A Squash Player's Journal

The year ahead

2012-01-05T11:39:00.000-08:00

There is a lot to take from 2011 with hope of putting all the knowledge to good use this year. Squash is good and the moral, confidence and motivation are high. Work still needs to be done in many areas which is challenging but at the same time great fun - especially with the off court life that professional Squash brings. Apart from preparation, results are of utmost importance. I am planning carefully to travel to various sized events in different parts of the world for yet another year. The quest is to push the ranking up as high as possible by choosing and then performing at the better tournaments on the world circuit.
PS ...

After a much needed break at the end of last month, I am back training in Leiden. To start again is always hard and the body is sore from the fitness work in the first week. The weekend will help settle it and I will be ready for a hard second week. Training with Bart van Agteren, Piedro and Raj has been working well and I plan to keep up with what we did last year and make enhancements along the way.

The first half of the year will see me continue playing in Europe as far as I have planned. Their are plenty of league matches and tournaments planned till March. The Irish tournaments in April are always good to play and I will be entering those as well. The primary goal of the year is to push the ranking back up to where it was two and a half years ago. The body has been responding well to training and I am confident of achieving this goal.

Let's see what 2012 has in store for us all.

PS ... try this when you're on court next.

Czech & Slovakia

2011-12-12T02:18:00.001-08:00

Formerly united, the states of Czech and Slovakia are hosts to the next two events in my tournament schedule. One again I will be in uncharted territory as I head off to Bratislava and Prague for the first time. I am seeded in both these small events in a strong field of players led by the top seed, Czech national champion and world no.42 Jan Koukal. Training has been excellent and I travel to these events with increased confidence. Apart from the Squash, I also look forward to visiting these two historic countries in hope of finding time to absorb their history and culture during my ten days trip from 15 to 25 December.

SynotTip Open
Prague 21-23 December

23/12/11 - The Final
If you've worked hard for a long time in training and throughout the tournament and got to the final and then totally control a game and lead 10-7 and then ... lose that game to go 0-2 down, you probably don't deserve to win.However, if you forget about the previous games, re-focus, work hard and keep fighting and lead 10-8 and then ... lose the game again - you definitely don't deserve to win.

Forutnately, its not the end of life. Let's enjoy Prague!

19/12/11
The four hour train journey from Bratislava to Prague passed quickly with the Squash boys. On arrival we caught a taxi from the train station straight to the hotel and got settled in quickly. Eager to see the much anticipated city, we set off to the town centre to have a look around. The thirty minutes trip was easy and economical and we were in the heart of town. Coming out of the underground stop of Muztek, we were staring at the beautiful National Museum building. The main street of the square looked magnificent at night. We also saw a lot of candles and people gathered together to mourn the death of an ex president and popular political figure the day before. We took a walk into the old town finishing at the old town square which looked fascinating - I was captivated by Prague.

20/12/11
The SquashSquash Club Praha is located within a ten minutes' walk from the hotel. It is a great multisport facility with a lot of history. I had a good practice hit which gave me a good feel of the court. The panel courts are slower but it's going to be hot and bouncy when the temperature rises with the crowds coming in. The tin seems higher than the 19 inches it's supposed to be which will make for longer match times. All this and much more needs to be looked into when formalising a game plan.

Later in the evening, local Squash star Jan Koukal took us out for dinner at his favourite restaurant and a scenic drive around the city. Prague is amazing! The architecture and the preserved Old Town with all it's streets and road, with the river, the bridge and the castle (main picture) are absolutely breathtaking. On top of all that, the public transport is great and eating out is very affordable. I look forward to exploring more of the city once the squash is finished.

21/12/11
The Squash started for me today as I got past travelling buddy Robbie Downer in 4 games. Robbie played well but I guess experience prevailed in the end.

After dinner back at the hotel, the organiser couple Ondrej (also a PSA member) and Vanda took us out for another scenic trip of town. Both of them had thorough knowledge of local history and both Frank Hartkoren and I were impressed. As much as Ondrej knew, he was still unaware of the local trams stopping in the middle of the road as he braked all of a sudden - 24 years and still learning about his city! Overall we had a great time - thanks a lot guys!
22/12/11With both the quarter and semi final matches being played today and with the first match starting at 10, it was going to be an early and long day. I played Czech no.2 Petr Martin in the quarters. In the first rally of the match my back seized up all of a sudden. It felt tight, restricted and sore. After the initial shock I took time to stretch a bit and tried to avoid moving to the front which seemed very hard. My opponent seemed more like a shot player and with signs of me struggling he attacked as much as he could. A few winner and a few errors from both of us and luckily I took the first game. I had a stretch in between games but it didn't seemed to help the cause. I went on with the same strategy and helped by petr's errors and some of my desperate winners I took the match in 3.It was frustrating to not be able to get a physio nor massage appointment anywhere. I improvised and did the best I could with a warm bath, icing, stretching, pain killers and some volatren thermo pads. By the time of the semi, I felt better but not great.In the semi I was up against the talented youngster Lucas Serme of France. The second seed in my half, Brad Hindle had to withdraw due to a niggling hip with made way for Lucas to get through after beating Andre and Ondrej. The match started well but I struggled with my back. I took the very important first which was a confidence booster and my back loosened up well. I was down in the second by a couple of points but did well to win that one to go 2-0 up. I could see he was drained after all the work. However, I relaxed a bit mentally and the work affected me as well. He caught a sniff and did well to win the third and pushed hard to win the fourth. I changed tactics in the 5th and played my natural game mixing short and long very well to take the final game 11-3. It was a 70 minute match and recovery would be the key to have a good final against the capable top seed Jan Koukal.

First look at Squash Club Praha

Wenceslas Square - Prague

Imet Open
Bratislava 16-19 December
My Czech Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Bratislava was cancelled as they decided to cease this route even though bookings had been made and paid for. However, they offered good service to the ones affected and we were offered flights to Prague or nearby Vienna. I thought about my options and after getting in touch with a couple of local players I decided to fly to Vienna. Good friend, Austrian Squash player Aqeel Rehman would be driving through Vienna on his drive from Salzburg to Bratislava and was kind enough to offer to pick me up on the way. Looks like we have a short but interesting roadtrip on the cards.

The Tournament
They say small tournaments are usually the best and it certainly proved true in the case of this event in Bratislava. There was great atmosphere at the cozy Squash club. There are many people working with the tournament and I got the key to my room through one of them. We have been put up in the newly bit apartments just above the squash courts which is so convenient. Players were treated to lunch, drinks and local desserts. In the evening the club hosted a wonderful welcome party with more food and entertainment with professional singers and dancers. There was also some fun games for the players including dancing with the pros! Overall, a great start to the event - only if every tournament was like this.

However the result didn't go my way. After clearing the first two rounds against much younger Welsh and Swiss opponents, I met Aqeel in the quarters. Aqeel played some good Squash and stretched me all the way. After a bad first game, I recovered to take the next two and had matchballs in the fourth. He hung in there to save them and take the game to a tie break. I was lucky to win the last two points and avoided the match to go to the fifth game.

In the semifinal I was up against the in form Steve Finitsis. I felt I played and controlled the game well but errors at crucial stages of each game cost me badly. He capitalised on my mistakes and played well to avoid me getting into the match as I went down in 3 games in 44 mins.

Even though the loss hurts, I am not too disappointed with my performance. I know that I have my rhythm back and just need to persist and remain focused. After thorough analysis of the matches, the attention and energy needs to be directed to the next tournament which promises to be another good event. I look forward to Prague.

To be updated regularly through the trip.

Imet Squash Club, Bratislava

O2 Cup - Warsaw

2011-11-25T06:41:00.001-08:00

The PSA World Tour heads to Eastern Europe for a series of small tournaments confirmed in region over the next few months. The players will be competing in atleast four tournaments in Poland and one each in Czech Republic and Slovakia. It will be my first time in this part of the world which has eluded me so far. My first event will be in Warsaw, Poland where I am seeded second amongst a field of some good players. After four weeks of training, atleast one tournament and plenty of league matches under my belt, I set off to Poland looking for a win.

The Travel

After a 90-minute flight from Amsterdam, we were in Warsaw where we were met by a smiling Wojtek (Woy-tek). He was picking three of us at the same time and had to take the day off for the numerous trips to and back from the airport - to the appreciation of all players. On the way to the club he told me that Kahuna Squash and Badminton was built, owned and run by his family and both him and his brother worked there full time. He is passionate about Squash hence a PSA event at his club. In 20 minutes we were at the facility which was very nice and cozy. The players have been put up in apartments conveniently located - 500 meters away from the club. I sat at the club for a little while and soon headed off to the apartment to check in. Dinner and some TV followed freshening up and later I caught up with my room mate Rasmus Nielsen. It had been a good day of travelling and settling in and now it was time for a good sleep.

The Squash
My first round opponent was a young Englishman by the name of Daniel West. Dan played pretty well in front of his adopted home crowd and was quick around the court. He hit some good winners but eventually I managed to close it out with some old fashioned steadiness. My quarterfinal opponent was another Englishman Steve London. He had played a hard 80-minute match the day before and struggled against me. I managed to keep the pace up for the whole match and was happy to get off court after quick three games. In the semi final I faced Chris Truswell. Chris is one of the fast improving young players based in Birmingham. I played well to take the first but lost focus towards the end of the second to lose that one. I was glad I was able to put it behind me and regain focus to win the next two games convincingly - I was through to the final.

In the final I started very well and took the first 11-7. He responded well and took the next 11-5. At 1-1, I knew the third game was crucial. Maybe I put too much pressure on myself and lost focus on the game plan. After a few mistakes and trailing a few points I started doubting myself and handed the game to him without much resistance. I had to put it behind me but I knew I was in trouble. I found my momentum again started controlling play like in the first. At 4-4 I made the silly mistake of talking to the ref. I lost focus once again and found myself down 4-8. I fought back hard and made him do a lot of work but he could see the finish line and kept pushing - eventually winning the game 11-8 and the match 3-1.Even though I am disappointed with the loss, there are a lot of positives. I started well, fitness was good and controlled play when I was focused. Just the lack of confidence bugs me a little but I guess that is natural when one is coming back from injury. I will learn from this and definitely grow in confidence in my game once again. The most successful thing for me was that I missed all those drops of sweat on the floor and came out without any tear in the body this time.

A loss is always disappointing. However, there were times in the match where I felt in the zone like I have on the way to the best wins of my career so far. I feel things are falling in place and I am not far away. I am happy with the progress on many fronts since the injury two months. With two more events to go for the year I feel I can take this momentum and finish the year on a high. Next year will bring bigger and brighter opportunities.

The Walk
Our host and new PSA member, Polish no.1 and Talented Mr Ripley look alike Wojtek took us for a walk in town. We had a good look around new and then later on, old Warsaw. Only 10% of the old city remains after the rest was bombed in the second world war. We ate at a nice Polish restaurant and tried Steak Tartare. The chef brought a kitchen bench on wheels to our table and we saw it being prepared. Fresh meat sliced time and time again until it was mince and mixed with anchovies and herbs and presented to us - completely raw!

Afterwards we walked an alternate way out of the town centre and through war memorials and a park. It was soon time to head back to the hotel as it had been a long and tiring day. Little that I knew that the night had more in store for me.

The Story
After our outing in the city we got back to the hotel at around 10pm. I wanted to check my email but the phone wasn't in my jacket. I thought it might be in my jeans but not there either. I remember using it in the taxi and realized that I might have dropped it there. After the initial shock I recovered and decided to call another cab to go back to the place in town where we came from in hope of finding the same taxi and hopefully my phone. I had been on a similar adventure in Rotterdam when the taxi driver drove off with our bags and even though I was anxious, I felt confident of finding my phone as well.

I called another taxi from the hotel which came quite quickly but leaving was another matter. The driver didn't speak English and didn't know where to take me. It was hard enough telling him my story let alone telling him that I only had US dollars and had to find a way to pay him. After struggling for five precious minutes, he dialed a number and passed me the phone. It was his daughter who spoke English and helped interpreting between us two. Soon after that we were on our way. After 20 anxious minutes we were at the place where I had taken the previous taxi. I was very lucky to find the same taxi and soon after that, the driver as well. He had my phone in his hand and before anything else I started thanking him loudly. The phone was back with me - to my great relief! The bar nearby helped me change the dollars I had into Zlotys and even though I got much less than I would have from a money changer, I was happy to get some cash at nearly midnight on Sunday! I went back to my taxi and in 20 minutes I was back at the hotel - this time with the phone in my hand.

The Video
A walk in Warsaw

Special thanks to Wojtek and his family for looking after us and running a good tournament.
Kahuna Squash and Badminton

The World Open

2011-10-29T12:00:00.000-07:00

It is that time of the year when players from all over the world get together to compete for the honour to be World Champion. This year the players will travel to Rotterdam to play for this prestigious title. My one hour train travel will be the least travel time to any international event. In hope of doing better than my best finish of last 32 in 2008 in Manchester, I look forward to my 10th World Open in 15 years.
Pre match
With two weeks off from another accident on court, I had ten days to prepare. I made the most of it and feel in good form. I will be in familiar surroundings in Rotterdam having played the Dutch Open there twice as well as playing league matches. The draw is as strong as it could be and the competition will be fierce. Unseeded, I am hoping for a good draw and two wins in the qualifying rounds to get to the main draw.

Post match
However, the shortest travel to an event also made it the quickest for me to finish. The hamstring flared up again after Wednesday night's league match and my first round opponent Amr Swelim was too good to allow me a chance to get into the match. After a close first where I survived by avoiding going to the front, I was denied going further in the event by 3 games to nil. Very fustrating!

One has to be realistic and I can only be patient to let the leg heal properly before training again. From last year's experience, it will take atleast two more weeks before I am ready to train again. In the mean time I can keep working in any way I can and enjoy watching the Squash. I will be going down to Rotterdam regularly to watch the matches.

1993 World Championships

2011-10-14T03:57:00.000-07:00

Their rivalry lasted 7 years from their first round clash at the 1986 Pakistan Open to their World Open final in 1993.

Watching a YouTube clip on the two JKs takes me down memory lane where I was witness to one of the greatest events in Squash - The 1993 World Open and Team Championships.

I was a keen 14 year old who convinced his dad to send him to Karachi - a 90 minutes flight from Islamabad. He submitted to my requests and I was on my way to witness history in a once in a lifetime experience.

I was lucky to be staying at the Pearl Continental which was the tournament hotel. All the big names were there and I was excited in their presence. Bumping into the stars of Squash while hanging out in the lobby and at meals was daily routine. The atmosphere of the event was awesome - in the true sense of the word.

The Squash was simply amazing and I watched the matches from the qualifying rounds right till the end of the teams event.

In the top half of the draw, Jansher was too strong for his opponents in the earlier rounds. I remember him disposing off a young Peter Nicol comfortably before beating Rodnye Eyles in the quarter final. He met the determined Peter Marshall in the semi who was backed by English National coaches Jonah Barrington and our very own Paul Wright. He was determined to give Jansher a tough match but Jansher was too strong. He patiently moved Peter around the court and tired him out eventually to get through to the final without dropping a single game.

In the bottom half, Jahangir beat Ross in a fast pace last 16 match before a close 3/0 against Brett Martin at the quarterfinal stage. The accuracy, strength and precision of the strokes of both the players was intimidating. Jahangir was expected to face Rodney Martin in a much anticipated semi-final. Rod had beaten Jahangir in Qatar just a couple of weeks ago. However, Rodney was suffering with an injured hip and could hardly lunge. He went down to Chris Walker in the quarters. Jahangir went on to beat Chris in the semi comfortably to get to the final.

The final was a dream match. The two JKs had played each other 36 times before then with the head to head score shared at 18-18. With a crowd of 2000 cheering at every point, the atmosphere was electrifying. The players came on court with a standing ovation and the beat of pumping Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan music.

The match started at a fiercely intense pace. Jansher looked under pressure but his game plan and abilities would be hard to beat. Jahangir was cheered on by a huge crowd of hometown supporters and was determined to win the title and retire as World Champion. Jansher made his intentions very clear from the start of the match – it was going to be long and hard. Jahangir on the other hand was hitting near perfect length and going short very well. Jansher was matching the drives and getting everything back. Jahangir had two game balls at 14-12 and Jansher saved them both. At 14-14 Jahangir opted for set one and it was game ball to both. After a long, intense rally Jansher's backhand drop clipped the top of the tin and gave Jahangir the first game. The crowd went wild as they sensed a win coming for their hero.

