Boston Open 2021 preview
Some of the best squash players in the country – and the world – will visit Boston Squash and Racketball Club this weekend (10th-12th December) for the 24th edition of the Boston Open.
The tournament makes it return after the pandemic meant it was unable to go ahead last year for the first time since the inaugural 1997 event.
It promises to be back with a bang though, because this weekend it’s being held alongside the Lincolnshire County Championship, meaning there’ll be bumper crowds to watch the professionals in action.
The knock-on effects of coronavirus on the squash calendar haven’t prevented the Boston Open from securing the usual high quality of top seeds. In the men’s draw, second seed and former world top 30 player Joe Lee will be trying to defend the title he won in 2019. Declan James makes the short journey from Nottingham to compete as the top seed. The 28-year-old reached the world top 15 in 2019 and is currently world #33.
The women's draw is led by world #35 Julianne Courtice, who finished runner up at the London Open last month. She is expected to face second seed and world #84 Alicia Mead, who has replaced Millie Tomlinson who has unfortunately had to withdraw injured.
The 2021 Open includes entrants from Malaysia, Jersey and Portugal. However, there’s plenty of local interest across the two draws as well, with 3/4 seeds Ben Smith, Harry Falconer and Katie Wells all hailing from Lincolnshire. Ben and Harry have both appeared in the final in previous years.
Tournament organiser Mark Hildred said: “We’re really pleased there’s such a strong field of players for the Boston Open’s return.
“Hosting it alongside the county championship means there’s going to be a real buzz at Boston Squash and Racketball Club this weekend, and it’s a great opportunity to show off our extensively refurbished facilities.
“As always, we must say a big thank you to all our sponsors, without whom the tournament couldn’t go ahead.”
The Boston Open is free to attend and the public are warmly invited to come and watch. The club’s bar overlooks two of the courts and will be serving food and drinks. Full timings are available at bostonsquash.co.uk but play will broadly be from 6pm onwards on Friday and from 11am-7pm on Saturday. Sunday’s finals are at 1 and 2pm.
