Stage set for another enthralling Australian Junior Open
Published Fri 11 Apr 2025
The Australian Junior Open continues to attract huge numbers and the 2025 edition is no exception with well over 200 players set to descend on Melbourne Sports & Aquatic Centre from Sunday 13 April.
Due to the tournament’s growth in recent years, the event has been extended to five days with the champions set to be decided on Thursday 17 April.
Strong performances by the Under 19 competitors will impress selectors ahead of the 2025 World Squash Junior Championships in Egypt this July. A number of Under 17 competitors will compete in the Under 19s in order to be considered for selection.
The AJO is held across 10 divisions, with boys and girls individual tournaments staged from Under 11s through to Under 19s.
Players from every state and territory will take on competitors from 11 nations, with many now making the trip to Melbourne an annual event.
“There has always been a really strong number of entries from throughout Australia for the AJO, however where we continue to see growth in the event is the number of international competitors and nations represented,” said Tamika Hunt, Squash Australia General Manager, Events.
“The reason we’re seeing so many international competitors come to Melbourne is the quality of the event. The AJO is now one of the leading tournaments in the southern hemisphere in terms of quality, and the venue at MSAC ticks all the boxes.
“Players who come to the AJO from overseas generally don’t make it a one-off trip - we continue to see them come back year after year.
“From the moment the first ball is hit until the trophies are raised, the venue will be buzzing for five days straight and we’re going to see some incredible squash from the future stars of our game.”
Sydney’s Thomas Scott (NSW) caused an upset last year by taking out the Boys Under 19 title. New Zealand’s Oliver Dunbar was taken down in the semi-finals in 2024 and missed the opportunity to face Scott in the Final, however he returns again as top seed looking for redemption and is in good form having taken down a player ranked in the world’s top 60 during the recent NZ Open.
Queensland’s Sarbani Maitra, an U17 playing up an age group, will be hoping to replicated her U19 Australian Junior Championship (AJC) victory last year into an AJO crown. Victoria’s Joanne Joseph is the second seed in a Girls U19 competition stacked with talent. Six of the top eight seeds have all played for their country at the World Junior Championships, including New Zealand’s Ella Hill.
Pakistan’s Mehwish Ali is back to defend the Girls U17 title but will face stiff opposition from the likes of 2024 AJC U17 winner Eden-Alma Poulava (NSW), 2024 AJO and OJC U15 winner Tina Ma (VIC) and 2024 AJC U15 winner Emilia Scott (NSW).
The U17 Boys competition sees the top four seeds all coming from different states around the country: Stanley Chung (NSW), Andreas Christou (WA), Bryce Correa (SA) and Connor Haberecht (VIC). Moving up an age group are 2024 AJO U15 runner-up and AJC champion Henry Kross (NSW) along with the player he defeated for the AJC crown, Joel Raj (QLD).
In the U15 Girls competition, Japan’s Emily Senior comes in as top seed after taking out the last two AJO titles at U13 level. Pakistan’s Sehrish Ali is the second seed followed by South Australia’s van Zon twins - Olivia and Nadia - who are the top-ranked Australian players in the age group after Ma and Scott moved up to the U17s.
Pakistan's Nauman Khan tops the U15 boys seedings ahead of Queensland’s James Boswell and South Australia’s Kanishk Doddam Reddy, while WA’s Domenic Christou and Kaveen Kohombange from NSW will all be hoping to play through to the final day of competition.
Mahnoor Ali will be hoping to go one better in the U13 Girls competition having been beaten by Senior in last year’s final. Cleo Poulava (NSW) was runner up at the 2024 AJC and will be looking to push through to the pointy end of the tournament along with 2024 AJC U11 winner Abbey Boswell (QLD).
Aleister Loo (VIC) was the U11 Boys champion last year but steps up an age group where China’s Yuanxi Liu is the top seed. NSW’s Benjamin Boardman took out the 2024 AJC title and is second seed in a division boasting a strong contingent of players from Pakistan.
There will be new champions crowned in the Under 11 age groups, with China’s En Ze Guo and Sydney’s Ruisha Chu filling the boys and girls top seedings.
The 2025 Australian Junior Open is an Australian Junior Squash Tour Platinum event with Glass Show Court (Court 1) matches being streamed LIVE on SquashAUS.TV .
Play commences at 8:30am on Sunday 13 April.
Click here for draws and results.
Squash Australia thanks the Victorian Government for their ongoing support of the Australian Junior Open.