However, Jansher stayed calm and composed. He knew even though he had lost the game, the damage had been done. He went back in the second with the same tactics and by the end of the game you could see tiredness in Jahangir's limbs. Jansher won the second after making Jahangir do a lot of work. From the middle of the third onwards it was a one sided affair. Jansher was proving too strong for his slightly older opponent. He stuck with his game plan – moved the ball around making no mistakes and got everything back. He totally demolished Jahangir in the 3rd and 4th games to take the match and edge Jahangir 19-18 in their head to head score and with it one of his 8 World Open titles.

The teams championship followed and I was glued to the Squash once again. The most memorable was definitely the final between Pakistan and Australia. Jansher was expected to win against an injured Rodney Martin wheras Rodney Eyles was expected to beat Zarak Jahan. Jahangir's match against Brett Martin was where the result might be produced. Brett had beaten Jahangir in Hong Kong that year and it promised to be a great match and so it was. They were on first and the crowd was going crazy. Jahangir seemed sluggish - probably the effect of so many matches since the first round of the World Open. Nevertheless, he played superbly and beat Brett 3-0. Zarak pulled of a one off win against Rod Eyles to secure Pakistan the World Title. Jansher and Rodney Martin played a best of three dead rubber - still great to watch.

Later that night we attended the players dinner at the lovely sea-side Creek club where Jahangir announced his retirement in an emotional ceremony. It was a spectacular evening full of entertainment and excellent food. That fortnight in Karachi left memories that would never be washed and be very hard to match.

Images of the 1993 World Open at the beginning and end of the clip.

Disaster strikes again

2011-10-07T03:12:00.000-07:00

It was a perfect lunge and an equally good counter drop but the end result was an unexpected disaster. In a similar incident to last October, slipping on sweat in the third game tie break of my first match in Valencia, I have torn my left hamstring. I have pulled out of the Santiago Open and all league commitments to rest the injury and focus on rehab with hope of getting better in time for the World Open at the end of the month. Patience and mental strength reserves will be tested to get through this disaster.

On the other hand, it was good to see the tournament in Valencia was very well organised. The hotel and squash courts were in the same building, the locals were friendly, the crowd was excellent and they even had live streaming. Unfortunately, I didn't stay long to enjoy the atmosphere and rushed back to holland to focus on recovery. Congratulations to Alex Garbi and his team for a well done event.

Tie Break with Chris Ryder

2011-10-07T02:48:00.000-07:00

One of the most under-rated Squash players is the ever green English Squash player Chris Ryder. Chris has been around for a while but pursued a career in Squash only after finishing his studies. His dedication and determination has seen him totally committed to his Squash and the PSA World Tour. With a career high ranking of 33, at 31 years of age Chris is playing the best Squash of his life and still improving. I caught up with Chris while our stay in Belfast a couple of weeks ago.

Tie Break with Chris Ryder

Video Blog begins

2011-10-02T11:11:00.000-07:00

A generous birthday present from my brother means I now have a gadget with the power of video recording. This addition to my travel gear allows me to upload and share videos of my experiences on tour. There will be regular video posts which will include Squash, travel and ones just for fun as I continue my days on the Squash world tour.

You Tube Channel - The Wandering Eyes. Welcome to my life.
http://www.youtube.com/user/ShujaKashif
Just a fun one to start with. Do NOT try this at home.
European Club Champs with Wiener Neudorf - Belfast 10.09.11

The Mighty Jansher Khan

2011-09-18T12:36:00.000-07:00

Champion of a record eight World Opens,six British Opens and holding the world no.1 spot for a decade (on/off from1987 to 1997), Jansher Khan was an absolute phenomenon! Watching his matchesand a recent interview in Pakistan has inspired me to update and re-publishthis article from a while back. A lot can be learnt fromour sport's greatest.

Growing up as a keen young boy in theSquash circles in Pakistan, I learnt a lot from the Pakistani greats. Gogi,Zaman, the Jahans and the Guls all influenced my game to a certain extent.However, I think I learnt most from was just watching Jansher play and train.His style of play, ball control and movement were unique and the best I hadseen.

Just watching him play taught me more than anything else. I saw him attournaments and at his training base in Peshawer through his peak and the lastfew years of his career. Jansher had changed his game a lot since he startedplaying and had adapted really well to the point a rally scoring and the lowertin. He was now a shot maker rather than a retriever. In training, the last fewyears of his career, Jansher would only train on court. He didn't train withany other top player but just with his trainer and a couple of A graders whowould work on a training plan designed by Jansher. He had done a lot of trackwork earlier on in his life and didn't feel the need of it anymore. He wouldhave a morning session with his coach for two hours and would practice hisdrops for an hour of that. He practiced the same shot for atleast 15 minutes.In the afternoons, he played two against one for atleast two hours – puttinghimself under pressure by playing for money. I think it is the duration of histraining that made him so fit and confident.

Apart from the World Open final against Jahangir in 1993, I saw him playmany other players including Peter Marshall, Peter Nicol and Jonathon Power afew times. Jansher's game plan was quite simple. He would make it long and hardfor his opponents from the start. He would settle in with some basic squash andmidway through the first, he would start moving the ball around with incrediblecontrol. He got better as the game went on and his control over the game wasevident. Even though he was fit and could get a lot back, he never had to runmuch as he was hardly out of position. When he was under pressure he would usehis speed and lob frequently. One of the matches I saw him play was againstPeter Nicol in Cairo at the Al) Ahram International in 1996. We all knew howlittle Jansher and how hard Peter was training. The first game was long andtiring. Peter kept up with him and they were both neck to neck till the veryend. Peter won it 17-16 and I thought that Jansher wasn't going to win thatday. The second was even harder than the first and Jansher won it 15-14 and wastotally exhausted. Peter looked fresh and even though the score was 1-1, onceagain I thought Jansher was in deep trouble. To the surprise of all of us inthe crowd, Jansher controlled from the start and led 10-0 in the third. Heturned the table on Peter and had him right where he wanted in a medium pacegame. Jansher took the 3rd and 4th 15-5, 15-5 and won the match and another oneof his 99 tour titles – to the amazement of us all!

I had the pleasure of being on court with him three times. Once in 1994at a local tournament in Peshawer. I was 14 and he was at his peak. I playedhim in the second round and lost 4-9,1-9,2-9. I still have photos we took afterthe match. The second time I played him was in a practice match just before thePakistan junior team was announced for the World Junior Champs in Cairo in1996. He played three of us one after the other and taught us a lesson. Later,he spoke to us and highlighted our weaknesses. I remembering trembling on courtin awe. The third time I played him was in the quarters of the PIA Open inKarachi in 1998. He had dropped down to 4 in the world and it wasnt certain howlong he would last on the tour. My 1-3 effort against him remains one of the highlightsof my career. I feel very fortunate to have been on court and around him attournaments. I learnt a lot! Over the years you come across a lot ofinformation from different sources and it seems much more complex. While goingback to what I learnt from him it was very simple and yet the mosteffective.

Personality
Jansher had a strong personality that demanded respect. I remember whenhe used to arrive at venues or tournament dinners, there used to be a moment'ssilence while people gazed at him. He was always very bold and spoke his mind,which sometimes got him into trouble as well. In his interview after his firstWorld Open victory in 1987, he was asked what his future plans were. He repliedthat he was going to quit Squash and take up Tennis.

Genius
Jansher had an amazing mind. From only speaking his native language‘Pushto' to learning the national language ‘Urdu' and then English, he now doesbusiness in 3 different languages – all from no tuition at all (he never wentto school). On court, Jansher changed his style totally as the game changed.When he first broke into the top ranks, he was a fit teenager who could playlong rallies forever. As the scoring changed to point a rally and the tin waslowered for professional matches, Jansher realised that he needed to add a newdimension to his game. He started practicing to volley and go short. In a fewyears he was a totally changed player and a master of the short game.

Confidence
Jansher was full of confidence from a very young age. When he lost toJahangir in 4 games at the Pakistan Open in 1986 and claimed that he would beatJahangir within a year. The press mocked him but he delivered what he had saidand beat Jahangir not once but seven times in a row in 1987 and 1988. I heardhim say once that he didn't understand how anyone would beat him when he was somuch better and fitter than everyone else. They say he took two rackets and at-shirt in his hand for his World Open final against Dittmar in 1989. I guessanyone would be that confident if they would have beaten Jahangir at 17 yearsof age.

Nowadays Jansher is working as an advisor to Pakistan Squash Federation.He also manages his various businesses and properties.

Another season in Europe

2011-08-23T05:09:00.000-07:00

The two-month long tour of Australia and New Zealand left me exhausted. Traveling all the way from Europe and then plenty of further travels within each country, playing 7 events and trying to train at the same time took it's toll. Any energy left was squeezed out by the taxing 30-hour journey from Canberra to Leiden. Well settled in this lovely South Holland town, I now look at what lies ahead.

Tournaments over the last two months meant there was no time for a rest after an extensive European season. More importantly, the off season training was missed. With no tournaments in sight for nearly two months I had plenty of time to prepare for the October events - mainly the World Open - which is in Rotterdam this year. I haven't had this long a time to train for nearly a year and this is a perfect opportunity to work on weaknesses and improve on strengths before my first tournament. The prime focus in the first month is fitness and I will be making full use of catching the end of summer here in Europe by getting outside for runs.

My first ranking tournaments will be in October when I plan to play three events starting with the PSA Cup in Valencia then the Santiago Open, followed by the World Open starting at the end of October. Dutch league matches starting in September will be excellent match practice and will help test the improvements before going into competition. On top of these I will also have local tournaments to compete in. Kicking off the season will be the European Clubs Championships in Belfast from 8-10 September. I will be representing my Austrian league team Wiener Neudorf against champion clubs from each participating nation.

Looking forward to another season in Europe.

The Australian Open

2011-08-04T19:46:00.000-07:00

The PSA World Tour returns to Canberra for the second year in a row for one of the biggest events on the Professional Squash Calendar. The Australian Open has been my favourite event since its return to the tour a few years ago. Over the next seven days I will be playing, watching and commenting on Squash. Watch this space for my share of experiences in Canberra.

Sunday 7 August - Day 2

It wasn't my day as I went down in a heartbreaking loss to Max Lee in 5 games. I played well and led 2-0 but couldn't finish it off. The third was long and hard which I lost 14-16. It was downhill after that with a mental dip in the fourth alongside struggling with my length. Max capitalized on the momentum shift and took control in the fifth to win the match. Credit to him for keeping up with the hard work.

As for me, it's very disappointing to have lost early in my target event. I felt I had prepared well and had a good chance of doing well in the main draw. There are things to be learnt and worked upon. I can take some confidence in my game and somewhat in the improvement in fitness from the training in Brisbane. However, I do need to keep working on my fitness and maybe extend my training sessions. With no tournament in sight for nearly two months, I will have time for it - if I can just dig deep and find the mental strength to recover from another loss. Hopefully I will.

Things were much better for me off court though. I had plenty of support for my match which was great. My brother travelled to see me from Sydney and catching up with him certainly made my day. It's good to see him settled and enjoying his new job and life in Sydney.

I was very tired at the end of the day and had another spa to finish off the day. I don't think sleep will come easily -always the case after a loss. I certainly look forward to a much needed break from Squash.

Saturday 6 August - Day 1

Tim and I before the match - we werent smiling afterwards.

After a lot of anticipation, the Australian Open kicked off today. The day passed quickly for me with a morning hit, lunch, rest and soon it was match time. Watching Tim warmup I could tell that he meant business. Even though he runs cafes now, the competitive and professional mindset that took him to top 70 in the world would still be there. I expected a hard match just like the times we played while he was still on the tour.

The match started well and we both were quite steady. After a few points I could sense him trying to slow the pace down - a sign of him not enjoying the intensity. He was hitting the ball well and being on top of him was the answer. I did exactly that and ran away with the game 11-6. The pace settled in the second and we both moved the ball around well. He got into the game more but I knew that he would be hurting physically. His confidence was boosted by a few good rallies where he worked his deception well. We had a closer game but I got the game 11-8 and led 2 games to nil. The third was a hard one and I found myself breathing as heavy as him. Tim did well to stay with me in the points and didnt give up right till the end. One of the rallies was very hard and I was lucky to be the one in control. That gave me matchball and soon it was game over. Overall, a good first match and I felt good for tomorrow when I play Max Lee of Hong Kong who beat Bradley Hindle in 5. I have never played him before but expect a hard match against the fast improving youngster.

After a stretch and shower I stayed on to watch the All Blacks game at the Squash club. There were a few Kiwis around including Glen Carson who is refeering here. After 80 minutes of watching Rugby and some Squash in between we were off home. Donna cooked us a lovely pasta dinner and after a chat we were off doing our own things. Time for me to get into the spa.

Friday 5 August - Day 0

Skiffington, Grayson and Watts at the OZ Open

After a good night's rest and a much needed sleep in, I was off to the courts for my practice session. I got in early and relaxed a bit before going on. I met up with the guys and it was good to see most of the kiwis there. Jamie Skiffington got in the qualifying draw when someone withdrew at the last minute and was loving being here - and so was Joseph Watts. Its great to be a part of a big event like this and I am sure they will make the most of it by playing and then watching the top guys play. Well done on getting here guys - it will be a special week for you to remember for the rest of your lives.

A few games and a good hour on court with Campbell was exactly what I needed. I felt fit, fast and strong on top of feeling good about my squash and the conditions here. The matches are expected to be hard and it certainly makes me confident knowing that I am well prepared and ready for it.

After a walk to the mall for some food we were back at the venue for the qualifying draw. A lot anxious players in the room waited to find out who they would be playing. It was soon done and on the board. I drew none other than Tim Manning for tomorrow's first round - which should be a good match. A lot of interesting matchups including the Malaysians Kamran and Ivan playing each other. A long way to come down from KL to play your best friend and training partner. Has to be done.
Later I had dinner with billet Donna, Campbell and Lloydy and drove back home. It's time for a cup of tea and maybe some time for the spa at the house before another good night's rest.

Thursday 4 August - Travel Day
After two weeks of solid training in lovely Brisbane weather, I was on way to Canberra. My preparation saw me do hill runs and stairs with my host Courtney and plenty of routines and games with a variety of players. The physio could see the effects of the training and helped a lot in loosening me up. I felt fit and ready for my first World Series event of the year.

After a two hour flight and long chat with Brad Hindle on the plane, we were in Canberra. One of the organisers was there to pick us up - a sign of a good event and we were on our way to the club. I was keen to get on court asap to get used to the conditions and especially the lower tin which had eluded me in my preparation. I was lucky to have found Kamran Khan hitting by himself and keen for a hit. We had a good hour on the court and I felt good physically and mentally. The games on the lower tin and cooler climate reminded me of how different it will be here and what needs to be done. I had a quick bite to eat at the noodle house next door and was ready to be picked up by my billets.
In the meantime I bumped into good friend and ex squash player Tim Manning and we had our annual catch up. We've know each other since our early junior years nearly two decades ago and have stayed in touch through our squash and since he stopped playing the tour, through my visits to Canberra. Tim now runs two cafes and loves the work. Both his kids are growing fast and he is still actively involved in the local Squash scene and is looking forward to his appearance in the OZ Open qualifying draw as a local. Back at the house, I had a quick cup of tea over a chat with my host Donna and it was time for a well needed rest after the long day.

Four weeks in New Zealand

2011-07-30T22:12:00.000-07:00

After ten months away I was headed back to New Zealand. The window seat and the view from it brought back a lot of memories - especially from the first time I moved to NZ. A few things needed to be taken care of, some Squash to be played and many many people to catch up with. I looked forward to my four weeks back at home.

Just like last year, I expected to be very busy during my time in New Zealand. I was playing a tournament every weekend and doing some exhibitions as well as training during the week. Paul had kindly agreed to train with me in the mornings and to stay at his luxurious place near Bethells beach. It was going to be like the good old days - training up for the far less stressful local events.

Good friend Nazar met me at the airport and we went straight to Sohail's to have a much needed catch up. Nazar then dropped me off at Remuera and I was home. During the next four weeks I spent a lot of time at the club. Training in the mornings with Paul, lunch and tea at his office, hitting with the guys in the afternoon and helping Paul with coaching his juniors, walks to newmarket and catching up with friends and long stretches before a sauna occupied my day. In the evenings we would get back to some nice meals cooked by Paul's lovely wife Nuttah. I was certainly spoilt.

