RESULTS: Buler Challenge Squash Cup, Hong Kong
Men’s Final:
Leo Au (HKG) bt [3] Kamran Khan (MAS) 13-11, 11-9, 11-3 (50m)
Women’s Final:
[2] Donna Urquhart (AUS) bt [1] Annie Au (HKG) 11-13, 11-5, 7-11, 11-7, 11-9 (50m)
Second-seeded Australian Donna Urquhart denied the local crowd an Au family double in the Buler Challenge Cup when she upset Hong Kong's top seed Annie Au in the final of the women’s $16,000 WISPA World Tour squash event in Hong Kong.
Both players had reached the climax after surviving five-game semi-finals – and Au, the 21-year-old world No17, twice took the lead in the final.
But Urquhart, who overtook her opponent in the September rankings to secure a career-best 16th place, held her nerve to claw back the advantage before winning 11-13, 11-5, 7-11, 11-7, 11-9 after 50 minutes.
The victory marks the 23-year-old from Brisbane's fifth career title – but her first of the year. It will also undoubtedly boost Urquhart's confidence going into next week's Soho Square World Open in Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt, where she is drawn to face New Zealand's 16th seed Jaclyn Hawkes in the opening round.
The final of the men's $6,000 PSA World Tour event also produced a surprise outcome when unseeded Leo Au – Annie's younger brother – pulled off his fourth shock win a row in the event by beating third-seeded Malaysian Kamran Khan 13-11, 11-9, 11-3 in 50 minutes.
The new men's champion, aged 20 and ranked 174 in the world, is celebrating his maiden PSA Tour title – and can surely look forward to a significant rise in his PSA world ranking.