By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor
Peru’s Diego Elias has broken back into the top five after the PSA men’s world rankings for April were released today (April 1).
Elias enjoyed a strong spell either side of Christmas, winning the Qatar Classic and the Motor City Open in Detroit.
After suffering a disappointing second round exit to Spain’s Iker Pajares Bernabeu at the Windy City Open, Elias bounced back to reach the final of the Optasia Championships in Wimbledon, before achieving a semi-final finish at the GillenMarkets Canary Wharf Classic in March.
Elias beat Mohamed ElShorbagy to reach the Optasia final, where he lost to Ali Farag, and finished on the losing end of a fractious 127-minute battle against Mostafa Asal at Canary Wharf.
Those tournaments have elevated the 25-year-old above former world champion Tarek Momen, who drops down to No.6. New Zealand’s Paul Coll stays at No.1 ahead of Farag, Mohamed ElShorbagy and Asal, who make up the rest of the top five.
ElShorbagy’s younger brother, Marwan, stays at No.7, while Fares Dessouky moves up two spots to No.8 following his title win over Mazen Hesham at the Canary Wharf Classic. Joel Makin drops to No.9, while Hesham completes the top 10.
A runner-up finish at the Windy City Open, his first Platinum final appearance, has seen Youssef Ibrahim rise six places to No.11, while former World No.1 Karim Abdel Gawad climbs a single spot to No.12.
Frenchman Gregoire Marche falls two places to No.13, with Colombia’s Miguel Rodriguez dropping two places to No.14. Youssef Soliman remains at No.15.
Mohamed Abouelghar falls two spots to No.16, while India’s Saurav Ghosal slips to No.17. Iker Pajares Bernabeu moves up five places to No.18, breaking into the top 20 for the first time. Baptiste Masotti rises a position to a joint career-high ranking of No.19, while Eain Yow Ng completes the top 20.
Iran’s Alireza Riaz is the biggest mover on the men’s tour, rising 132 places to No.619 after reaching the quarter finals of the Commemoration Of The Martyrs Of The Iranian Navy Army and appearing at the Zahra Dental Clinic event.
PSA Men’s World Rankings Top 20 – April 2022.
Picture and graphic courtesy of PSA