1. The first weekend - Cousins Shield

I was back playing for my home club Remuera in the prestigious national club championships. Our team had weakened considerably with Alex Grayson injured and our key players Phil Buscke and Graeme Wilson both away on holidays. The matches were hard and we didn't get the result we expected. We did manage to live up to our seeding by finishing fourth - with a loss to Herne Bay in the semis and another one to the determined SquashGym Palmerston North. The party was fun as always and Corey Love took the prize for best dressed - as Po from Kungfu Panda. My favourites were Thorndon as Al Qaeda and there antics on the floor. Overall a great event, an excellent weekend as always and it was great to catch up with everyone. It felt like I was never away.

2. The second weekend - Central Open

The priority after Cousins was to get my hip looked at. I got a lot of treatment from our physio Heather and even saw a chiropractor for the first time in my life - on the recommendation of Carol Owens. It all seemed to help and I felt fit for my annual trip to Palmy.

I played my good friend Josh Greenfield in the quarters there. Josh had beaten me the weekend before and I had to be on my toes against this talented Squash player. It was a tight match and I think we both played really well. I won it 3-0 but only narrowly in each game. I faced Campbell in the semis in the afternoon and that was another hard one. Campbell took full advantage of my complacency after winning the first and came back strong to win the second and third. The fourth was a close one and we were both feeling it. The finish line was closer for him than it was for me and he pushed through to claim the match in four games.

I came up against the talented and capable youngster evan Williams for third spot on the final day. Evan played excellent squash to put me on the back step early on in the match. He capitalised with a 2-0 lead and even though I battled hard, Ev kept his cool and took the fourth to win the match in 4 games to get his first win over me. A good effort.

3. The third weekend - Nationals

The nationals is the pinnacle of the local circuit and even though it hasn't been a goal of mine since I won my fifth title two years ago, I was still keen to try and do well. I trained hard with Paul and took care of the body well to get ready for the event.

The first day went according to plan with wins against young Zac Miller and Bryce Redman. The second day is always the hardest with two hard matches. I took on the legend Danny McQueen in the quarters winning in a closely contested hard three games. Hats off to Danny for keeping up with his Squash and fitness at 47 years of age. A legend indeed.

My semifinal opponent was Campbell once again. I knew I had a good chance against him and that the first game would make a huge difference. He took the advantage by taking a close first 11/9. The second game saw him play some amazing shots from the back of the court and bit seven winners in a row. There wasn't much I could do against him and he took a huge 2-0 lead. I fought back hard and made him do a lot of work to win the third 11-6. The fourth was another hard one with Campbell pushing through well and taking advantage of my loose returns in the last two rallies to take the match 12/10 in the fourth.

I played Evan for another 3rd placing match. I knew what he was capable of but was determined together my revenge. I backed up well after a hard match against campbell. I felt good physically and was glad to get a 3-0 win against this dangerous and skillful opponent.

4. The fourth weekend - Royal Oak Open

With most top NZ players away for tournaments, it was left to Gary and myself to take the centre court in the final of this local event. Royal Oak had done a great job with the event and the crowd certainly got their monies worth with some great squash by Gary in all his matches. It was great to play him in a final again and it reminded me of the good old days when we played in the later stages of tournaments regularly. I won a very entertaining match in four games. In my speech I thanked the club, the sponsors of the tournament as well as my sponsors, Gary and a special thankyou to Paul wright for all his help.

I also used this weekend to catch up with friends and asked then to meet me at Royak Oak. It was great to catch up with Charlie, Dave, Jared and after a very long time Callum. It was also Bob's birthday on saturday and we went out for dinner and then had a good time at his place.

5. Exhibition and Clinic at SquashGym Palmerston North

SquashGym Palmerston North are the buzzing capital of squash in NZ. They have taken on some of the biggest events in the world and also run an academy there. I wanted to do something with them and they supported thre idea. They organised a sponsor and it was all on.

It was busy but and exciting day in Palmy. I was met at the airport by the coach Jason Fletcher and after a quick lunch we headed to the club. I had a good hit with Catelyn Watts and then took on the senior boys Dylan, Tom and Regan who all did very well. Later I took some of the other kids and then took on the sponsor for a best of three. Brett is a C grader and gave it all. After that I played 2 against one with JBB and JB and then took on 5 people who had registered for 5 points against me. It was great fun!

After a bit of a rest I took on the local legend Mike McSherry for a game before taking on Josh Greenfield in a tight best of three to finish off the on court proceedings. All the games w2ere very well contested and the crowd loved the exhibition Squash.

Later we headed to the lounge for a fun question and answer session which was very enjoyable. Thank you very much for having me squashgym. I look forward to next time.

6. Nelson and Nev

Good friend Neville Fyfe gave me a call and wondered if I could do something at his new base in Nelson. I was keen to see him as well as play in Nelson for the first time. They booked my flights and I was there. A fun evening once again when I took the juniors for an hour before having 3 games each with nick and Josh King. In between games the crowd asked me questions which made it fun and relaxing. I thoroughly enjoyed staying with Nev at his new place in Ruby Bay. It had stunning views and the sun was crisp as expected in the area. Will surely be back there again one day.

7. National team selection

It wasn't all positive in NZ and there was some controversy when Squash NZ didn't pick me to represent the country a the world mens team champs in October. It was disappointing as I thought I could contribute to the team with my squash but obviously they didn't. It's not the first time I have been overlooked and I am used to this treatment by them but it was good that it happened in front of everyone this time. It has never stopped me doing what I enjoy and I will continue doing so.

However, the positive that came out of it was the immense support I had from all over NZ. I got messages and emails telling me how disappointed people were and how much they would like to see me in the team. There were emails sent to squash NZ as well and the issue was raised in the media. I was touched by all the support and that's what it is about for me. I play for these friends and supporters out there in clubs and respresent them around the world - thankyou very much for the support!

In saying that, I congratulate Martin, Campbell, Evan and Paul Coll for making the team and wish them all the best in Germany.

8. Overall a fantastic trip which reminded me the reasons why I call NZ home. I wish I could stay longer but things need to be done as I head out for another long tour starting with tournaments in Australia.

The Squash Wizard - Paul Wright

2011-07-18T20:58:00.000-07:00

It was over an hour into the semi final of this PSA event when we came off the court after he leveled the match at two games each. It had been a very hard match with both of us moving each other around and the rallies being long and hard – pushing us both to the limit. This Aussie was determined and would not let go. Luckily Paul Wright was in my corner and came to speak to me.

He looked concerned – probably looking at my pale and exhausted face. ‘How are you feeling?’ he asked me. I could hardly catch my breath as I replied ‘I’m absolutely stuffed!’ He came even closer to me and looked right into my eyes and said ‘ Well, it doesn’t matter how tired you are – what matters is how badly you want it. Do you want it more than him?’. I seemed to be hypnotized by what he said and repeated after him ‘I want it more than him’. I went on to win the 5^th in the tie-break and with it the match - one of many with Paul by my side.
I met Paul Wright for the first time in Cairo in July 1996. I was a part of the Pakistan junior team at the World Junior Championships and he was the English national coach. I had seen him once before at the World Men’s Championships in Karachi where he was coaching the cream of English Squash with Jonah Barrington. Peter Marshall, Simon Parke and Chris Walker being their top players at the time. I had enjoyed watching him talk to the players as I sat behind them unnoticed. So when Paul gave me the compliment of having ‘good touch’ in Cairo – I was over the moon. It always reassured me that I had good touch – coming from the English national coach that I respected greatly.

When I moved to New Zealand I felt lucky that he was around. After settling in, I wanted to start training again and set myself goals. One of them was to get help from the legendary Paul Wright. I went to him one day after work uncertain of how he would respond and asked for his help with my Squash. To my delight and surprise, he welcomed me with open arms and our partnership began. Despite his heart problems he worked hard with me to get me up and running. Apart from helping me with all my 5 national titles – most of them sitting courtside – he also helped me in my initial PSA successes. A notable one for me was winning the South Island Champs where I was a qualifier went on to win my first PSA title and mark a successful return to the World Tour. Paul was right there behind me.

Playing career
The list of Paul’s local titles are far many to mention but he is very proud of have won the Essex championships seven times. Paul has come from the amateur era and was considered as a professional because he coached for a living which meant that he was not eligible to be nationally ranked in England during the years he played the domestic tournaments in England. He would have been ranked amongst the top ten players in England. When the game finally moved on to the professional era Paul decided to have a family and stop traveling. Paul’s highest world ranking was 32 but with only on 4 tournaments up against his name in the ranking for the whole year.

Coaching Career
Paul started coaching in 1973 and has 38 years of experience working as a club professional firstly at Wanstead squash club then at The Connaught club and moving onto Brenfield Squash club where he was the Head professional for 12 years. During that time he was hired by the English SRA firstly as regional coach which encompassed 6 counties. Paul was then hired to work with the English junior national squads and then was soon asked to become the Young England team manager/coach in charge of developing a group of young professionals. These players were to become the core of the English teams of the future. The mandate was to produce a group of players who were willing to work together and would be supportive of each other in World events. Most of the players involved became part of the England team and certainly were a close knit group their successes are many. Paul has been involved in the production of many coach qualification syllabi and has tutored up to and including the English level 4 award which was the top award at the time,

Paul worked with a lot of English players who made the top ten in the world. These include Peter Marshall, Del Harris, Simon Parke, Chris Walker and many more. Since moving to New Zealand in 1996 Paul worked with former British Open Champion Leilani Joyce, twice World champion Carol Owens and has helped with many team successes including Philippa Beams and Leilani Joyce at World doubles championships, NZ junior women’s team 2nd place in Brazil, Paul has also coached England teams and individuals to world junior titles plus many European and home international wins. He has also been the force behind our local hero Gary Duberly’s 2 World masters championships.

Future plans
His future plans are to slow down but at the same time try to put as much of his vast experience to good use helping others to be as good as they can be. He has a variety of ideas that he wants to work on with players in New Zealand and they all sound very exciting. He is currently Head pro at the Remuera Rackets Club in Auckland and runs programmes for a vast range of players and coaches. His products and activities include The Racket Academy, Courtfit and Squash the Wright Way.

Paul Wright is an asset to Squash and we are lucky to have him in New Zealand. His service to the sport - despite numerous setbacks - is invaluable. He is very well respected in the Squash circles of New Zealand and continues to offer help unconditionally. I feel privileged to have learnt so much from him. His ideas are remarkable and he makes training far more interesting than I have ever seen. His skill and talent are immense and his personality unique. Thank you very much Paul.

Squash Diaries - South Australian Open

2011-06-22T21:45:00.000-07:00

Australia has been a major contributor to Squash in the past and has a strong presence in the sport. It's delightful to see the history and the culture of Squash in the country. A tournament in Australia is bound to be well run and enjoyable. I have always felt there should be more events there for us to play and this year they got organised and put up an excellent circuit with events all over the massive country. I chose the South Australian Open as one of my preferred events and looked forward to heading to SA for the 7th year in a row.

Click here for highlights from the final on YouTube

I landed in Adelaide at 6am after a 22 hour journey from London. Roger picked me up from the airport and we caught up on the two hour drive back to Clare. I know Roger from when the Australian Open made its comeback in Clare 4 years ago. Roger was a part of an extraordinary team that organised the event for three years before it moved to Canberra. I had a couple of relaxing days in Clare and visited the beautiful family restaurant. It was the perfect way of getting over jetlag. A couple of days later I was in Adelaide where my hosts were the Normans. Grant had led the team in Clare to successful Australian Opens and inspired the NZ Classic a few years ago. It was very comfortable at the house and I looked forward to the Squash.

Someone once said to me that jetlag is the worst on the third day and thats exactly how I have found it. From the third day onwards I got up at 3 am and couldnt sleep. This meant long days till I went to bed again. I took some Melatonin tablets kindly organised by Alice through her friend and they worked perfectly. By the time the tournament started I was feeling much better and well rested.

I played a local qualifer Andrew Wise in the first match where Andy fought hard. In the second round I had our very own Lance Beddoes who played well. In the quarters I played Justin Beard who played and fought brilliantly in front of his home crowd. It was a hard match and I got through in 4 games. In the semi, another Kiwi, the up and coming Evan Williams threatened me but would have certainly been feeling the effects of his two hard matches prior to playing me. I won 3-0 and arrived fresh in the final.

I had played Mike Corren many times and even though I haven't lost to him more than once, he is always hard to beat. I expected a tough match and thats exactly what it proved to be. I won the first after a fight and he came back strong to win the second. The third was tied but he played brilliantly to finish off the rallies with winners and won the game 15/13. I came back strongly in the fourth and we were in the decider.

It could have been anyone's match and there was nothing between us as the score crawled upwards point by point. I had matchball at 10-9 which he saved and then another one at 11-10 after 75 minutes. Mike intercepted my cross court well only to hit a tin and the match was over.

It was a relief to win this event which was full of good youngsters from different countries alongside the experienced Corren. Winning it gave me my 10th PSA title and I achieved a goal that I set myself 6 years ago. However, its only the second of many of my goals and I will be focusing on improving my rankings and playing big events in the second half of the year.

In my speech, I thanked the organsiers and the sponsors and along with it my hosts the Normans. I also thanked Justin for driving me around and Aqeel for helping me between games. I also mentioned how it was a pleasure playing in Australia with it's rich history and culture in the sport and I look forward to going back there again. We celebrated with a nice dinner with the family, Justin and Aqeel at the house.

11 points with Campbell Grayson

2011-04-30T08:05:00.000-07:00

One of the most liked personalities on the PSA World Tour, Campbell Grayson is one of the nicest people to be around. A hard working and talented sportsperson, Campbell has improved a lot over the last few years with goals to achieve more. The current NZ National Champion is also a winner of 2 PSA World Tour titles. I spoke to the modest Kiwi recently and heard his thoughts about his future.

1. Favourite City - Madrid
2. Favourite Tournament - Australian Open
3. Favourite Player - Jansher Khan
4. Dream team - Jansher Khan, Peter Nicol, Greg Gaultier
5. Favourite Practice partner - Jonathan Kemp
6. Favourite Training - Pressure Sessions
7. Memorable match played - against Ali farag -
Petrosport qualifying 2009 - 13-11 in the fifth saving 3 matchballs.
8. Memorable match watched - Nicol vs Palmer 2006 CWG final
9. Favourite Food - Pasta
10. Favourite Drink - Apple juice
11. Favourite Quote - What you put in is what you get out of it.

"I am currently based in Harrogate England. It's been a tough season for me as I have been working hard to break into the top 30. I have had trouble with the body and had bad losses. However, I feel I am playing better now and heading to South America for three tournaments to try and finish the season well. I am going back to NZ for some off season training and nationals and then get back on the tour with the Australian Open in August andthe World Teams Champs. I hope to play my best squash and achieve my goals of winning tournaments and achieve a better ranking"

Squash Diaries - Irish Open

2011-04-13T05:07:00.000-07:00

It was back to Dublin for the fourth time for one of my favourite events on the PSA World Tour in one of the best clubs that hosts an international tournament - The Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis and Squash Club.

The Irish Open is a tradition at the prestigious and historic Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis and Squash Club. It certainly shows with the photo frames on the walls. Bjorn Borg, McEnroe and a few other names alongside great squash players with the likes of Barrington, Hunt and Zaman have all been here. The club is enthusiastic to host squash players and we are very welcomed very warmly. A hotel nearby, food vouchers for all players and plenty of friendly people around, the tournament is definitely a treat to play in.

Sunday 10 April - Day 0
It was a 90 minutes flight from Eindhoven and a 20 minutes bus ride to the club. I met up with Joel Hinds on the bus and we caught up with what we had been upto. At the club, the players were gathered together for the qualifying draw and there was a bit of uncertainty around a few last minute withdrawals. The player observer - our very own Campbell Grayson got on the job and quickly sorted it out and th draw was soon done. I drew former Irish champion and ex world no.7 Derek Ryan in the first match.

Back at the hotel, I caught up with the other boys for some amusing chats at dinner. I was sharing with Campbell which was great! We talked for hours in the evening, catching up on things and talking about our plans. It was quite late when we covered the issues at hand and it was bed time.

