English teenager Declan James reached more than 200 places above him in the PSA world squash rankings to overcome fourth seed Andrew McDougall in the first round of the Squashworks Salt Lake City Open, the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 event at Squashworks in Salt Lake City, USA.
It was after despatching two opponents to survive the qualifying competition that James, an 18-year-old from Nottingham ranked outside the world top 300, recovered from a game down to beat Canadian McDougall 7-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-4 in 65 minutes.
Another Canadian now stands in James's way of reaching the semi-finals. Matthew Serediak, a 27-year-old from Toronto, beat fellow countryman Adrian Dudzicki 7-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-9.
Top seed Julian Illingworth single-handedly carries home hopes in the event which is back on the PSA calendar after six years. The record seven-time US champion beat Mexican qualifier Armando Olguin 11-4, 11-3, 11-5 - and will now take on Canadian David Letourneau for a place in the last four.
In a match described by tournament organiser Craig Bennett as the "match of the first round", Scottish qualifier Lyall Paterson led Alfredo Avila 2/0 and 8-6 in the third game, but was unable to extend his lead as the Mexican - ranked almost 200 places above - battled back to win 6-11, 8-11, 11-8, 11-5, 11-7 in 75 minutes.
RESULTS: PSA Challenger 10 Squashworks Salt Lake City Open, Salt Lake City, USA
1st round:
[1] Julian Illingworth (USA) bt [Q] Armando Olguin (MEX) 11-4, 11-3, 11-5 (30m)
David Letourneau (CAN) bt Lucas Serme (FRA) 11-3, 11-7, 11-5 (40m)
Matthew Serediak (CAN) bt Adrian Dudzicki (CAN) 7-11, 11-7, 11-5, 11-9 (45m)
[Q] Declan James (ENG) bt [4] Andrew McDougall (CAN) 7-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-4 (65m)
[3] Christopher Gordon (USA) bt [Q] Cameron Stafford (CAY) 11-7, 11-6, 11-5
Erik Tepos Valtierra (MEX) bt Wade Johnstone (AUS) 11-6, 11-5, 11-3 (35m)
Alfredo Avila (MEX) bt [Q] Lyall Paterson (SCO) 6-11, 8-11, 11-8, 11-5, 11-7 (75m)
[2] Shawn Delierre (CAN) bt Fernando Lopez (MEX) 11-3, 11-6, 11-7 (39m)
Quarter-final line-up:
[1] Julian Illingworth (USA) v David Letourneau (CAN)
[Q] Declan James (ENG) v Matthew Serediak (CAN)
[3] Christopher Gordon (USA) v Erik Tepos Valtierra (MEX)
[2] Shawn Delierre (CAN) v Alfredo Avila (MEX)