Chuah and Rouqaia clinch HCL PSA Challenger Squash titles in Chennai
Synopsis
Malaysia's Joachim Chuah swept the men's final in 39 minutes while Egypt's Rouqaia Othman survived a five-game women's final — both top seeds delivering at the HCL PSA Challenger Tour in Chennai. For India, Sanya Vats remained the lone bright spot, the only home player to reach the semifinals in either draw across the event.
Key Takeaways
Joachim Chuah (Malaysia) won the men's title at the HCL PSA Challenger Tour-Chennai , defeating Adham Roshdy (Egypt) 12-10, 11-7, 11-8 in 39 minutes .
Rouqaia Othman (Egypt) claimed the women's title, beating South Korea's Hwayeong Eum 11-6, 10-12, 19-21, 11-7, 11-8 in 44 minutes .
India's Sanya Vats was the only home player to reach the semifinals, losing to Rouqaia 11-4, 11-2, 11-5 .
The Chennai event was the second of two consecutive PSA Challenger stops in India; the first was held in Mumbai at the Juhu Vile Parle Gymkhana Club .
India's Tanvi Khanna won the women's title at the Mumbai leg, defeating Farida Walid in five games.
Joachim Chuah of Malaysia and Rouqaia Othman of Egypt — the top seeds in the men's and women's draws respectively — claimed the titles at the HCL Squash PSA Challenger Tour-Chennai, held at the Indian Squash Academy in Chennai on Wednesday, 15 July. Both finals went to contrasting scripts: Chuah's was clinical, Rouqaia's a five-game marathon.
Men's Final: Chuah Dominates in 39 Minutes
Joachim Chuah dispatched Egypt's Adham Roshdy in straight games — 12-10, 11-7, 11-8 — in a final that lasted just 39 minutes. The Malaysian top seed never allowed Roshdy to settle, maintaining pressure through each game and converting the opener in a tighter-than-expected 12-10 finish before pulling away decisively.
Women's Final: Rouqaia Survives Five-Game Thriller
Rouqaia Othman overcame South Korea's sixth seed Hwayeong Eum in a gripping 44-minute encounter, winning 11-6, 10-12, 19-21, 11-7, 11-8. Eum pushed the Egyptian champion to the limit, taking the third game in a punishing 19-21 contest, but Rouqaia regrouped to take the fourth and fifth games with authority. In the semifinals, Rouqaia had beaten India's Sanya Vats convincingly — 11-4, 11-2, 11-5 — to book her place in the final.
Indian Campaign Falls Short
The tournament offered limited cheer for the home contingent. Sanya Vats, seeded fourth in the women's draw, was the only Indian to advance beyond the quarterfinals, having beaten eighth seed compatriot Unnati Tripathi in four games in the last eight. On the men's side, second seed Suraj Chand rallied from a game down to beat Kuwait's Ammar Altamimi — 6-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-6 — in the pre-quarterfinals, but fell in the next round.
Others to reach the quarterfinals included men's seventh seed Om Semwal and women's third seed Rathika Seelan, eighth seed Unnati Tripathi, and Pooja Arthi Raghu. Ananya Narayanan also won her first-round women's match against Janet Vidhi in four games. None of them, however, progressed past the last-eight stage.
Context: Back-to-Back PSA Challengers in India
The Chennai event was the second of two consecutive PSA Challenger Tour stops held in India. The preceding tournament, staged at the Juhu Vile Parle Gymkhana Club in Mumbai, saw India's Tanvi Khanna — seeded third — produce a remarkable fightback to win the women's title, defeating Egypt's second-seeded Farida Walid 8-11, 2-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-7 in 45 minutes, also avenging a 2-3 defeat suffered against the same opponent in January this year. The men's title in Mumbai went to M. Syafiq Kamal, who beat Egypt's Yassin Shohdy 6-11, 9-11, 11-8, 14-12, 11-8.
Together, the two back-to-back Challenger events underscored India's growing stature as a host for elite squash, even as the country's players continue to work toward consistent results at the business end of international draws.
Point of View
Yet the on-court results tell a more complicated story. India produced a women's champion in Mumbai — Tanvi Khanna's five-game comeback was genuinely impressive — but in Chennai, no Indian player made it past the semifinals in either draw. The gap between hosting elite squash and producing elite squash players at the Challenger level remains real, and the sport's administrators would do well to treat these results as a benchmark rather than a celebration.
NationPress
15 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won the HCL PSA Challenger Tour-Chennai men's title?
Malaysia's Joachim Chuah won the men's title, defeating Egypt's Adham Roshdy 12-10, 11-7, 11-8 in a straight-game final lasting 39 minutes at the Indian Squash Academy in Chennai on 15 July.
Who won the women's title at the PSA Challenger Tour-Chennai?
Egypt's Rouqaia Othman claimed the women's title, beating South Korea's Hwayeong Eum 11-6, 10-12, 19-21, 11-7, 11-8 in a five-game thriller that lasted 44 minutes.
How did Indian players perform at the Chennai PSA Challenger?
India's Sanya Vats was the only home player to advance beyond the quarterfinals, reaching the semifinals before losing to Rouqaia Othman. All other Indian entrants — including Suraj Chand, Om Semwal, Rathika Seelan, Unnati Tripathi, and Pooja Arthi Raghu — were eliminated at the quarterfinal stage or earlier.
What was the Mumbai PSA Challenger result that preceded the Chennai event?
At the HCL-SRFI PSA Challenger Tournament in Mumbai, India's Tanvi Khanna won the women's title, defeating Egypt's Farida Walid 8-11, 2-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-7 in 45 minutes. The men's title went to Malaysia's M. Syafiq Kamal, who beat Egypt's Yassin Shohdy 6-11, 9-11, 11-8, 14-12, 11-8.
Where was the HCL PSA Challenger Tour-Chennai held?
The tournament was held at the Indian Squash Academy in Chennai. It was the second of two consecutive PSA Challenger Tour events staged in India, following the Mumbai leg at the Juhu Vile Parle Gymkhana Club.
