Aberdeen squash player Chris Leiper will compete in back-to-back PSA tournaments over the coming fortnight.
Leiper will face England’s Hasnaat Farooqi in the first round of the Commercial Water Solutions Grange Open, having been selected as a wildcard for the tournament which takes place between December 1-5.
Thurso’s Fraser Steven has also received a wildcard entry for the Edinburgh event, with Inverness pair Inverness pair Alasdair Prott and Martin Ross also among the Scottish entrants.
Leiper will have a quick return to action the following week, when he faces Englishman Ben Hetherington in the first round of the Lockerbie Challenger on December 8.
The tournament will run until December 12, with Prott and Ross also involved.
Leiper is currently ranked 357th on the PSA World Tour, and reached the semi-finals of a Scottish circuit event in August before losing 3-1 to Elgin’s Fergus Richards.
The 28-year-old said: “After a tough 2021 for players and clubs in Scotland, it’s great to see more clubs looking to put on events to raise the profile of the game and provide opportunities for competitors to play.”
World Team Squash Championship disappointment for Richards
Richards has been left with disappointment however, after the WSF Men’s World Team Squash Championship in Malaysia was cancelled.
The decision to call-off the event, which was due to be held between December 7-12, has been taken due to concerns over the new Omicron Covid-19 variant.
In a statement, WSF president Zena Wooldridge said: “We’re extremely disappointed to announce that this year’s WSF Men’s World Team Squash Championship has been cancelled.
“Together with SRAM, we have worked very hard to put the event on against the backdrop of the global COVID-19 pandemic, which had already caused us to move the event from Tauranga in New Zealand.
“I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to the International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Council of Malaysia for their unwavering efforts to influence the highest authorities of Malaysia to ensure the ability of all participating teams including Israel to enter Malaysia and compete, without any political discrimination, in accordance with the principles and rules of the Olympic Charter.
“It is important to WSF that no nation who wishes to compete misses out on the event.
“I’d like to thank SRAM and its President Gerard Monteiro, for the hard work they had put into planning the event prior to this decision.
“Our focus now turns towards 2022 and we will work closely with our Member Nation Federations as we look to put a robust calendar of events in place next year.”
