Hong Kong qualifier Leo Au and Kent veteran Ben Ford pulled off shock victories in the first round of the Kent Open, the PSA World Tour Challenger 10 event at The Mote Squash Club in Maidstone in the English country of Kent.
Au, the 21-year-old world No 117, beat Finland's number three seed Henrik Mustonen in straight games. That surprise result was soon followed by another as Ford, the 35-year-old wild card from nearby Bexley, ranked 150 in the world, overcame Frenchman Fabien Verseille, ranked 51 places higher.
Ford's superb touch at the front of the court provided the decisive factor as he took advantage of any loose shots from his opponent.
After Ford had won the opening two games by the same 11-9 margin, Verseille dominated the third but he was surprised as Ford hit back to finish strongly in the fourth, winning the final five points from 6-6 to clinch a quarter-final slot against number two seed Max Lee, one of three Hong Kong players in the competition.
Lee overcame qualifier Chris Fuller 12-10, 12-10, 11-9 in a desperately close match despite the 20-year-old Englishman opening up substantial leads in each game.
Lee's compatriot Au played superbly to beat Finnish number two Mustonen, the world number 60 from Hollola. Au won the opening game 14-12 after a dramatic tiebreak sequence and this boosted his confidence as he grew stronger in each of the next two games, clinching victory in 35 minutes of high-quality squash.
Au's opponent in the quarter-finals is a third Hong Kong representative, world No82 Dick Lau, who ended the involvement of the qualifying competition's lucky loser Philip Nightingale, the Englishman who was awarded a place in the main draw following the surprise withdrawal of top seed Joey Barrington.
Top seed Chris Ryder beat regular training partner Chris Truswell and meets fellow Englishman Eddie Charlton, who played superbly to beat Pakistan's former world No40 Yasir Butt, winner of last week's Tour event in his home town Lahore.
Four young Englishmen provided two outstanding matches, with world No 119 Olivier Pett surviving two match balls against 20-year-old qualifier Ben Coleman before winning the longest match of the night in 78 minutes in five games of outstanding squash.
In the quarter-finals he meets former British Under-23 champion Joel Hinds, the world No74 who beat James Snell in straight games.
RESULTS: PSA Challenger 10 Kent Open, Maidstone, England
1st round:
[2] Max Lee (HKG) bt [Q] Chris Fuller (ENG) 12-10, 12-10, 11-9 (56m)
Ben Ford (ENG) bt Fabien Verseille (FRA) 11-9, 11-9, 6-11, 11-6 (53m)
Olivier Pett (ENG) bt [Q] Ben Coleman (ENG) 12-14, 11-7, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7 (78m)
[4] Joel Hinds (ENG) bt James Snell (ENG) 13-11, 11-6, 11-8 (35m)
[Q] Leo Au (HKG) bt [3] Henrik Mustonen (FIN) 14-12, 11-8, 11-4 (35m)
Dick Lau (HKG) bt Philip Nightingale (ENG) 11-9, 11-1, 11-8 (35m)
Eddie Charlton (ENG) bt [Q] Yasir Butt (PAK) 11-9, 11-9, 12-10 (53m)
[1] Chris Ryder (ENG) bt Chris Truswell (ENG) 7-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-3 (49m)
Quarter-final line-up:
[2] Max Lee (HKG) v Ben Ford (ENG)
[4] Joel Hinds (ENG) v Olivier Pett (ENG)
[Q] Leo Au (HKG) v Dick Lau (HKG)
[1] Chris Ryder (ENG) v Eddie Charlton (ENG)