Whilst Egypt's Ramy Ashour continues to lead the May Dunlop
PSA Men's World Squash Rankings by a considerable margin, it is the
presence of 11 countries in the top 20 - representing four continents -
which provides the most noteworthy aspect of the new list published
today by the Professional Squash Association.
Swiss star Nicolas Mueller, his country's highest-ranked player
of all-time, moves up into the top 20 to add Switzerland to
Egypt, England, France, Spain, Germany, Botswana, Australia,
Netherlands, South Africa and India with players whose
success on the PSA World Tour have earned them places in the
elite top 20 group.
Further representation from Malaysia, Colombia, Finland, Hong Kong,
Kuwait, New Zealand and Canada see players from 18 countries
- and all five continents - in the top 40.
"To
have a top twenty in any sport with this breadth of countries being
represented is fantastic," said PSA CEO Alex Gough.
"It
shows another sign that squash is being played on a truly global front
and we are very proud of this fact. We will continue to keep growing the
sport to all corners of the globe."
Ashour, the reigning world champion from Cairo, holds his lead over
England's world number two Nick Matthew, while Frenchman
Gregory Gaultier leapfrogs England's James Willstrop to
reclaim third place.
Mohamed El Shorbagy
also rises above fellow Egyptian Karim Darwish to take over fifth
place, while England's Peter Barker does the same to Egyptian
Amr Shabana to regain the No7 position.
Outside the top 20, several players mark career-high rankings -
including France's Gregoire Marche at 29 after his surprise
quarter-final appearance in last month's Grasshopper Cup in
Switzerland; Kuwaiti Abdullah Al Muzayen at 33 following his 14th
Tour title success at the Burgan Bank Challenger 10 on home soil;
and New Zealand's Campbell Grayson at 37 after winning the
Houston Open in the USA.