Monday 11 April - Day 1
Match day is different to most other days and there is always a bit of nervous energy floating around. For me it's essential to be positively stressed and I use it to my advantage. There were a lot of hours to kill before my scheduled match time at 8pm. Campbell and I had a good hit for an hour and were back at the hotel after lunch at the club. I had a good rest and went down to the club a couple of hours early after a snack at the hotel.

The match itself was tense and I felt under a lot of pressure. It doesn't happen much that I come up against a more experienced opponent. Derek put me under a lot of pressure with his ball control and tactics where he kept the pace slow. I felt I was getting dragged into his game and going short too often. We were taking turns to control the rallies throughout the match but my movement was much better. I have been working a lot on all physical aspects and it paid off as I came through 3-1 after a close 4th game.

Tomorrow I am up against the young and supremely fit Finnish youngster Henrik Mustonen. I have played him once before in a 9-11 loss in the 5th at the same venue. I am hungry for revenge and will work on things that I learnt from that match. One thing is for sure that it will be a very VERY hard match - both physically and mentally.

Tuesday 12 April - Day 2
It was an excellent day and I felt great for my match only to produce the strangest performance of my squash career - playing probably my best squash only to reduce to the worst physical condition in a match for no apparent reason.

After a bad start I recovered well and the first game was neck to neck right till the end. Even though I lost the game, I had found my rythm and knew I could take this match. The second game was probably the best game I have ever played. Everything went well and I hit winners all over the court to win the game 11-3.

I took the momentum through to the third and led 3-0. Not sure what happened at that stage but I felt heavy in the whole body and very lethargic. The match hadn't been very tough and I was puzzled as to what was happenning to me. I tried to put it to a side and push hard but it wasn't to be. After that I got 4 points in the whole match and moved awfully to lose the third and fourth without being able to put up much resistance.

Regardless of the reasons, it wasn't my day and I came out second best. It's never good to lose and even worse when it happens in such a mysterious way. It can't be helped now and I can only look to the future. With 6 weeks before the next event, I want to start running and keep working on the fitness. There have been positives as well and even after a disappointing day I feel I have improved on my movement and strength. I need to learn from the negatives and take as much positives as I can from the positives to put together an ideal training plan to take me through.

Down but certainly not out.

Squash Diaries - Swiss Open

2011-03-22T05:47:00.000-07:00

After a couple of disappointing tournaments in February, I travelled to Geneva hoping to make amends in this small but prestigious European event which has been on the tour calendar for nearly four decades. It was also going to be my first time in Geneva which always makes things a bit more interesting.

It was an hour and a quarter after our plane took off from Amsterdam that I was in Geneva. Things looked good starightaway when I saw a vending machine dispensing free tickets to the city - courtesy of the airport. It was in 5 minutes that I was in the city centre, walking towards my hotel which was located right on lake Geneva, next to jardin anglais.

The club was near the airport and I was determined to make full use of my bus card and not have to take a cab. I did get a bit lost the first time and went through a slight panic attack when I hadn't reached the club 20 minutes before my first match. From then onwards, I was more comfortable finding my way around for the rest of the trip.

The Squash
If I was to jusify my seeding I had to win 3 matches to get to the final. These were within 24 hours with two matches on Saturday. I knew this tournament was going to be about recovery and staying as fresh as possible. It was going to be a challenge in the warm courts and higher tin on this busy weekend at the Geneva Squash Club.

Friday 18 March - Day 1
First up I faced the up and coming Englishman Chris Fuller. Chris played very steady squash as opposed to my nervous and negative start. My confidence had been low after my last event and I had to work hard to get it back. The score was 1-1 after two hard games and I found myself 3-6 down in the third. A call by the ref triggered the needed aggression and I managed to turn thngs around after that. I got the win I needed to get into the event mentally.

19 March - Day 2
Saturday was a tough day. I had two matches - at 1:30 and 7. I had to fit in travelling back to the hotel, some rest and tge bus rides back to the club within less than four hours.

In the morning I played the potentially dangerous spaniard alex garbi. I remembered alex from the world teams champs in odense in 2009 when he nearly took out Campbell in our tie against Spain. After a hard first game I had the lead and an upper hand. Alex did well to come back and win the third but couldn't manage to keep it up in the fourth - burdened by a strianed right leg. I was through to the semi.

My next opponent, the German number 2 Jens Schoor had a much tougher quarterfinal winning in 5 games against the capable dutchman Piedro Schweertman. It was a good result for Jens but definitely took it's toll. He took a game to warm up and came back strongly winning the second and going 8-3 up in the third. I managed to bring out my better squash of the match to take that game after some hard rallies. The fourth was equally tough and saw me working hard to retrieve his shots. I managed to stay steady and controlled the game well at the end to take the match.

I was quite tired at the end of the day and crashed on my bed, half asleep and struggling - only to realise that I had to do my washing for tomorrow's final!

Sunday 20 March - Day 3
The final was a tough affair against an in-form Steve Finitsis. Steve won the Austrian Open two weeks ago and had been training well - thrashing me in our practice matches. My game plan worked well and after an evenly matched first game I had the lead. Steve led 9-1 in the second and I hoped to make the rallies long and get the momentum back for the third. It worked well and I clawed back to 9-10 and even though I lost the game I knew I had made the most of it. In the third it was quite apparent that Steve was feeling the effects of the first two games. I controlled the game well and won it to go 2-1 up. In the fourth I carried the momentum forward. There were times that I started thinking about winning the match and a title that I badly wanted. I lost focus on the squash itself and lost a few points where steve played well. Finally, I managed to break away after 7-7 and after losing one matchball I managed to take the game, the match and with it my 9th psa title. What a relief!

In my speech I thanked steve for helping me out during the tournament as well as the organizers of this well run event. It has been very hard to turn around this long lasting slump in performance due to a recurring injury and rehab that followed. It feels good to find form again and hopefully I will maintain it for future events. My next event will be the medium sized Irish Open from 11 April and I hope to improve a bit more until then.

The city of Geneva
Monday was the day to see a bit of the city. It was slightly different to what I was expecting. It was smaller than I thought it would be and quite diverse. It was very french and not the Switzerland of Bern or Zurich that I had seen in the past. It was nice enough though and even though the town centre was a bit rough, there were some very nice parts of the city on small hills with narrow streets. My bus past by the UN and WHO offices everyday. The walk by the lake was very nice and less touristy then I expected. The main attraction was definitely the saint Pierre cathedral and the view of the city and the lake from the top of the north tower - an amazing sight. Underneath it was the actual archaeological site of the church from centuries ago. The old square next to it has been around for 1500 years since Roman times. The weather was great which is always helpful and made it quite enjoyable to listen to the talented and enthusiastic musicians. We ate at a couple of nice places including an old French cafe with exquisite vintage decor. Overall a great long weekend - merci beacoup Geneve!

Squash Diaries - Istanbul

2011-03-01T00:12:00.000-08:00

The former capital of the once powerful Ottoman Empire plays host to the Professional Squash World Tour as I travel to Istanbul for the very first time. I have been intrigued by Constantinople since reading the history books in school about the Sultans and their conquests. They remain a big part of the culture of Central and South Asia. I looked forward to Istanbul with much anticipation.

Saturday 26 February
Istanbul is the 5th largest city in the world with over 13 million inhabitants. Rich in history and culture the place has a lot to offer. My fascination began at the queue for passport control at the airport where the most interesting of demographic diversity was at hand. It was quite a sight when people from Central Asian countries looked different but spoke the same language. The ladies in front might have been Uzbek or Tajik - Mongol features but communicating comfortably with other races. Outside the airport I found myself trying to communicate with our taxi driver trying to explain the name of the hotel we had to get to. Bart Ravelli and I didn't have much of a case with our poor Turkish pronounciation and having very little info about the place which was changed just today. Luckily we saw the hotel from the motorway and heard the correct way of saying sevcan. It was amazing that we could communicate speaking our own languages and even when we hardly understood what either of us were saying. The taxi driver was friendly and thats what i have heard about people here. At the hotel we met most other squash players and caught up quickly before heading to our own room. It was time to rest.

Sunday 27 February - Match day
It's going to be a hard first round match against the very capable Dane Rasmus Neilson. He is fit and experienced but I am focused on myself and what I have to do and hope for a good match.

A good morning hit helped to have a feel of the court as well as settle the nerves a bit. We are playing at a state of the art facility in a newly built apartment complex in the suburbs.

I felt good physically and played alright but couldn't make it happen. All credit to Rasmus for putting me on the back step with his attacking game which worked well - especially on a high tin on a bouncy court which I wasn't enjoying at all. I couldn't control the ball as I would have liked and going in short was a nightmare. I knew I had to play a basic, long and patient game to try and get into the match. Rasmus used his unorthodox style well to go short hard coming away with a few good winners to take the edge. I am disappointed and down but definitely not out. There are positives - the fitness is improving rapidly. And there are things to learn and improve upon and I will get straight into it tomorrow morning.

Apart from Squash
Now I want to rest the mind and avoid getting into a negative state - a challenge for any sportsperson. What better way to do it then to explore the former Constantinople I look forward to it!

The tournament dinner was exquisite. The hospitable organisers took us to a cultural show with Turkish music and dance alongwith local cuisine. It was an absolute delight and everyone enjoyed the evening. Tomorrow I am off to town after lunch.

Monday 28 February
The day started with a hard interval session on the bike. I have certainly taken my fitness training to a new level and it felt great! Doing something hard and practical was excellent to recover from yesterday's loss and to look ahead to the future.

A bit later, one of the organizers offered to take us into town. We drove through the giant city right into the heart of old Istanbul - Sultanahmet. On our way we crossed the ancient wall which marks the end of Europe and start of Asia. The sight in town was breathtaking. Two giant and magnificent mosques - Aya Sofya or The Blue mosque and the Sultanahmet mosque stood opposite each other in all their glory. We walked through the square and into the bazar wher Abdullah took us to a very nice Turkish place for lunch. We had Iskander kebab with sheesha and a yoghurt based drink much similar to lassi. The boys sat in style at the restaurant on huge cushions on the floor in true Turkish fashion.

After lunch we said farewell to Abdullah who had to get back to the Squash club. Anthony Mcleod who had done a long walk in the city the day before became our tour guide as we walked through the bazar and onto the Bosphorus river. There were more mosques on the way and all similarly designed to the Sultanahmet mosque. Looking towards the city from the bridge, was a spectacular view once again. After a cup of chai we walked back through a different route in the bazar back to the town centre. One could feel the old city and the history on these narrow cobblestone streets. I could onl imagine how life would have been there centuries ago.

After a few drinks wih the boys it was time to get back to th squash club. The cab driver didn't have much idea how to get us to our destination with a complicated address. With the help of a local squash player friend we made it back to the club where the squash guys were waiting for us to get back to the hotel. We had plenty to share wih them and Creedy wished he had gone with us as well.

Istanbul certainly lived upto it's reputation as well as my expectations. That's it for the city for me and it's back to training tomorrow. I hope to get a court for a solo session followed by some strength training in the morning and hopeful of having a good hit in the afternoon.

Over and out from Istanbul.

Squash Diaries - The Finnish Open

2011-02-09T07:19:00.000-08:00

It is always interesting to go to a new place and this year's Finnish Open provided me with the opportunity of doing so as well as a chance to do well in this smaller sized event. With my hamstring troubles behind me and four weeks of decent training in the body, I packed my bags for my first trip to Finland expecting good results in my first tournament of the year.

8 February - Travel day

It was a comfortable flight on a lovely sunny morning in Amsterdam and after just over 2 hours flying northeast I was in snow-covered Helsinki. I had arranged to meet good friend Brad Hindle at the airport there and we caught up in detail on our three and a half hours bus journey to Mikelli. I am now nicely settled at the hotel and had a good sauna to loosen up the body but not before a few games of table tennis. Brad is also my first round opponent and I expect a hard match against my training partner and flatmate over the last year. I would be pleased if the result in our squash match goes the same way as on the ping pong table.

9 February - Day 0
It was a good settling in day today. The breakfast at the hotel was nice and we met some of the players in the qualifying draw. Soon after we headed off to the squash club which is a 15 minutes walk from the hotel. A very nice facility with a lot of history and run by an enthusiastic couple. The Finnish Open has been a long running event and they had a very nice collection of photos to show for it. The court played very well and I had a good hit for more than an hour followed by a good stretch. I got driven back to the hotel by a club member who told me a bit about Finland. There are over two hundred thousand lakes in the country which all have cottages for people to stay and all the cottages have saunas for people to warm up before a dip in the freezing lakes. Sounds fun - I might try it out myself!

The day has settled into a nice evening chatting with the guys in the restaurant downstairs. There is plenty to catch up about since we last saw each other in Saudi Arabia last year.

10 February - Match day
My preparation was as good as it could be in the last few weeks that I have been training. I knew it was going to be hard against Brad and so it was. The match started at a decent pace. I was a bit slow and he took advantage by taking the ball short very effectively on the cold court. There were some good rallies but he took most of the points to take the first game. I expected to bounce back in the second but he didn't let me. He kept playing well and stuck to his game plan and made it very hard for me to shift the momentum. Soon I was down two games to none and things weren't looking good for me.

I gathered myself together and played well to bounce back. I was more determined and surprisingly it made me faster as well. I got a lot of his good shots back and played well to win the third game. I was back in the match an feeling fine physically. I played well in the fourth as well but he wasn't much behind me. I remember thinking that it was crucial at that stage and that I had to stick to my own game and not risk too much. I am glad I stuck to my own Squash. He broke away with a couple of tight shots at 8-8. He did well and hung in there even though he was feeling it - maybe more than me. He played a tight drop on the backhand on match ball which I got to but my lob was right in the middle giving him a stroke and with it the match.

Obviously, I am disappointed with the loss. However, I need to stay positive and keep focused on training. This was my first tournament back from injury and there are many more to come. The next event is in Istanbul and I have a good two weeks to build up my fitness further. I am in Mikelli for another three days and training resumes tomorrow!

11 points with Stewart Boswell

2011-02-01T09:18:00.000-08:00

One of the best juniors in the world in the mid 90s, Stewart Boswell was quick to make a mark on the world tour by reaching the semi finals of the HK Open in 2000 and reaching a career high ranking of 4 in the world. Smooth, accurate and consistent are few of many words to describe this Aussie who is one of my favourite players on the PSA World Tour. Originially from Canberra, Stewart calls Manchester home where he has been based since his return from a serious back injury in 2005.

1. Favourite city: Brisbane
2. Favourite venue: BCE Place, Toronto
3. Favourite player: Craig Rowland
4. Dream Team: Jahangir, Jansher, Shabana
5. Favourite training: Games
6. Favourite practice partner: Anthony Ricketts
7. Most memorable match played:
World Teams India 2007 semi v Darwish
8. Most memorable match watched:
Rod Eyles v Jonathan Power, British Open quarters 1996
9. Favourite food: Fillet steak, barbecued, medium rare
10. Favourite drink: Flat white (coffee)
11. Favourite movie: Pulp Fiction

What lies ahead

2011-01-01T05:00:00.000-08:00

After a much needed break from Squash and travelling it is now time to get back to work. With the hamstring now better, I take time for some quality training before my first competitive match. Once again, Netherlands is the chosen place for a base as I look ahead to another tour in hope of achieving my goals.

I couldn't complete the minimum of 10 events last year and would be looking to play as many events as possible in the new year. With a much lower ranking than before, I will be entering bigger events in hope of getting in the draw at the same time looking at playing smaller events to gain match practice and ranking points.

The first tournament of the year will be in Scandinavia - either the Swedish Open starting on 1 February, or the smaller sized Finnish Open the week after. I am looking at playing the much smaller sized Austrian Open and will head back to London for the Canary Wharf Classic in March and hope for the Irish Open to be put on its annual slot of the first week of April. The calendar hasn't been finalised for the French events in May and June but considering the popularity of these events last year, I expect to return to Toulouse and Bordeaux this year as well.

Apart from PSA events, I will also be taking part in Dutch, Austrian, English and Italian leagues. With the first match scheduled for 19 January and the last one on the first weekend of June - the European league season is looking busy. Apart from leagues, I will also be playing in some local Squash tournaments within Europe.

But first, its back to training. I look forward to the new year with much anticipation.

11 points with Borja Golan

2011-01-01T03:21:00.000-08:00

One of the toughest competitors on the Squash court is also one of the most modest guys on the World Tour. With a finals win percentage better than almost anyone on the circuit, this man from Sanitago de Compostella is also 8 times Spanish Champion. With a whole season off with injury Borja is already making his presence felt in quest to regain his top 10 ranking. I caught up with Borja during one of his long stretching sessions in Saudi Arabia.

