History for Mexican squash. Leonel Cárdenas has broken into the PSA world top 10 for the first time in his career, becoming the highest-ranked Mexican player in the history of the PSA Squash Tour.
Specifically, the milestone came in the PSA rankings released on November 2, where Leonel climbed to world No. 10. As the PSA Squash Tour put it, he is now the highest-ranked Mexican player of all time. For our region, it is one more sign of how strong squash in the Americas has become.
The PSA Squash Tour celebrates Leonel as the highest-ranked Mexican player in its history. (Image: PSA Squash Tour)
Leonel Cárdenas Reaches the Top 10 After Years of Work
Indeed, the 26-year-old from the State of Mexico has been knocking on the door for some time. In May, he reached a career-high No. 11 and was clear about his next target. “Right now I’m very focused on breaking into the top ten,” he told ClaroSports. Six months later, the goal is complete.
Above all, his recent form explains the jump. In August, he reached the individual final of the Pan American Championships in Asunción. Then, last month, he played the final of the Smart Centres Canada Cup in Toronto against his friend Diego Elias, as we told in our article on Diego Elias’s Canada Cup title. In fact, after that final, Diego said Leonel could break into the top 10 very soon. He was right.
From a Junior Dream to the World Top 10
This achievement has a special story behind it, and it starts at the British Junior Open, one of the most important junior events in the world.
As a boy, he dreamed of finishing in the top 10 of the British Junior Open. Few could have imagined that, ten years later, he would achieve something even bigger: a place among the 10 best players in the world.
Leonel Cárdenas as a junior player. (Photo: SquashSite)
Since then, Leonel has built a career full of results. First, he has won 19 titles on the PSA Squash Tour. Moreover, he took gold in singles, mixed doubles and teams at the 2021 Junior Pan American Games in Cali. Then, at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games, he won silver in doubles and bronze in singles.
What the Leonel Cárdenas Top 10 Means for the Americas
Clearly, Leonel’s rise is great news for our whole continent. With this ranking, the Americas had two players in the world top 10 at the same time: Peru’s Diego Elias and Leonel. As a result, our region arrives at a key moment with real strength at the very top of the sport.
It is also an important moment for Latin American squash. The last time two Latin American players were in the world top 10 at the same time was in 2023, when Colombia’s Miguel Ángel Rodríguez and Diego Elias were both among the best ten. Now, three years later, Leonel Cárdenas and Diego Elias have brought that back.
And the timing could not be better. The Lima 2027 Pan American Games are less than a year away, and the men’s singles champion in Lima will earn a direct place at Los Angeles 2028, subject to Olympic eligibility rules. With Leonel and Diego among the very best in the world, the race for that spot promises to be one of the great stories of the next year. You can learn more in our article on the Lima 2027 squash schedule.
You can follow Leonel and all our players in the PSA rankings and see the announcement on the PSA Squash Tour’s Instagram.
Congratulations, Leonel! From a junior dream to the world top 10, you have made history for Mexico and for the Americas.
