The Peruvian ‘Puma’ began the year being number 5 in the world, but his victories and titles achieved in recent months have allowed him to place himself in the second box of the world ranking. In fact, so far in the 2022-23 season, Diego has won 4 titles: two platinum (US Open and JP Morgan Tournament of Champions) and two silver (Motor City Open and Pittsburgh Open). The last three mentioned were obtained in this 2023.
In his last tournament, the Optasia Championships, in England, he had to retire in the middle of the second round due to discomfort in his leg, according to himself. However, that will not prevent him from climbing to number one in the PSA ranking in April and becoming the first South American and Peruvian to reach that position (the first American was Canadian Jonathon Power in 1999). How did the national squash player achieve this achievement?
This is how Elías will rise to the top of the PSA
The latest results on the circuit have favored Diego Elías. Currently, the Egyptian Mostafa Asal is the number 1 in the world. But, just like in tennis, in squash points expire as the season progresses. Only the points obtained in the last 12 months are worth and it is averaged depending on how many tournaments the player has played in that period; For example, if he played between 10 and 13 events, only the 10 events where he scored the highest will count.
Asal, then, will lose the points he won at the 2022 British Open, held between March 28 and April 3 of last season, where he reached the semifinals. To this is added that he has not been able to continue adding because on March 20 it was confirmed that he was suspended for six weeks for “dangerous play” during the CIB Egyptian Open 2022. That will cause him to lose his position next month and drop to third box with 15,580 points. This is observed in the ‘live’ ranking of the PSA.
Diego, on the other hand, is in second place and for April 3 he will remain with 15,840 points, so he will fly to first place due to Asal’s loss of points, surpassing him by only 260 points. The Egyptian, being punished, will not compete in the British Open this year. Which means that there are no threats on that side for the national athlete. However, who is lurking is the also Egyptian Mohamed El Shorbagy.
Shorbagy could have ruined the party for the rojiblanco ‘Puma’. And it is that if the African won the Optasia Championships, he was going to be the one who became the number 1 of the PSA. However, he fell, just like Diego, in the second round. In this way, as of April 3, he will be the 2nd in the world with 15,790 points, 50 behind Diego Elías. That is why the championships that follow will be fundamental in this fight for first place.
current ranking | Sportsman | Country | Points |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Mostafa Asal | Egypt | 16,270 |
2 | Diego Elias | Peru | 15,840 |
3 | Mohamed ElShorbagy | Egypt | 15,790 |
4 | paul coll | New Zealand | 14,620 |
5 | ali farag | Egypt | 14,585 |
The next tournaments of the ‘Puma’
To date, Diego has two events on the agenda. The first is the British Open 2023, one of the most important on the circuit, in the platinum category, which will take place between April 9 and 16 in Birmingham. Then, he will travel to the United States to play the Squash World Cup in Chicago, between May 3 and 11.
The next tournaments on the tour are the Manchester Open 2023 (silver) and El Gouna International 2023 (platinum), although Diego, at the moment, is not registered in any of them, as can be seen on the PSA website. For now, he has to focus on his recovery so he can be fit for the British Open and fight to remain number one in the world ranking.
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