KEY POINTS
- The Karachi Open will feature a $243,000 prize purse.
- Top players will compete in the tournament.
- Pakistan’s Noor Zaman, World U23 champion, and local wild cards Tayyab Aslam and Nasir Iqbal are among the home-grown players.
KARACHI: Pakistan will host its most high-profile squash tournament in more than two decades when the PSA World Tour Gold Karachi Open takes place from January 6–11, 2026, at the DA Creek Club.
The Karachi Open, a prestigious PSA World Tour Gold event, will be held from January 6-11, 2026, at the DA Creek Club, offering a total prize purse of $243,000. This event marks the first top-tier PSA event in Pakistan in two decades.
Return to Elite Squash
The tournament will feature both men’s and women’s competitions, each offering $121,500 in prize money.
Organizers confirmed that five of the world’s top 10 male players and three of the top 10 women have already signed up, solidifying Pakistan’s return as a key destination for elite squash.
Top Players Set to Compete
The men’s draw will be led by Karim Abdel Gawad, the former world champion and current World No. 5 from Egypt, who has already won the Karachi Open in 2022.
Gawad, with his eight-match winning streak in Karachi, is one of the favourites for the title.
Other top contenders include Marwan ElShorbagy (World No. 7), Youssef Ibrahim (World No. 6), and Mohamed ElShorbagy (World No. 1), now competing for England. Mohamed Zakaria (World No. 11) rounds out the top six seeds.
Pakistan’s rising star Noor Zaman, the World U23 champion, will headline the home-grown players, joined by Muhammad Ashab Irfan, Tayyab Aslam, and Nasir Iqbal. Tayyab and Nasir have received wild cards to compete in the main draw.
Women’s Competition
In the women’s event, Amina Orfi (World No. 3) from Egypt, who is also the reigning World Junior Champion, will lead the women’s draw.
Sivasangari Subramaniam from Malaysia (World No. 6) is seeded second, with Fayrouz Aboelkheir (World No. 9) from Egypt as the third seed.
Sana Bahadar and Mariam Malik, both from Pakistan, have earned wild cards for the main draw.
Economic Boost for Karachi
The Karachi Open marks the most expensive squash tournament to be held in Pakistan since the 2003 World Open in Lahore, which had a $175,000 prize purse.
Karachi’s squash scene has been slowly rebuilding, with the city previously hosting the World U23 Championships in April 2025, offering $60,000 in prize money.
Reviving Squash in Pakistan
For Pakistan, a nation that produced squash legends like Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan, the return of high-profile PSA events is a step toward revitalizing the sport.
Officials hope that the PSA World Tour Gold Karachi Open will accelerate the revival of competitive squash in the country and reconnect Pakistan with its historic squash legacy.
