HCL and SRFI To Host PSA and Asian-level Junior Open in Delhi

56 players from 12 countries to participate in the 4th HCL SRFI Indian Tour – Delhi, vying for a cash prize of $6k each in the men’s and women’s categories. Over 290 players to participate in HCL 12th Indian Junior Open, Delhi

Dr. S Jaishankar, Union Minister for External Affairs and Anurag Singh Thakur, Union Sports Minister at Squash court of Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium. (File photo) 

Khel Today Bureau

New Delhi: HCL, a leading global conglomerate, along with the Squash Rackets Federation of India (SRFI) is all set to kick off its HCL SRFI Indian Tour – a Professional Squash Association (PSA) from 28th January and HCL 12th Indian Junior Open from 30th January at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, Delhi. Both events are part of the HCL Squash Podium Program that aims to provide Indian players an opportunity to compete against the world’s best on their home turf and gain international ranking points. Also, the multi-pronged program is working towards improving the Squash ecosystem in India.

To ensure that Squash enthusiasts do not miss out on the opportunity to see their favourite players in action, all matches will be streamed live on the SRFI Facebook page (www.facebook.com/indiasquash) and HCL For Sports Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/HCLForSports/). Matches will also be streaming on the HCL & India Squash YouTube channels (www.youtube.com/user/HCLEnterprise and www.youtube.com/c/IndiaSquash ) respectively.

Details of the two upcoming Squash tournaments:

HCL SRFI Indian Tour – a Professional Squash Association (PSA) event will be held from 28th January to 1st February 2023 in Delhi. 56 players from 12 countries have registered to participate and will compete for the prize money of $6K each in men’s and women’s categories. The 12 countries include Egypt, Hongkong, Serbia, France, Bahrain, Japan, Northern Ireland, Kuwait, Sri Lanka, Korea, India and Canada. Leading players like Abhay Singh (IND, World Rank-70), Yassin Elshafei (EGY, World Rank -78), Amina Orfi [U19] (EGY, World Rank – 94), Nadeen Kotb (EGY, World Rank- 104) will be participating in the PSA Tour. This PSA tour will be the third leg of 2022-23. The last two editions were held in Chennai and Jodhpur. The schedule of the matches is available here: https://www.psaworldtour.com/tournament/4th-hcl-srfi-indian-tour-delhi-2023/

HCL 12th Indian Junior Open will be held from 30 January to 03 February 2023 in Delhi. Over 290 players from India, USA, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, England and Singapore have registered for the tournament. This will be a six-star tournament by SRFI and a Platinum status event under the Asian Squash Federation calendar. Through this event, HCL aims to boost the ranking of Indian junior players and exposure to play with some of Asia’s best junior players. This annual tournament has been helping squash players since the last 12 years to get better seeding in the Asian and World Junior Championship. The junior event will have age groups of U/11, U/13, U/15, U/17, and U/19. Four junior men and women (including Anahat Singh (IND, Asian Rank #1) participating in this tournament will also be representing India in the HCL Asian Junior Team Championship scheduled on 8th to 12th February in Chennai. The schedule of the matches is available here:https://www.tournamentsoftware.com/sport/draws.aspx?id=77c0397c-8760-4b92-a78f-c93e8dca048b

HCL has been supporting Squash in the country for over seven years now. PSA Tours, High-Performance Camps, Referee Clinics and Training Camps for coaches are all initiatives part of the HCL Squash Podium Program.

About HCL

Founded in 1976 as one of India’s original IT garage start-ups, HCL is a pioneer of modern computing with many firsts to its credit, including the introduction of the 8-bit microprocessor-based computer in 1978 well before its global peers. Today, the HCL enterprise has a presence across varied sectors that include technology, healthcare and talent management solutions and comprises three companies – HCL Infosystems, HCL Technologies and HCL Healthcare. The enterprise generates annual revenues of over US$12.3 billion with more than 222,270 employees operating across 60 countries. For further information, visit www.hcl.com

About SRFI

The Squash Rackets Federation of India (SRFI) was formed to oversee the promotion and development of the sport in India. The SRFI has more than 20 state associations and affiliated units with its headquarters in Chennai. The federation is affiliated to World Squash Federation/Asian Squash Federation & recognized by Government. of India. SRFI has been forging ahead with dynamic plans ensuring promotion, development, and performance of the sport at all levels.