The inaugural night of the Optasia Squash Super League is finally upon us, with two blockbuster fixtures coming your way from the Bexley Lawn Tennis, Squash & Racketball Club and the Coolhurst Tennis & Squash Club.
The highly-anticipated debut night of action will see the Bexley Ballers host the St George’s Hill Knights, and the Coolhurst Cavaliers square off against the Leamington Royals.
Every second of action will be available to watch live and for free on SQUASHTV, with play getting underway at 19:00 (GMT). Full replays of both fixtures will be available to view on the England Squash YouTube Channel.
Read below to see the world-class line-ups each team has fielded and the tantalising matchups that await fans this evening.
To keep up to date with all the latest information, follow the Squash Super League on X, Facebook, Instagram or TikTok.
Bexley Ballers (BB) v St George’s Hill Knights (SGK)
Men’s: Mazen Hesham (BB) v Joel Makin (SGK)
It’s World No.5 Mazen Hesham against World No.8 Joel Makin in what could be a blockbuster men’s match between the Bexley Ballers and the St George’s Hill Knights.
Both players have been in standout form of late, with Hesham reaching the semi-finals of the most recent Platinum event on the PSA Squash Tour, the U.S. Open Championships, and Makin winning the biggest title of his career last month at the Silicon Valley Open.
The pair met in the last-16 stage of the U.S. Open, a match which Hesham clinched in three closely-fought games, with the larger head-to-head record sitting at three wins a piece.
What a match this is set up to be.
Women’s: Georgina Kennedy (BB) v Jasmine Hutton (SGK)
Two British National champions take to the court in the women’s match of this fixture, with current World No.7 Georgina Kennedy and World No.21 Jasmine Hutton representing the Bexley Ballers and St George’s Hill Knights, respectively.
Hutton, the winner of the British National Championships in 2022 and 2023, is currently two spots off her highest-ever world ranking, while Kennedy has cemented herself as a consistent member of the world’s top ten over the last few years.
Expect a lightning-fast-paced game between these two, with both players renowned for their attacking prowess and speed around the court.
U25s: Dylan Roberts (BB) v Bailey Malik (SGK)
Dylan Roberts of the Bexley Ballers will face Bailey Malik of the St George’s Knights in what could prove to be an extremely exciting U25s match.
Both players are regarded as some of the best young English squash players on the circuit, with Malik, 18, recently winning the British Junior Championships in Sheffield, capturing the title from his No.1 seeding. Meanwhile, Roberts, a year younger than Malik, finished fourth in this same competition.
Club Hero: Jack Mitterer (BB) v Miles Jenkins (SGK)
Bexley Ballers’ Jack Mitterer will be looking to draw off a fervent home crowd as he takes on Miles Jenkins of the St George’s Knights in the club hero match of this fixture.
The pair most recently met at the British National Championships in 2023 at the St George’s Hill Lawn Tennis Club in what proved to be a hard-fought clash, which Jenkins eventually edged in four games.
This match will be the first of the evening, getting underway at 19:00 (GMT) on SQUASHTV.
Coolhurst Cavaliers (CC) v Leamington Royals (LR)
Men’s: Karim Abdel Gawad (CC) v Declan James (LR)
Former World Champion Karim Abdel Gawad marks his debut for the Coolhurst Cavaliers with an enticing encounter against the Leamington Royals’ Declan James.
Gawad, the current World No.7, will be looking to overturn defeat to James in last season’s London Classic – a tournament in which James was a Wildcard and was played in the same best-of-three format in use during the Optasia Squash Super League.
James has also been in a rich vein of form of late, reaching four straight finals on the PSA Squash Tour and claiming two titles. However, the Englishman will have to be at his very best to replicate last season’s success and conquer ‘The Baby-Faced Assassin’.
Women’s: Hana Ismail (CC) v Satomi Watanabe (LR)
World No.11 Satomi Watanabe will take on Egyptian rising star Hana Ismail in the Leamington Royals versus Coolhurst Cavaliers women’s fixture – a match which will be the pair’s first-ever meeting on the professional circuit.
Watanabe, the Japanese No.1, is currently sitting at a career-high position in the women’s world rankings after reaching the final of the Silicon Valley Open last month, in what was a career-best result. Ismail, meanwhile, has been making waves on the PSA Tour this calendar year, winning four titles in 2024 and recently reaching the semi-finals of the London Open.
U25s: Kiera Marshall (CC) v Mariam Eissa (LR)
Two up-and-coming English players will square off in the women’s U25s match between the Coolhurst Cavaliers and the Leamington Royals, with Kiera Marshall and Marian Eissa taking to the court.
15-year-old Eissa – already making waves in the sport and recently capturing the U19s British Junior Championships title – stands ready to become one of the league’s youngest sensations. Meanwhile, Marshall, 23, will enter the match full of confidence after recently recording a semi-final finish at the London Open.
Club Hero: Damian Duckett (CC) v Sam Cross (LR)
Damian Duckett of the Coolhurst Cavaliers and Sam Cross of the Leamington Royals will be first up on court in this fixture as they both look to get their respective teams off to winning starts.
Duckett and Cross will kick off their match from 19:00, with the full match available to watch live on SQUASHTV.