11 points with Borja Golan

1. Favourite city: Barcelona
2. Favourite venue: Santiago shopping mall
3. Favourite player: Peter Nicol
4. Dream Team:Shabana, Nick, Ramy
5. Favourite training: Pressure sessions
6. Favourite practice partner: Carlos Cornes
7. Most memorable match played:
Santiago semi final vs LJ 3-2 - from 0-2
8. Most memorable match watched:
Shabana vs Ramy - Kuwait
9. Favourite food: Charrasco - grilled beef and pork
10. Favourite drink: Blue powerade
11. Favourite quote: Be ambitious but modest at the same time

Image: The Bluenose Classic in Halifax, Canada is one of Borja's favourite events.

Pakistan - the place, the people & more

2010-12-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

Shahi Mosque in Lahore was built by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1673

Home to one of the oldest civilisations in the world, improved through diversity and development over thousands of years, Pakistan is a lot more, much better and more attractive than the present general view one gets through the recent misfortunes of the country and media propaganda.

An interesting recent conversation with a young man has prompted me to re-post this article. There is plenty that is unknown about Pakistan & its people. I hope to portray the real Pakistan.

History
People were attracted by the richness of the Indus valley and migrated to the region from all over the world. The mighty Indus river starts in the world's biggest mountain ranges north of Pakistan and runs through the centre of the land. The abundance of water makes the land fertile and attractive for agriculture. The region has had inhabitants from many different races blending into each other over thousands of years. The Aryans, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, Mongols, Persians, Afghans and later on the Portuguese and the British all wanted a share and ruled some part of it at one stage or the other. Even Alexander made it home for some time in 327 BC. All this brought a wealth of talent, knowledge, culture and a wide range of races, ethnic mixes, languages and foods to the land. In 1947 the British left the land in the custody of locals for the first time in two thousand years – Pakistan was born.

Landscape
The country has a diverse and beautiful landscape. Starting with snow capped mountains in the far north, and hills and plateaus below them. Rich agricultural plains occupy the centre and lead to desert towards the south, which ends up at the Arabian sea. Diverse lifestyles, culture, languages and the most delicious food can be seen all the way down the country. Whether its mountain climbing in the north, hiking and skiing in the hills, or fishing, river rafting and boating in the middle to desert motor-rallies and sailing in the south, nature offers plenty to enjoy in Pakistan. One of the very few places in the world where you can ski and surf in the same month.

People and lifestyles
The people of Pakistan are a mix of different races blended together over thousands of years. At the same time there are stark physical differences between the people of different regions. In one state people are blue-eyed with golden hair and in another in the south they look like as if they were from Africa with their glowing dark skin and curly hair. In one part live the descendants of the Mongols who speak Persian and in another the locals who have lived in the land since civilisation began here nearly 4000 years ago.

No matter what their ethnicity, everyone speaks the national language and forms a national culture. The local communities are close-knit and families and friends are a major part of life. Pakistanis are hospitable people and have guests at their places frequently. The people in the country enjoy all the things that life offers anywhere in the world. There are many festivals and celebrations including the two Eid festivals, Basant, which involves flying of kites to mark the start of Spring. The Shandur polo festival is played at the world's highest polo ground in the northern areas of Pakistan.

Food
The cultural and ethnic mix definitely brings its treats for the food lovers. Eating is the Pakistanis' favourite sport and taste is never compromised upon. The local food is a mix of Indian, Persian, Turkish and other flavours and recipes blended to form a unique menu. Pakistani food is very different from any other region's food, even its neighbours. There is a lot of dry meat dishes with sauces, and Rotis and Naans are common accompaniments to various dishes. Dessert is compulsory and there are a huge variety of fudges and other sweet dishes. The fruit selection is diverse and mango is the country's favourite fruit. Eating is definitely a treat in Pakistan.

Architecture
Pakistan offers a fascinating range of modern and ancient buildings. The forts and palaces of the Mughal emperors are mind blowing. Emperor Shah Jahan who built the Taj Mahal, left his mark in Pakistan as well. There are numerous buildings with beautiful art and calligraphy reminding us of the history of the place. Even the present day architecture shows the beauty of the past. The Prime ministers' office and the Shah Faisal mosque are two of the many pleasing modern sights. All over Pakistan there are beautifully designed Sufi tombs, which hosts thousands of people each year at to celebrate and remember teachings of these wise people.

The northern areas are full of breathtaking views

11 points with Martin Knight

2010-12-04T02:45:00.000-08:00

Fast improving Kiwi Squash player Martin Knight now has a silver medal to add to his Squash profile when he finished 2nd at the Commonwealth Games in the mixed double with his partner Joelle King. A popular player amongst the tournament organisers and the players alike this young man has proven that hard work and discipline is key to achieve your goals and get closer to your dreams.

1. Favourite City: Vancouver
2. Favourite Venue: Bayfair, Mt Manuganui
3. Favourite player: Jonathon Power
4. Memorable match: Comfort Inn open final
5. Favourite training: Pressure Sessions
6. Favourite practice partner: Campbell
7. Dream Team: Power,Shabana,Jahangir
8. Favourite food: Pasta
9. Favourite Drink: Jim Beam and Coke
10. Favourite movie: Crash
11. Favourite Quote: Impossible is nothing

Martin's next event is the World Open in Saudi Arabia starting 2 December 2010.

Squash Diaries - The World Open

2010-12-02T15:00:00.000-08:00

It's the biggest event in the Squash Calendar and this time we head off to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the World Open Squash Championships. I feel very fortunate to be a part of the biggest event in the world of Squash and look forward to my match against former World no.1 and 7th seed Thierry Lincou on the show court on 2 December.

I will be arriving in Dammam, Saudi Arabia late on 30 November. Regardless of how I go in the event, I will be staying there for the week and will be writing a daily blog about the matches and the atmosphere in Al-Khobar. The blog will be updated each evening from 1 December and will contain match analysis as well as behind the scenes happenings.

Sunday 5 December - Day 4
I would have loved to stay longer and watch the whole event and enjoy the weather and our generous host's responsibility but its time to move on for a much awaited family reunion in Pakistan. My last day in Saudi was relaxing and fun as almost all days. I stayed at the hotel in the morning and caught up with Campbell for lunch.

Rosner played well in the first to lead 10-7 against Barker but Pete showed why he is in the top ten to comeback in win the first and later the match in 3 games. Tom competed brilliantly against Darwish but the Egyptian was too good to even drop a single game and Daryl was as steady as ever to see off Olli.

Soon it was time for the boys to meet for our planned Paintball game. The England vs Rest of the world paintball match ended in a draw last night. After intense firing and a failed attempt by me, Martin got the England team's flag, got shot and had to drop the flag but Kristian Frost took it home to give Rest of the World a lead. It was after a clever plan from the England side that Kempy took our flag to level the score. There was some short range fires shot which aren't allowed but everything is fair in love and war - right?!

We were all buzzing with adrenalin after the game. I had a quick dinner and rushed back to my room to change and get ready for my flight. My room mate the Saudi wild card Taher Saif had left without paying his dues and that took a while to clear with the management. I bumped into our host Ziad al Turki just as I was getting in the car to head off to the airport and thanked him for his generous hospitality.

For me it's time to head off to see family in Pakistan. It is very relaxing for me over there and I cant wait to start my much needed time off from Squash and travelling. The weather is pleasant these days as the sun shines everyday with 20 degrees on the Celcius scale. Its perfect to start training again with morning runs but first ... let the relaxation begin!

Saturday 4 December - Day 3
It as a long day of watching Squash. Hisham was impressive in his controlled play against LJ. Azlan survived Krajscak and Joey B couldnt find his game against Alister. Shabana was ruthless and Nick controlled Shahier very well.

However, the performance of the day was that of the old master Thierry Lincou against the young Egyptian Omar Mossad. Omar had beaten Lincou earlier in the year in the US Open and Thierry knew that he had to be his best and that he was. He defied age with his sharpness and made Omar look slow. He was onto the ball and played excellent length and width before attacking with is volley. The players were in awe as Thierry took the match in three games to move into the next round.

Farhan had told me that he was up for his match against Gaultier and that he was. Arguably the most talented player on the circuit Farhan is a treat to watch. The players gathered together to watch this Pakistani youngster play. He did threaten Greg but not consistently. Greg was impressive and ruthless and controlled Farhan well to win the match in three games.

In the afternoon I watched the boys show their stuff in the Bowling Alley and Cameron was the best by far. At night I caught up with Martin and Campbell in their room and had a good laugh. There were also some funny moments at dinner and I will try to find something to write about in the new World Tour section of the blog. Tomorrow (Sunday) is my last day in Saudi and apart from the matches we plan to play a game of paintball after dinner.

Friday 3 December - Day 2
It was a relaxing day for the body even though the mind was working hard trying to find answers and plan for the future. I told myself to relax for now and bring out these thoughts at another time. I watched many matches between lunch and dinner but there are three that I would like to mention.

Martin and Shorbagy
Martin was doing well trying to keep the rallies long and match the young egyptian's pace. He settled in more in the second and errors started to come
off shorbagy's racket. Martin made an
excellent comeback from 6-9 down to level the game but shorbagy closed it out after that. Marty played with more confidence in the third which was similar to the second. It was 9-9 and it looked like Marty would take the game but shorbagy played a couple of good rallies to close out the game and with it the match.

Steve and Aamir
Steve had been sick since landed on Saudi. It was clear that he was far from 100% with a lacklusture first game. Aamir stayed calm as he usually is and played well in the second not to give steve a chance to get back Into it. The third was comfortable for Aamir as Steve was really feeling the effects of the sickness. Hard luck steve!

Campbell and Daryl
I was looking forward to watching Campbell play Daryl on the glass court. I thought Campbell had a good chance as the glass suited his style play. However, Daryl used his experience to make the court work for himself by hitting excellent length as Campbell struggled and found it hard to find his own. I am sure he will learn from it.

Tomorrow my day begins with commentary for the first two matches on squash tv. I hope I can manage with the sore throat that I have and it doesn't get any worse. After that it will be back to watch the action after a bit of a break.

Thursday 2 December - Day 1
The day went according to plan and I felt comfortable on the glass court after a couple of hits and had a good power nap after lunch. It was match time soon and I looked forward to it. The court and the atmosphere looked and felt great.

The match itself was far from good. My length was short and thierry used the slow court to his advantage very well with his slow dying length. He controlled play and my bad length was getting punished by the slow court and a very worthy opponent. Two games ended very quickly and I offered resistance in the third and led 7-6 at one staged. The lack of preparation over the last 6 weeks showed and my fitness was well off the mark. It was a comfortable win for lincou to move to the second round and a disappointing performance by me.

On the other hand I learnt a lot from the match. Lincou showed that slow pace can be used to one's advantage and also that keeping fit at 34 is also achieveable. I will surely take these things back and prepare well for next year.

My two weeks off start tomorrow and I look forward to a nice relaxing time away from being inside a squash court. Tomorrow, I will be watching friends an future opponents play and hopefully write about Martin, Campbell and Steve's matches.

Wednesday 1 December - Day 0
A late night flight meant we landed at 2am and got to the accommodation at 4am - it was going to be a long day. We are playing and staying at the Sunset Beach Resort by the sea very close to Bahrain. I am sharing my cabana with Borja who I get along with very well and the back door leads to water - 20 feet away.We have been given a food card to use at the restaurant with a generous amount of USD80 per day. I am over dozing on fresh orange juice to get rid of my sore throat.

After a good sleep the mission was to get a hit on the glass court. Having arrived at an odd hour I couldnt make a booking but was fortunate that the got the court ready before the scheduled time. Shabana and Darwish finished earlier and I had a good solo for ten minutes before playing threes with Simpo and Cusk. Stretch, shower, lunch followed and soon after it was time to get ready for the PSA meeting and then dinner.

The meeting went well but lasted well over 2 hours. Everyone was dying to get to dinner and what a feast they put up. The Arab hospitality showed as the organiser presented every player with a hand made Arab sandal as a gift and also announced a car for the World Champion to be. The boys had fun with a camel provided for rides and Ramy was the first to jump. There were some funny moment and soon after it was time to go to bed and look forward to match day. I am hoping to get atleast a couple more hits on the glass before my match at 5. I look forward to it with much anticipation!

3s with Simpo and Cusk in Saudi

Squash Diaries - Dutch Open

2010-11-14T13:34:00.000-08:00

Despite the two weeks layoff due to a hamstring injury, a week of mild activity and another of careful preparation, I still feel confident going into the Dutch Open - one of my target events for the year. The time off from games and training meant a lot of thinking, visualising and solos which have been very helpful. I look forward to travelling to Rotterdam with high expectations and hopes of achieving my goal for the event.

Tuesday 16 Nov - Day 1
Rotterdam is a 90 minutes train ride from the base in almere. The qualifying draw was scheduled at 12 and the matches started much later. I decided to travel on the day instead of a day earlier like in most cases. Things went according to plan and we reached Rotterdam centraal in good time and caught a cab to Victoria. The cab driver was friendly and we had a good chat. He dropped us off, said goodbye and drove off - with our bags still in the boot. Rasmus Neilsen who was with me was shocked and ran after the speeding car but to no avail. I couldn't help but laugh. We had nothing except our wallets with us. After an hour waiting for our friendly cab driver to come back and speculating various scenarios we got very concerned. Tommy berden helped us find phone numbers of cab companies and I was on the phone for a while but couldn't find anything. In the end I decided to go back to the train station in hope of finding the guy there. Tommy lent us his car, rasmus drove as I navigated us through Rotterdam in a rush. Soon after I got off to look for our man, I saw his car. After waiting for five minutes I found him! with a surprised look on his face - he didn't know what was going on and was very apologetic once he found out. We had our bags and we were quite releived and happy with our efforts.

Meanwhile back at the squash, I had drawn a talented Dutchman by the name of Sebastian Weenik. I had played him twice before and both matches had been hard. The match was scheduled for 9:30 which meant plenty of time to rest and focus.

The match started well but I found myself reluctant to move to the front. After a few lunges I got more confident and took the hard first game. I seemed t have relaxed after that and didn't work hard in the middle of the second which saw me lose the game and the score was level. Sebastian played excellent squash to take the important third game and I was down 2-1. It was a hard fourth to level the match but I felt more I control at this stage and played decent in the 5th to take it 11-5 and with it the match in 57mins. In the next round I am up against another capable dutchman Piedro Schweertman and it promises to be another tough one.

Wednesday 17 Nov - day 2

No taxi dramas today as the tournament shuttle took me to the court on time for my 11o'clock practice session. It was more to get the body moving and I did a bit of running on court after the hit. I had a good rest after lunch and felt good for my 8:30 pm match against Dutch no.3 Piedro Schweertman.

It was a decent match with both of us playing well. Piedro was determined and played excellent Squash to take me out in four hard games. It was a long and tiring end and I felt the lack of fitness in the limbs. The 4 weeks off from training were definitely showing. On top of that the skid off another drop of sweat in the first game didnt help the hamstring either. Hats off to Piedro for a good performance and causing an upset.

As for me, this is another disappointing loss and another test for the mind. There are also concerns about the hamstring as its still not 100%. This might mean that I won't be able to play for another week. I am going to see the physio tomorrow and see what is recommended. At this stage all I can do is ice and stretch as much as I can. Hoping for the best.

Travel Diaries - Aotearoa

2010-11-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

http://www.nazphotos.com/Gallery

People often ask me about my travels and one question that is consistent is what my favourite place is. Without any hesitation I respond 'New Zealand' or sometimes 'Aotearoa'. Whenever this conversation takes place, I think about my connection with the place and the reasons for my love for it.

I was a week short of my 15th birthday when I first visited New Zealand. I was training in Sydney at the time and went to play the individual event of the World Juniors in Christchurch in 1994. Travelling by myself and not knowing anyone in NZ, I remember being very anxious. I had no idea that the trip will change my life.

First of all, the Squash was amazing. I knew for sure that thats what I wanted to do with my life. Watching guys like Barada, Borolossy, Lincou and the atmosphere of a Squash tournament inspired me and got me even more keen. I remember playing two warm up events before the main event started and what a great event it was. The memories of the Championships are still fresh in my mind just as they are in the Christchurch Squash Club with the draw still hanging on the wall.

