from what I've heard and from the clips I've seen, he's explosive, passionate, and full of creative winners that are hit with pinpoint accuracy.
Zakaria holds the record for being the youngest ever winner of the junior world championships, being aged just 15, which is eight days younger than previous record holder Jansher Khan in 1986 and 28 days younger than Ramy Ashour, the last 16-year-old to win, in 2004.
He's also a 4x national champion and British Junior Open under 19 champion.
His junior career was superb, and, if that's anything to go by, his professional career is shaping up to match that.
In his professional career so far, Zakaria has overcame players such as Curtis Malik (coming back form 2-0 down), lost a narrow 3-2 against Victor Crouin (the current World No.12), beaton Simon Herbert 3-0, and beaten George Parker 3-2.
So yes, he's definitely one to watch. By the sounds of his fiesty explosive style of play, I think he's got what it takes to execute some shock wins this season.
I'm thoroughly excited to see what he produces.
Amina Orfi
Now, Amina Orfi is a name you're very likely to have heard if you do keep up to date with the PSA Squash Tour. Aged just 17 (the same as Mohamad Zakaria), the young Egyptian has flown up the rankings and currently sits at World No.12.
This is an absolutely incredible feat for such a young player, and, if you've ever watched her play, you'll know for a fact that Orfi can hold her own against the best players in the world right now.
I have no doubt that she will make it into the top 10 this season, and I think she's got what it takes to climb higher.
Her age does not reflect her squash at all. In my opinion, she plays as though she's a veteran on the tour.
Amina has that attacking, assertive Egyptian style of play where she takes balls early and applies a lot of pressure using pace, however, she keeps her head well and seems to be able to endure those long, arduous matches incredibly well.
Orfi has had 62 matches on the PSA Squash Tour so far, she's won 45 of them, made 8 finals, and won 5 titles.
She recently made the third round of the 2024 CIB Egyptian Open and took the current World No.1, Nour El Sherbini, all the way to five games, losing 11-9 in the fifth. If that doesn't sum up what this youngster is capable of, I don't know what does.
Orfi seemingly came out of nowhere in 2023 (most likely due to her young age). However, in that season, she went from being outside the world’s top 400, to hitting a career-high of World No.43 in June 2023 (in just 12 months).
Amina has consistently reached later and later stages of the big events, proving her ability to play at a top 20 standard over and over again.
Now, being just above her career-high world ranking of World No.11, Orfi is at the top of her game so far, and, of course, has a heck of a lot more time to improve and climb the rankings.
We'll be seeing big things from her this season, that's for sure!
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