OPTIMISTIC. Filipino squash player Robert Andrew Garcia in action during the Alto Group Pennant Hills Open held two weeks ago in Sydney, Australia. Garcia hopes to perform better in his next tournament, the Eastside Open in Hobart, Australia slated for Sept. 14 to 18, 2022. (Contributed photo)
MANILA – Squash player Robert Andrew Garcia from the Philippines bowed out of the Tasmanian Open after losing to Addeen Idrakie at the Devonport Squash Club in Tasmania, Australia on Thursday.
The world No. 177 Filipino fought hard but his best was not good enough against the third-seeded Malaysian, who won the second-round match, 3-0 (11-8, 11-9, 11-9).
Idrakie, ranked No. 8 in the world, has secured a seat in the Final Four following his quarterfinal victory over Temwa Chileshe, 3-1 (5-11, 11-9, 11-3, 11-4).
He will face Robin Gadola of Switzerland, who scored a 3-1 (8-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-9) win over compatriot Yannick Wilhelmi, the No. 7 seed.
Gadola eliminated tournament top seed and world No. 59 Muhammad Syafiq Kamal of Pakistan, 3-0 (14-12, 11-5, 11-3) to reach the quarterfinals of the Professional Squash Association (PSA) Challenger 10 level event.
The other semifinal match will pit No. 2 seed Tzs Kwan Lu of Hong Kong against unseeded Ryunosuke Tsukue of Japan.
Lau, who won the Volkswagen Bega Open last week, downed eighth-seeded compatriot Chi Him Wong, 3-0 (13-11, 11-4, 11-7), while Tsukue stunned No. 5 Lwamba Chileshe of New Zealand, 3-0 (11-5, 11-6, 11-3).
Garcia's next tournament is the Eastside Open in Hobart scheduled on September 14 to 18, the last of his five-leg Australian tour before he returns to the Philippines.
He arrived in Australia on August 14 and has competed in Costa North Coast Open in Coffs Harbour City (August 14-21), Alto Group Pennant Hills Open in Sydney (August 25-28), and the Volkswagen Open in Bega, New South Wales (August 31-September 4).
He had an early exit at the Costa North Coast Open, losing to Australian Nicholas Calvert, 11-13, 7-11, 11-9, 14-12, 11-13, in the first round.
In Sydney where he was the tournament fourth seed, Garcia defeated Malaysian Amir Amirul, 11-7, 4-11, 11-5, 11-5 to book a quarterfinal ticket.
He, however, lost to fifth seed Australian Rhys Dowling, 10-12, 5-11, 11-6, 8-11.
At the Volkswagen Bega Open, Garcia bowed to Hong Kong's Chung Yat Long, 7-11, 11-6, 11-7, 2-11, 9-11, in the first round.
Garcia registered a career-high No. 165 ranking after reaching the quarterfinal round at the Dynam Cup SQ-Cube Open in Yokohama, Japan last May.
He won the mixed team gold and men's singles silver medals during the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. (PNA)