Secondly - the country, the people and the environment totally blew me away. I was staying with Greg Francs who had built his house under the Sumner hill and had a water fall in his backyard! The people in NZ were friendly and polite and the culture very diverse. It wasn't crowded at all, the landscape was out of this world and people loved their sport - I was in paradise.

Since then I travelled the world and always compared places to NZ and nothing came close. Ofcourse, the world is a beautiful place with lovely people and beautiful cultures and I like them all. Europe, The Americas, Asia all have their own beauty but New Zealand is in a league of its own.

Therefore, it was an easy decision for me when I had to choose where to do my final year of studies after 2 years in Singapore. I chose NZ and moved there to stay. Auckland was home - like it is for most immigrants. I knew almost no one there but adjusted very quickly due to my sport and the friendliness of the people. New Zealand made me feel at home from the start.

I remember staying in Kingsland and taking the bus to Queen st everyday, scrolling newspapers for jobs. Squash wasn't on my mind - finding work was. After 3 weeks, I was still without a job, broke and concerned about my future. I called up Squash NZ from a phone booth in the former IMAX and they gave me a lady's number at a club to call to inquire about Squash. It was Aileen I called at Remuera ... and the rest is history.

http://www.nazphotos.com/Gallery

11 points with Joey Barrington

2010-11-01T07:00:00.000-07:00

One of the fittest and most consistent players on the PSA World Tour, Joey Barrington is keeping the busiest of all the players with his new role at the PSA. Joey is the main commentator for Squash TV as well as a professional Squash player with goals and aspirations that he is working hard to achieve. I caught up with this well presented and well spoken Englishman in the commentary box one day.

1. Favourite city: Rome
2. Favourite venue: Canary Wharf
3. Favourite player: Amr Shabana
4. Favourite match played: 2hours and 24 minutes 5 games against Razik
5. Favourite match watched: Canary Wharf Classic final 2010
6. Favourite training: 800 meters running
7. Favourite practice partner: Nick Mathew
8. Dream team vs mars: Jonah Barrington, Jansher Khan, Amr Shabana
9. Favourite food: Italian
10. Favourite drink: Chocolate Milk

11. Favourite movie: Gladiator, Without Limits

Next month - 11 points with Martin Knight

Squash Diaries - The Canadian Tour

2010-10-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

After a few big events in a row, I felt it was time for a change to play a couple of smaller ones. This would give me more matches and excellent competition as well as an opportunity to test my preparation for bigger events to follow. I entered two events in Canada and after three weeks of training, it was time for yet another trip across the Atlantic.
Saturday 16 October '10
It was a comfortable 8 hours flight from Amsterdam to Toronto. A couple of movies and a nap later, we were ready to land. At the airport, I was met by old friend Farooq back from junior days in Pakistan. I settled in well and despite waking up at 2am the next morning I felt good and well rested. It would be another 3 days before I move into the tournament accommodation. I planned to continue with my final preparation for the first event but tonight there was enough time to resume old rivalries on the Snooker table.

White Oaks Open - Niagara
Wednesday 20 October '10
After much anticipation and build up, the event finally started and then ... ended for me in thirty minutes. I led 2-0 in my first round match and felt the strain on my hamstring half way in the third. I reminded myself not to lunge on the right and kept playing mostly on the left. Towards the end of the close third game I reacted to retrieve a boast from the backhand with my right leg and landed on a drop of sweat and slipped to near split position. I felt the tear in the hamstring and was in excruciating pain. I couldnt straighten my leg and was reminded by a helper to keep my eyes open otherwise I would pass out. They carried me off the court and I felt horrible. I couldnt believe it was happening. I forfeited the match and all sorts of negative thoughts occupied my mind as I tried to follow the physio's instructions. The thoughts of having prepared so well for these events, the financial and professional loss, the loss of time and the uncertain future of the injury were all pounding my head. I satyed calm, iced the hamstring and listened to people offering advice. The players were all at hand offering help which was great. Thanks a lot guys - much appreciated.

Thursday 21 October '10
What happened is now in the past. I have to stay positive and remain focused on the future. I have withdrawn from the event next week and hope to get better before the Dutch Open in 4 weeks time. I still have a few events to go for the year, I am playing well, focused, motivated and determined - almost everything is in place. I just need to hang in there, recover well and bounce back - which I surely will.

But first ... time to get some advice and rehabilitate over the next few weeks.The White Oaks Resort in Niagara on the Lake is not a bad place to start.

Squash Diaries - European Club Leagues

2010-10-09T07:30:00.000-07:00

The survival of a squash player in Europe heavily depends on playing for clubs in various domestic competitions. After the first season, I felt the pinch and realised that I had to get as many league games as I could. I started asking around and was lucky enough to be helped by friends to get in touch with various clubs. By the time I got back to Europe in September, I had teams in five countries across the continent.

IGT Winchester - Premier Squash League - England

Austrian League
I got a call from my Austrian club at the last minute and was all set to make my debut. I flew to Vienna on Friday morning and was met by the team at the airport and we caught a flight to the lovely city of Innsbruck where we played the first tie. The atmosphere at the club was impressive and definitely not what I was expecting. It was good to see people getting together to watch Squash. The team got the result they wanted and it was a good start to the season for the defending champions. The host team took us to a very nice place for dinner afterwards and it was great to meet and get to know the locals.

The next morning I had a walk in town and we were soon off to Salzburg where we played our next tie. The team won and as much as I would have liked to have a look around the city, I could understand that everyone wanted to get back home. The Salzburg castle looked magnificent from a distance and I look forward to visiting it next time. It was a 3 hour drive to Vienna and I had a good rest before flying back to Holland the next morning.

PSL – England
It had been a hard weekend in Vienna with the Squash and the travelling. However, the week had just started and my next appointment was in Winchester where the local club was making its first appearance in the Premier Squash League – known as the strongest in the world. I flew to London on Tuesday morning after a brutal training day on Monday. At Winchester they had sold 120 tickets for the inaugural match and there were approximately 150 people in the seats to watch us play against St George’s. The lights went off and the spotlight was on the MC as he introduced each player onto the court. The atmosphere there was the best I have ever seen in a club match and much better than most international events. The team came close to winning but it wasn’t to be. However, the winner was the Winchester Squash club for organizing the night and everyone was buzzing after watching the Squash. Well done Winchester Squash Club.

Dutch League
My flight back to Amsterdam was at 6am and Kirby drove me to the airport at 3:30 am. I got home at around 10 and took the much needed rest before I played my first match of the season for my Dutch league team Zwolle. I was feeling the effects of training, travelling and the matches over the last ten days but knew that it was important to keep going. It was hard to play but we did well and the team managed to secure our first win in the Dutch league. I was absolutely knackered when I got back home just after midnight and planned a very light day with some hitting with Steve.

I am unable to play Danish league this month due to the tournaments in Canada and Italian league doesn't start till next year. Back in Netherlands, the third week of training is over and I can rest and recover for another good week of training before heading out to North America. Looking forward to the coming events.

11 points with Alan Clyne

2010-10-01T01:00:00.001-07:00

This newcomer to the PSA World Tour has been quick to make his mark. His rise in ranking and improvement in results has been consistent since he started only a couple of years ago. Most importantly this young Scotsman plays with immense passion. Almost always dressed in Scottish colours this quiet young man is as fit and strong as one can be. I caught up with Alan in Manchester to get his 11 answers.

1. Favourite city: New York
2. Favourite venue: TOC – New York – Grand Central Station
3. Favourite player: David Palmer
4. Most memorable match played: Europeans 2010 – vs Simon Rosner
5. Most memorable match watched: World Teams Final 2009 – Lincou vs Shabana
6. Favourite training: Matchplay
7. Practice partner: Stuart Crawford
8. Dream team: Ramy, Palmer, Power
9. Favourite food & drink: Pasta & Pear juice
10. Favourite movie: Coach Carter
11. Favourite quote: 'I'm so quick that I turn the light off and I'm in bed before it's dark' Muhammed Ali

11 points with David Palmer

2010-09-19T14:49:00.000-07:00

World no.1, twice World Champion and four times British Open Champion, David Palmer is a legend of our sport. A passionate ambassador for Squash as well as a loving family man he is a likeable personality on the tour. I caught up with Dave in Manchester and managed to get 11 answers from him to kick off this new section of the blog.

1. Favourite place: Pelican Waters - Queensland
2. Favourite venue: Bermuda - World Open 2007
3. Favourite player: Ramy Ashour
4. Most memorable match: World Open 2002 final against John White
5. Favourite training: Plyometric training
6. Favourite practice partner: Peter Pastijn
7. Dream team: Jahangir, Ramy, Eyles
8. Favourite food: Thai
9. Favourite drink: Ice Coffee
10. Favourite movie: Shawshank Redemption
11. Favourite quote: All dreams come true if you have the courage to chase them.

Squash Diaries - British Grand Prix

2010-09-13T16:18:00.000-07:00

It was back to the familiar and comfortable surroundings of England for yet another major event - the first ever British Grand Prix. Having had a couple of the best results of my career and reaching the last 16 with a good run last year - I was hoping to do well here again. The tournament is being played at two venues with the qualifying in Wolverhampton and the main draw on the glass court in Sportscity, Manchester.

Updated Sunday 19 September 2010
Match Analysis and plans for the future

The qualifying matches were being played at the Wolverhampton Squash Club - a place I have visited many times over the years. This meant that I could stay with a friend in the comfort of a home rather than a hotel and focus on the matches without worries. Thanks for having us once again Jacqui. I was seeded 6th in the qualifying draw and there were anxious moments before the draw was made an hour before the matches started.

In the first match I was up against the experienced and skillful Londoner Ben Ford. It was expected to be a tough one and so it was. However, I managed to control the pace and the game to take the match in 3 games.

In the second round I was up against the fit and fast New South Welshman Matthew Karwalski. Matt has been playing well and had a good win in the first round. My plan was to keep him behind me to avoid him using his speed at the front. It was a bad start to the first game and I was behind six points before catching up but it was too late. I managed to stick to the game plan in the next three to take the match in four games.

The win also got me through to Manchester for the main draw where I will be playing Stewart Boswell on Wednesday 15 September 5 pm. I have played Stweart many times before and he has always got the better of me. He is one of the best players in the world but I will be trying my hardest to turn the tables this time.

Sunday 19 September 2010

Back to the base after another event. The match against Stewart is still fresh in my mind and I am watching the video to learn from it. Travelling and playing events for two months in a row has definitely taken its toll. I knew I wasn't as well prepared as I could have been for Manchester but still had confidence in the way how I have been playing. The match had its good patches and very bad ones as well. However, something to learn and grow from for sure.

The crucial things for me in the match to note were that my error rate was high and fitness was low. I plan to work on Anthony's advice given to me nearly a year ago 'run run run'. As for the errors, I will need to keep working on solos and routines. I also need to remember to get on the glass atleast two times before I play on it again even if the only court time available is 3am!

In saying that, I also feel confident that I am playing well. I am wroking the ball well and that comes naturally to me. I need to put more pressure on the ball at times and hopefully routines will help. I look forward to some solid preparation before the next events in October, November and the World Open in December.

Now, back to training for four weeks and to get fit!

Upcoming events

2010-09-01T01:32:00.000-07:00

It was a long trip back to the base in Almere. I took the extended path by choosing to rest at nights in the Gold Coast, KL and another night in London before reaching Netherlands. I wanted to get back, get over the jetlag and train as much as I could before the start of what promises to be a busy season filled with matches and travelling to and from the venues.
I had been in touch with my European clubs for their local league matches and started hearing back from them about dates that they need me for. I now have a team in the Danish, Austrian and Italian leagues alongside my team from last season in the Dutch league - Zwolle. Leagues are essential for survival around here as there aren't as many good local events as they do in NZ.

By this time I had also carefully planned my PSA events for the next 4 months and it sure looks busy. First up is the World Open qualifying match in Surrey next week followed by the British Grand Prix. October will see me head out to Canada once again for a couple of smaller events. November has the Dutch and London Opens and in December it is back to Asia with the World Open in Saudi and a smaller event in Pakistan. This is on top of the league matches in between events which will keep me busy and active for the season. I look forward to it all with much anticipation.

Squash Diaries - Queensland Tour

2010-08-15T17:12:00.000-07:00

When offered a spot in a Squash coaching/exhibition tour of Queensland from Brisbane to Cairns - I didn't think twice to accept it. Having travelled around the world many times - I longed to visit Queensland - one of the best places in the world. What better way to do it then through your sport and with friendly locals.

Updated on 1 September
After a relaxing couple of days in Canberra, I headed out to Brisbane where we had a couple of days before we started the tour. I made the most of the time there by visiting Mt. Gravatt, south bank and the gold coast. The climate here is so good that it's hard to believe its winter here because of it's mildness. We are staying with local coaching legend Marc Forster and enjoying the company and hospitality of his friends. Last night we were treated to a Greek feast with Harry and his lovely family.

The trip starts today and we will be driving 2100 kms in the next 7 days in our land cruiser, sponsored by Brisbane Toyota. We will be stopping in 7 towns and talking to people about Squash. Marc is doing doing technique and footwork, steve is doing game play and my job is to share my fitness regime with club members and juniors. It's time to leave now and I am looking forward to the trip with excitement.

01/09/10
The tour was absolutely fantastic and I loved it in every way. It was a great road trip with the boys and they had me in stiches most of the time. We stopped in each town on the tour for the clinic and played a few games every day for the crowd. They loved the Squash and it was great for our training as well.

The first stop was Maryborough and the small town put in a lot of effort to get a group together. The second stop was Emerald which has an excellent junior programme. We were hosted by the lovely owners of the club Neil and Marita in their beautiful house and treated with excellent food. The next day we were off to McKay via Sarina beach where we spent the night. It was a day off and we relaxed after the long drive. McKay is home town to none other than our very own Bradley Hindle. Another place with a good junior programme - it was hot on court though. The next stop was the beautiful city of Townsville. We ran/walked up Castle hill in the morning and stayed with Margie who was a great host. The turnout at the clinic could have been better but not too bad under new management. Next up was the small town of Ingham. We had a great time here and the crowd stayed around afterwards for drinks and a chat. The turnout was incredible for a small town. Last stop was the lovely town of Cairns. Although there weren't any juniors there but all the players were extremely keen and thoroughly enjoyed the exhibition. On the last night we stayed with the Kraus family in Mareeba. Again, we were well looed after and were entertained and amused by the collection of reptiles they had. Pete is a snake lover and Karl and Julius have followed in the footsteps of their dad.

Overall, it was great fun everywhere we went and the trip was extremely successful both personally and professionally. I got to see a part of the world I hadnt seen and always wanted to visit. It was great to meet all the lovely people and share my knowledge with them. I would like to thank Marc Forster and Steve Finitsis for taking me along - I had a great time guys and would go back anyday. Thanks a lot!

Squash Diaries - The Australian Open

2010-08-09T20:58:00.000-07:00

Its been my favourite tournament since its resurgence on the PSA World Tour a few years ago. Well run and close to home with a similar climate, I have had a great time in Clare – SA the last three years. This year its bigger than ever before, attracting the best in the world for a spectacle in Canberra. With memories of the final against Palmer a couple of years ago, I flew across the Tasman Sea hoping for better results.

Friday, 6 August - The Travel
Three and a half hours in the giant A380 and I was in Sydney. I knew when I booked the flights that I will be cutting it fine with a landing time of 7:30 pm with a connection at 8:35pm onwards to Canberra from the domestic terminal. I was prepared for the worst and hoped for the best - and best is what Australia gave me. Fast tracked through customs by a nice lady, baggage was out quick, the bus driver to the domestic terminal didn’t charge me the $5.50 fare because I had no cash and was running too late to get cash out and the check in lady let me off paying excess baggage for the same reason. In 50 mins after landing I was at the gate ready to board my flight – a miracle.

Saturday, 7 August - Day 0
Steve and I are staying with John Granich – Steve’s childhood friend who lives in Canberra and works for the Air Force. Had a comfortable stay and we were ready for practice. Had a good hit and stretch and looked forward to the draw and matches starting. John was good company and both him and Steve were cracking jokes left right and centre. It was a treat for me – I was well entertained.

Sunday, 8 August - Day 1
The qualifying draw in a PSA event is always scheduled on the day the matches start. Its different not knowing who you are playing and when the match will be but I guess one should be ready for anything and everything.

