The powerhouse of squash, Egypt will be hosting the sport’s most prestigious and lucrative tournament this year as Cairo has been selected as the venue for the 2016 Men’s World Championships. The event is scheduled to be held at the Wadi Degla Club in the Egyptian capital from October 25-November 4, 2016, the Professional Squash Association (PSA) said in a recent announcement.
This is the 38th edition of squash’s pinnacle event which began in 1976 in London. 2016 will see 112 players descending in the iconic city to take part in this tournament which will give a prize money of over $300,000.
This is the fourth time that the men’s World Championships is being held in the north-east African nation. The last time that Egypt hosted it was back in 2006 which the former top-ranked Australian player and now renowned coach David Palmer won.
Former World No. 1 Gregory Gaultier of France is the defending champion.
Saurav Ghosal will be the biggest Indian star at this event
Among the Indians, the currently 20th ranked Saurav Ghosal will be flying the Tricolour high at the World Open. The 29-year-old had a historic outing at this tournament in 2013 when he became the first Indian to reach the quarter-finals of the World Championships.
Last year, the Kolkata lad was joined by the former Indian national champion Harinderpal Sandhu in the main draw.
New women's event
The PSA has also announced that a brand new women’s PSA W50 tournament will be staged along with the elite men’s event. That is certainly a great move by the PSA and will provide the Egyptian fans a grand opportunity to revel in the squash played by the top stars from both the sexes.
