IRELAND'S Derek Ryan advanced to the last eight of the Hong Kong squash Open yesterday when he beat England's Paul Johnson in a tough five set contest (10-15, 15-5, 12-15, 15-12, 15-11). The Irish champion found himself chasing the match from early on as the world number 21 took the first and third games but Ryan fought his way out of a tight corner in the fourth, in which he trailed 12-10, to square things up again and force his rival into a decider.

In it he fell 10-8 behind but held his nerve through the closing stages to clinch the match and earn a quarter final clash with second seed Rodney Eyles of Australia.