I drew the fit Danish youngster Kristian Frost Olesen whom I had played a few weeks ago in Malaysia. This was a hard first round but the positives were that I had just played him and his style of play and game plan were fresh in my mind. The game started well but he broke through towards the end and I found myself down one game. I lost composure in play in the second and soon myself down two games. This wasn’t ideal and I knew it was going to be a big battle if I wanted to win – which I did badly. Down 1-6 in the third before winning it and then 2-8 in the fourth before winning it as well to level the match at two games each. The fifth could have been anyone’s but I kept it straight and used my holds and drops effectively to win it 11-8 and with it a passage to the next round.

Monday, 9 August - Day 2
In the second round I was up against the talented Egyptian Amr Swelim. Amr is a gifted player and his game has improved a lot recently. It has always been hard playing him with his smooth movement and excellent stroke play. He demolished his opponent Dick Lau in the previous round. On the other hand I was feeling the effects of my 90-minutes marathon yesterday. I had been in the situation many times before and made sure I went through my recovery routine effectively. It worked well and by the time of the match I was feeling good and ready for it.

The match started at a fast pace with Amr dominating play. I could find an answer to his excellent stroke play and lost the game 2-11. Even though I was down, I knew I was going to do better because I felt better physically than I expected. I came back strong and used my stroke play to move him around. It was a good turn around and the match was soon tied at 1-1. The third was hard physically and I could see him tiring. I kept going and fitness saw me through that game as I led 2-1. Amr made a strong comeback and won the fourth to level the match at 2-2. Steve was talking to me between games and reminded me that I needed to stay a few points clear if I was to win the match and that’s exactly what I did. Lucky to break through with a few good shots and after some hard rallies I led 7-4. It was a battle after that and even though I had three match balls, Amr kept fighting and playing well to get to 9-10. We were both feeling it and I knew I had to be smart but instead I went for a nick of the serve which he got back and the gruesome rally ended in a let. When served again I floated a cross court return almost perfectly into the forehand corner which almost died and his attempt couldn’t make the ball reach the front wall. It was a good win for me to beat a seed in the qualifying and to get further. Now I am hoping for a good draw and wishing for a rest day tomorrow.

Tuesday, 10 August - Day 3
I have been drawn against World no.8 Peter Barker in the first round today. Peter is a solid and consistent player who counter attacks very well and hits excellent length. He is known for his fitness and if I am to trouble him at all, I will have to be on the peak of my game. My plan is to break his rhythm and to focus on my strengths and use the element of surprise in our first ever encounter. I am also hoping to get used to the glass court quickly and use it to my advantage. A hit on it would have been good but there was hardly any time.

The day started with an early morning recovery jog to sweat out and flush the lactic acid out of the body. It was a good one and guaranteed me a sleep after breakfast. The day is filled with stretching in between playing Nintendo Wii with none other than Steve who is excellent company as always. John joined us for a little play before lunch as well. The match is at 4pm on the glass court set up at the convention centre in town and I can’t wait to get on.

The match
It wasnt to be - I got thrashed! He was too good for me and I was too flat for him. Look forward to a few days off!

In the following few days we had a great time in Canberra. It was jokes times 3 with the Innisfail boys - Steve, John and Sean. We went out for great food and shared stories and jokes. I also got a chance to visit the magnificent Australian War Memorial with the Grahams who drove 12 hours from Clare to see the Squash and have a family holiday at the same time. It was great to see them. The museum itself is the best I have ever seen with quality displays and shows - it felt as if I was there with the ANZACs.

Its time to move on now and I look forward to Brisbane and the Gold Coast before starting the Queensland Tour.

Kia Ora Aotearoa - The NZ visit

2010-08-03T02:00:00.000-07:00

The landing gears are down and the plane is about to land. I am trying to figure out how I am feeling. I am happy, excited and a bit nervous – it feels a bit strange. I have never been away for this long since I moved here ten years ago. One thing is for sure – I am looking forward to catching up with everyone. There doesn’t seem to be enough time in the day and the hours seem shorter as I organize to meet friends and plan things for this short and much needed visit back to ‘God’s own country’.

Cousins Shield - Napier

What a better way to catch up with the Squashies than to be a part of this year’s Cousins Shield event in Napier. The prestigious National Interclub event was held in Napier this year. I will be playing for Remuera again after a few years absence and hopefully help us win another title. I landed in Auckland at 11am after a 12 hour flight from Malaysia and took the 1pm flight onwards to Napier. The flight landed at another one of NZ’s cute little airports on a beautiful Friday afternoon amongst breathtaking views. Graeme and Alex were waiting for me there and we caught up with the rest of the team – Croc, Matt and then later on Phil at the motel. NZ mum Aileen wasn’t far behind and it was great to see her again. It was good that we had a bye on Friday and I could get some rest and looked forward to going to the club in the morning.

It was great to catch up with everyone at the club. At times it felt like I was never away and at others that I had been away too long. On court, I was in the formerly familiar and now unfamiliar freezing conditions. It reminded me of how and why I started liking the cold playing conditions. We took on Island Bay in our first match and Shane Hatwell played very well to push me in every game. Our semi later in the afternoon was against Ti Street, Rotorua and I was up against Danny McQueen. I knew it was going to be hard but Danny came up with his best Squash for years and I was only lucky to win it 11-9 in the fifth. At 50 years of age and still fitter than most half his age Danny is surely an inspiration. The dinner and the festivities after lived up to their reputation and it was the most fun I have had for a while. Everyone put in the effort and looked great. My costume was probably the worst or the other way round depending on how you look at it. It was an early night for the team as we preferred to focus on the final. It paid off and the team put in a great performance to take the Cousin’s Shield back to Remuera after 6 years. My third win for Remuera and fifth overall.

A week in Auckland

The following week in Auckland was spent mostly training and catching up with friends at my favourite spots. It wasn’t as cold as I was expecting and I have avoided being sick this time around to break a decade long cycle. It has been hard enough to get over the fatigue of travel and training has been hard. My daily routine for this busy week has been to catch up with sponsors in the mornings, rush back home for lunch and head out soon after for training. A drink with the guys at the club and then catch up with friends in the evenings. I am lucky to have been given a car to use for the two weeks I am here by a generous friend – mine is de-registered. All is all a great week and I look forward to the next one which might be less busy and more fun with a few activities planned with the boys.

Manawatu Open - Palmerston North

I got an email from Willy a week ago inviting me back to Palmerston North for the Manawatu Open. The guys are so enthusiastic and welcoming. I enjoying playing there for the convenience of it amongst other things. Apart from that I am also keen to catch up with one of my best friends – The Mughal. The flight is delayed due to fog and I am sitting at the airport pondering whether I should drive back home or sit here listen Pearl Jam and keep on writing.

I finally got on the 7pm flight and got in at 8pm and got to the club just before my game with Ben Murphy. Ben gave a good account of himself and almost won a drink of me. Had a good rest at the luxurious and handy Quest apartments. On Saturday I played a talented local Youngster by the name of Tom Nash. Tom competed well and we had some excellent rallies. The semi was in the afternoon and I faced the experienced Shane Johnstone. Stoney can slot a few and he did really well to win the third game with me eventually running away with a four game win. Dinner was at a lovely Pakistani restaurant hosted by the owner himself. It was a real treat and I will surely be back there. The talented Wellingtonian Evan Williams was my opponent in the final. He played the best I have seen him play and used his skills very effectively. I won the well contested match in four games and thanked the sponsors FitzherbertRowe for their support as well as SquashGym for having us all at the event. After dinner with another friend who has moved down here from Auckland, I was on my way to the airport. It was an excellent weekend and I am glad I could make the most of it with Squash and seeing friends. Apart from others I also managed to catch up with Grant Smith – the driving force behind SquashGym for many years. I managed to interview him which will be on here soon.

Another week in Auckland

The second week in Auckland looked even busier with an Exhibition with Gary at North Shore Squash club - a couple of meetings in the mornings as well as training. I looked forward to it all and especially to Wednesday night when we gather together at my favourite room in Auckland and a final get together at Remuera Rackets for the team on Thursday night before I head off to Australia on Friday.

After 10 days here it feels like I never left and being in Europe was in a past life.

Rendezvous - Grant Smith & SquashGym

2010-07-31T01:10:00.000-07:00

The World Women’s Team Championships are being staged at SquashGym, Palmerston North this year. This small city in the North Island in New Zealand has also played host to the World Junior Men’s Championships in 2006 and many other national events including the Nationals and Cousins Shield. I have always wondered how a club in a small city can manage these huge events when even national governing bodies around the world struggle with events at the smallest level. On my recent visit to New Zealand, I caught up with Grant Smith to understand how it works.

Q: Hi Grant, thanks for making time to chat. Could you please tell us a bit about yourself.

A: I’ve lived in Palmerston North nearly all my life – I was born and bred here. I love Squash, very passionate about the game - I have been playing since I was 12. Had a reasonable playing career, made top 16 in New Zealand in the 80s, in an era for that was dominated by Ross Norman and Stuart Davenport so it was very strong. I wanted to give something back to the game after finishing my playing career. Palmerston North club had always been strong but it suffered like a lot of older clubs recently and I joined forces with other members to rebuild the club on the administration side. I used some of my business skills, I am in the design and advertising industry and I brought my business skills to help market the game. I have managed to gather like minded people with me and now have a great team that have run the place for the last decade and continuing to do so at a very successful level. A lot of the things that we have done aren’t rocket science but we have a good team of people who want to be involved in a community club which has helped us to take it to a national and international level.

Q: Please tell us a bit about Palmerston North and SquashGym as well as your involvement and how how you have seen the club grow.

A: Palmerston North is NZ’s sixth largest city, a small inland town of 100,000 people in the North Island. The Squash club is the second oldest club in NZ. The first time Squash was played in 1919 here. It’s a young city, a university city. Squash has a good history in the city and the Squash club has a good presence here. We are the only club in the city.

I joined the committee in the year 2000. We were at a low ebb as a club had dropped down to 200 members from its peak of 800. I rose to be the President in a couple of years and stayed in the position until last year – for 8 years. We have had a good success level in that time.

We used to be a private club and we wanted to open the doors to the public and we wondered how we could bring more people in. We made a conscience effort and physically did open the doors. It was a real punt – for the first couple of months we hardly had a customer. We started to advertise and market the club, talking to school and it slowly started to get better. It was a slow process but when I look back on it, it was just like any business – it takes time.

A lot of Squash clubs get it wrong. They have an administrator from 9-3 or 8-5 and as you know Squash is mostly played after those hours or at lunch. We had an administrator from 11 – 8 at night and it certainly worked. We built the membership up and got it up to 500 members in 5 years. Then we added the gym and that really helped increased the membership. They had to walk past the squash courts to go to the gym As we know from other clubs in NZ Squash and Gym are a natural fit. It makes the gym people to think ‘gee they are having a bit of fun – lets try it’.

We have a good programme for schools. We are lucky to have an excellent location in the CBD and surrounded by 4 schools that we have a good relationship with. We have grown a Squash culture in these schools. They now have 100 kids playing in each school

We also have a lot of casual members as well. A lot of people want to have a game every two weeks with their mate or flatmate or work buddy. So now we have a lot of casual members using the facility and sell a lot of casual concession cards and that helps the revenue as well.

Another thing we did in 2006 was to merge our club with our neighbour the local Bowling club, the Cosmopolitan club. This gave us a bigger facility and brought in the hospitality, food, conference and rentable areas. It gets more people into the facility. All this has seen the membership grow to 1300 in the last 10 years and it’s going really well.

Q: That’s amazing - very impressive! Now another thing that fascinates me is the events you hold. A club in a small city is hosting this big international events. What are you doing different - how do you make it happen?!

A: Good question! We like to hold events – we are passionate about hosting them. But also, now we have the expertise level where running a Cousins Shield or Nationals event is not much different to running an International event in the but you add on layers and layers of profile, sponsorship and the media. Running an event is a part of our blood – we love it. We have also found a good way of profiling the club not just locally but all over NZ through events. We had the World juniors in 2006 then the Nationals which was live on TV and played on the glass court then we had a break for a couple of years and now we are back with the World Women’s Teams which has taken it to a higher level.

Q: How do you manage it financially and how do you get support for the events?

A: It’s a business, it’s a commercial partnership not a donation. There has to be something in it for the sponsors. For local events our sponsors support us because they want to get more business from our membership. The same goes for National and International events - we look for partners who can get something out of it. We are professional in the way we approach them, professional in the way we host them, the media, the profile. Fortunately we have a city that supports us and we have commercial backers as well. We look for sponsorships all over NZ as well as Internationally. Its hard work but going well so far.

Q: What else does SquashGym do and whats the future?

A: We also have an Academy going for the last 6 years. We are investing in the young ones and have been rewarded by kids doing well at age group events and the clubs name being read out at prizegivings. That’s the future of the game – you’ve got to keep the kids coming through.

We haven’t stopped here, we have a plan till 2015 where we are investing in the neighbouring property – our ultimate goal is to have a permanent glass court here. As for events, we will bring back the Cousins Shield to SquashGym and work on other events.

Q. Anything for the clubs to help them improve their capabilities?

A. You’ve got to run your club as a business. Doesn’t matter if a club is in a small town or a major city. You have to step back and say what is actually wrong with the place. Is it a tired facility? Have you got a wrong leader? Then you have to have a plan for your club. Just like a player on court – you’ve got to have a game plan.

Thanks a lot for your time Grant and all the best to the club and the upcoming events.

Squash Diaries - Malaysian Open

2010-07-15T17:30:00.000-07:00

The Malaysian Open has been a well established event on the PSA World Tour for the past few years and I have been a regular participant. The event is well run and keenly attended by players and viewers alike making it one of my favourites on the tour. The earlier rounds are held at Bukit Jalil and from the quarter final onwards the Squash moves to the glass court placed in the Curve shopping centre attracting hundreds of people and giving plenty of mileage to the sponsors - the financial giant CIMB.

Updated on Wednesday 21/07/10
Friday 16 July 2010

After a much needed and well spent 8 days in London, catching up with friends and getting some good hits, I was on my way to KL. Based in Europe for the last 10 months meant it was my first long haul flight in a while – 13 hours non stop. It wasn’t as bad as I feared. Even though I had trouble sleeping in the beginning, the tiredness kicked in later and I managed to get some good rest. It was only a couple of hours to go when I woke up and a couple of hours after landing I was nicely settled in my room at the Sports hostel conveniently located next to the Squash courts at Bukit Jalil where the earlier rounds are being played. Over the next couple of days I will be settling into the playing conditions and getting over the jetlag as soon as I can apart from practice hits. Steve is good company and an excellent training partner as always. I have been playing well and look forward to the matches in the qualifying draw on Monday.

Monday 19.07.10

Match days are usually different but today is exceptional because of an early start. I got up at 2am and couldn’t go back to sleep - still suffering from jetlag and the 7-hour time difference from UK. This is the worst case I have had as long as I can remember but then again I have never played in Asia coming in from Europe and its always harder from west to east. I am taking it positively in a way because staying up for so long guarantees me a good sleep after the morning session. It worked well and after another good practice session with Steve, I came back to the room and had a good rest and then a good nap after lunch and I was ready for the game. The onsite draw took place at the player’s lounge and I drew the fit Dane Kristian Olesen. I had seen him play before and expected a tough match and that’s exactly what it turned out to be.

The ball was bouncy in the warm Malaysian conditions even with air conditioning. I found it hard to control it and ended up playing too many cross courts. I managed to control the game well overall and won it 11-7. He came back strong in the second and after a few good rallies at the end of the game won it 11-8. I knew I was in trouble because now he had a sniff and knew that he had a shot at the match. The third was bad as I struggled to get length and lost that 11-4. Losing the important third and going 2-1 down meant I was on the way out of the tournament. Kristian started playing very well. He is a very basic but steady player and even though he doesn’t do much with the ball he gets a lot back and it also means he doesn’t make many mistakes. I struggled in the fourth and was down 5-9 and got my act together to win the game 12-10. The fifth could have been anyone’s but it ended up similar to the fourth where he led 9-5 and I came back strong. He had matchball at 10-8 which I saved through an error. Another long rally ended in a let and the next rally ended in him hitting my racket with the ball on returning my serve. The ref gave him a stroke and I pleaded the ball was into the sidewall but to no avail. A stroke was awarded and I was out of the tournament on the first day 9-11 in the fifth after 77 minutes - Disappointing to say the least!

Wednesday 21/07/10

As hard as I try to push away the thought - playing conditions do make a difference. The climate, the courts, tin height and atmosphere at the venue all play a part in the reuslt of the match. Hopefully I can choose my tournaments more according to where it suits me to play. Even though it wont be the ideal situation every time, I can still give myself a better chance by choosing events better. In saying that it shouldnt play on the mind too much.

Oh well, its time to train again and get ready for the next event. After a couple more days here I am off to NZ. I will recover from the travel and play Cousins on the weekend in Napier and get back to business in Auckland to train hard for two weeks for the Australian Open which is a target event for me this year. Look forward to it all - especially being back in NZ.

Travel Diaries - All roads lead to Rome

2010-07-01T01:10:00.000-07:00

I could feel the adrenalin pumping through my blood as I walked on the dark cobblestone path on this calm and pleasant night. It was quite a high pace for someone who didn’t know where they were going. The street was bustling – I could feel the atmosphere building up. Forced to stop at a traffic light, looked left and there it was – standing tall and looking majestic – the breathtaking colosseum, I was in Rome!

I have wanted to visit Rome for many years but never got a chance. This time around after being in Europe for nearly a year, I knew I had to do make the visit. I waited for the right time after the European Squash season finished and booked myself a week’s trip with three full days in Rome.

Day 1
The plan was to walk as much as possible looking around the iconic sights in Rome as well as to find some local hotspots preferably as hidden away from the tourists as possible. I could hardly wait to start the day which looked beautiful and pleasant – not hot as I was expecting. I started walking west and hit the beautiful Piazza Venezzia. The marble building is only a 125 years old and looks stunning. There were tourists everywhere – even on a weekday. Further walking took me through the busy streets and atleast one excellent site with ruins from ancient Rome. Further into the city, I sat at Piazza Novona for a while before cutting my way through the narrow streets to the Pantheon. One of my favourite sites in the city this Ancient Roman temple was converted into a Cathedral and still an active one. Inside there were beautiful sculptures and painting along with the tomb of four people including that of Raphael’s. Walking north after lunch, I was at Piazza Espana. The Spanish steps were full of tourist taking a breather and after spending a little while there and using the cleaner than expected public toilet facility – I walked up the steps and headed back to the hotel for a rest. The evening was dedicated to visiting the Colosseum and spending a quiet time in the vicinity. It was a beautiful evening and something I will remember for a long time.

Day 2
I had set the second day aside for the Vatican and its museum which was a short and comfortable bus ride away from Termini. It was busy there with a queue of people to get in. Before getting into the Basilica we walked around the tomb’s of a lot of the Popes including that of Pope John Paul II. The Basilica itself was full of sculptures and a lot of other decorations. It was good to have seen it. It was a long walk around the compound to the Vatican museum. The museum itself was crowded by people as well as beautiful displays. The walk was hard with narrow walkways and the temperature building up. The Sistine Chapel was worth the wait and beautiful to sit in and observe Michalengelo’s work. It had been a few hours of non stop walking by the end of it and I was happy to get back to the hotel and get some rest. In the evening I walked in Trans Tevere - a very nice part of town and the walk on the Tevere river with lovely stalls alongside it was absolutely fantastic.

Day 3
Having seen most of the planned sites, it was time to relax and take it easy on the last day. I gave in to the temptation by a couple of Italian designers and enjoyed gelato at Termini and looking around the area. Also went in to the Santa Maria Maggiorie which was right next door to the hotel and managed to visit a small museum before lunch. After a few hours of rest walked back into the city and ended up looking over the beautiful city from Villa Borghese on an absolutely beautiful evening – a breathtaking view. Dinner at a lovely restaurant with a traditional Italian countryside interior was the perfect way to round up what had been a fantastic trip to the lovely city.

There were other things that I liked about Rome apart from the sites. The easy and quick access to the airports to and from the city, the affordable and organized public transport and vehicles stopping for pedestrians on crossings even in the busiest parts of the city.

Rendezvous - Davide Bianchetti

2010-06-18T01:58:00.000-07:00

One of the characteristic personalities on the PSA World Squash Tour - Davide has been around for a long time. He is as Italian as they come, relaxed, emotional and passionate about life - you cant help but like Davide Bianchetti. He is also one of my favourite players with his style of play and elegant, smooth movement. Not much is known about him and I got a chance to chat to him on our long drive from to Toulouse.

http://www.davidebianchetti.com/

Kashif: Davide tell us a bit about yourself.

Davide: I live in Brescia a small town in the north of Italy where I was born in 1976. I started playing Squash when I was 8 because my father opened the second Squash club in Italy. I was playing soccer at the same time and played both sports till I was 15/16. I was a decent soccer player but there would have been many thousands like me in Italy. I started playing junior tournaments in Europe and played all age categories.

Kashif: Tell us a bit about you Squash career – the path so far in your professional career.
Davide: I played my first few PSA events when I was 19 in Italy. I wasn’t fulltime then but played anyway. I wasn’t sure at that stage what to do with a few options after finishing studies. I was 18 when I won the Italian National title and that made me think about being a professional. I went to the army for mandatory service for one year. I moved to England after that for two years and I guess that’s when my professional career started. I was 21/22 there. I trained for six months without any tournaments and won two events in Mexico back to back after the training and that helped my confidence a lot. I played the World Open in 1998 in Cairo and I was in the reserves. Jansher pulled out and I got a chance to play. I qualified beating Palmer in one of the longest matches I have played. That’s how it started properly.

Kashif: Tell us about your best result on the tour.
Davide: Quarters in the World Open in 2003 in Lahore has to be my best result. I beat Gavin Jones, Peter Nicol and Gaultier to lose to Darwish in the quarters. That’s definitely the best I have played. It got very good coverage in Italy as well. Most of it was because I beat Peter Nicol who was no.1 in the world at that time.

Kashif: Tell us about your life as Squash professional.
Davide: Like all other pro sports it gave me an opportunity to compete. I love competing and Squash gave me an opportunity to challenge myself and improve. It also gave me a chance to travel. Even though now I am not a big fan of travelling I enjoyed it when I first started. I remember being excited about being in NY for the first time. Meeting different people and knowing difference cultures. You still don’t see many cultures in Italy so it was really interesting for me.

Kashif: Tell us a bit about Italy – what is your favourite spot.
Davide: I like Brescia because its home! I am Italian and will be biased about Italy. Italy has many problems but I love Italy. I like the rhythm here. I like it when people don’t take themselves too seriously and Italy we are like that. I really like the food here and eating late and going out here as well.

Kashif: What are your plans after Squash?
Davide: I will most probably work with Sport and probably with Squash. I have already set up and academy and I would like to teach new players and share my experiences which I have been lucky to have gained over the many years in Squash. I like helping people improve so it will all come naturally.

Kashif: What would you like to say to juniors. Club players or anyone wanting to improve Squash.
Davide: Its all about getting proper guidance. Its all about getting a good coach and getting the best advice and learning from them. Its not easy for everyone for example there weren’t many people I could learn from here so I had to go overseas to England to learn.

Kashif: Whats your philosophy on life.
Davide: Do the stuff you can do, do your best but don’t take things too seriously in life. And … I hate people who are not polite.

Kashif: Hahaha! Thanks a lot for your time. Its been great talking to you. Hands back on the steering wheel please – now that you have finished talking!

Movida International - Toulouse

2010-06-14T14:55:00.000-07:00

This event is back on the calendar at the Movida club. I am seeded 6th and have drawn a qualifier in the first round. The draw is the strongest I have seen for an event at this level and matches are going to be tough and hard in the heat of summer as well as being played on the higher 19 inches tin. I have been training and playing well and look forward to taking the form to the matches in Toulouse.

Tuesday 15 June – Day 0

The best thing about being based in Europe is the reduced travel times to most tournaments. There is no jetlag and players usually get to the venue a day before their match rather than a week before how I have done many a times travelling from Auckland. I was kindly offered a ride by Davide Bianchetti who was driving from his home in Brescia, Italy to Toulouse through the southern French coast – a distance of 966 kms. He hosted me at his place last night where I was treated to nice Italian food and dessert alongside watching Italy vs Paraguay in the World Cup with the passionate Italian.

It took us ten hours to get to the Squash club in Toulouse with an hour’s break for lunch and coffee in Antibes. The weather wasn’t the best for most of the drive otherwise it was comfortable. Time flew talking to Davide about various things and I managed to squeeze in an interview as well. At the club I met up with flatmates Brad and Steve as well as other players. We all waited for the qualifying matches to finish to find out that I play the young Frenchman Fabien Verseille tomorrow afternoon. Time to get some rest.

Wednesday 16 June 2010
Good breakfast, morning hit and rest after lunch – all set for the first match. I was expecting a tough match with the talented and in-form young Frenchman. I started well but my hip was sore for some unknown reason and was playing on my mind a bit. I told myself that it cant be helped and I should focus on playing well to try and get a win. A bit distracted through the first, I lost it to go down one game. The second was tight and I had to push hard at the end to take it and level the match. It was hard to do a lot with the ball in the hot conditions and the higher tin but I tried to be as steady as possible in the third and totally controlled the game to win it. I felt a loss in energy at 3-0 up in the 4th and he played well to come back and win the game to take the match into the 5th. It could have been anyone’s match but I broke through at 7-7 to get matchball at 10-7. He kept fighting hard and I made a few mistakes for him to get level and then have matchball at 11-10. I played the last two points well and stayed steady waiting for him to attack – which he did and eventually made mistakes for me to take the match 13-11 in the fifth. It was a long one and I will have to go through the recovery routines to make sure I feel good tomorrow. I will be playing our experienced Italian friend Davide Bianchetti and if I want to win this one it will be a hard, long and tough.

Thursday 17 June

Had a good hit and stretch in the morning. The sweat out felt good and the hip felt much better. I had a good rest in the afternoon and was ready for the match against one of the most experienced players on the tour. The match started well and we were both steady. I felt I could attack a bit more but hesitated with the higher tin and the hot conditions. We played a steady game which I won. He came back strong in the second to level the match. He totally controlled the third with accurate length and had me do a lot of the running. We were both feeling it by then but he led 2-1. I played good attacking Squash in the fourth – going short when I had the opportunity and volleying more often. He found it hard and I leveled the match at 2-2. The fifth could have been anyone’s. I felt confident because I knew I was fitter than him and could push more. I was also aware that I shouldn’t let them game be played at the back and be controlled by him and that I had to attack which can be risky. I started really well and took a 3-0 lead. He dug deep and played excellent Squash to keep coming back. After a few hard rallies that he controlled he took the lead and I was left fighting and struggling for points. He used all his experience to stay in the match and take it 11-7 in the fifth to my disappointment.
Now its time to go back to the drawing board and see what can be done better. The next few events will be big and need to be focused upon well. I have a few weeks before I play in the Malaysian Open so that’s a good amount of time to work on things. Lets see how it goes.

The Glass Arena - Treviso, Italy

2010-06-08T22:04:00.000-07:00

A three-events series with international Squash players showcasing the sport on a glass court at amazing settings in Italy. The first leg is held in the beautiful town of Treviso near Venice from 10 June.

Updated Saturday 12 June

http://www.glassarena.com/Pagine/treviso_2010.html

I have been invited to play in this event along with Italian, Hungarian and Austrian champions in this eight-man draw alongwith four Italian players. Luca Mastrostefano, a former PSA player and Italian international is responsible for putting this series together which promises to promote the sport in various towns in Italy. I look forward to being a part of this event.

Thursday 10 June – Day 1
After a 12-minute walk and 40 minutes on the train, I was at Schiphol well in time to check in for my flight to Treviso. There was hardly a queue and soon I was through to the lounge after clearing security. In 90 minutes I was in Treviso and walked out of the airport with my monster of a Squash bag on my back into a beautiful sunny afternoon. I was picked up by Luca and taken to my nice and comfortable room at the hotel where I will be staying for the next four nights.

I was drawn against none other than our host Luca Mastro. Its always hard to play your game against the skilful Italian but I managed to sneak a 3-0 win to set up a clash with the Hungarian Champion Mark Krajscak. It will be a tough one against Mark's fit and solid playing style. The match is scheduled for 10pm.

Friday 11 June - Day 2
It was another lovely day and we were treated by excellent Italian hospitality. We have been well taken care of and usually eat at a very nice restaurant owned by a member at the local Squash club. At lunch I had a good chat with the other players. Aqeel has driven from Salzburg, Andre Hasker from near Frankfurt, Domagoj from Zagreb and Krajscak from Budapest. We were talking about Squash in there countries amongst other things. Davide Bianchetti was in top form entertaining us all with his humour.

After a long wait, it was finally match time at 9:30pm. It started well even though the conditions were hard for both of us with the floor being a bit slippery and the glass taking time to adjust to. I sneaked the first 11-9 and was looking good for the rest of the match. He came back strong in the second to level the match. It was the third that was crucial and I lost a close game 11-8, mostly due to my errors. At 2-1 down it was always going to be hard. I played well and stayed in there but so did he and he won a close 4th 11-8 to take the match. Its disappointing to lose as always but I am happy to get a good match and look forward to third place playoff tomorrow against Aqeel Rehman of Austria.

Saturday 12 June - Day 3
Another lovely day here in Treviso. Last night's loss was fresh in the mind and if I have learnt anything so far is to not get disappointed like I used to and analyse to hopefully improve in the future. I have noted a few things that I need to be aware of in the next match but otherwise things were mostly good - apart from the result obviously.

I also got inspired to write about something. The pen was simply flowing and it took no time and effort at all. After breakfast I had a good chat to Aqeel about Squash and in general and it was very relaxing. After replying to a few emails if was soon lunch time with the boys. Andre is here with his wife and lovely 15 month old girl Maylene. They joined us for lunch and it was great food as always. We discussed languages and their familiarities across regions. Its rest time now and another long wait for the 3rd place playoff against Aqeel.

I also got inspired to write once again. The pen was simply flowing and it took no time and effort at all. After breakfast I had a good chat to Aqeel about Squash and in general and it was very relaxing. After replying to a few emails if was soon lunch time with the boys. Andre is here with his wife and lovely 15 month old girl Maylene. They joined us for lunch and it was great food as always. We discussed languages and their familiarities across regions. Its rest time now and another long wait for the 3rd place playoff against Aqeel.

In the evening the stage was set for the finals. The glass court looked beautiful in the square and the atmosphere was buzzing with more people watching tonight. It felt good to be a Squash player and be a part of the event. I took on Aqeel after an exhibition game. I played well mostly and controlled the play. Lucky to get through after a close fourth against the fit and determined Austrian to take the 3rd place in the event. We watched the final afterwards which was a good match with Mark Krajscak winning in four against the local favourite Davide Bianchetti. The mayor was present for the prizegiving and later on it was dinner time. I am going to have a day off tomorrow and will have a walk in Venice which is half an hour away.

Ciao for now.

Rendezvous - Steve Finitsis & Bradley Hindle

2010-05-31T22:10:00.000-07:00

What better place than home to start the interview section of the blog. In the past 8 months these two guys have been my flatmates, training partners, travelling partners as well as very good friends. I caught up with them both at home one day and here is what they had to say.

Q. Tell us a bit of where you are from and how you got all the way here to Netherlands?
Brad: I am from MacKay, Queensland and moved to Brisbane at 16. After finishing studying I moved to Antwerp, Belgium in 2003 to work with Shaun Moxham and Dave Palmer to further my Squash. After Dave moved on I had a choice between England and Netherlands and I decided to move up to Netherlands because the Squash scene was better here.
Steve: I am from Innisfail in tropical North Queensland. I moved down to Brisbane in 2001. I furthered my Squash there and turned professional at the end of 2004. I played within Australia for the first few years and the last few years I have been traveling around the world for tournaments. I knew I had to move overseas to reach my full potential and when Brad invited me over in 2008, I moved to Almere, Netherlands with him.

Q. What do you like about being a Squash professional on the world circuit?
Brad: Playing, improving, competing, travelling around the world, meeting different people.
Steve: I have enjoyed seeing new places, meeting new people and making new friends. Obviously the challenges of achieve our best is what I enjoy the most.

Q. Tell us of a memorable experience you had while on tour.
Brad: The first league match that I saw in Europe. It against Palmer against Thierry and they were both top 3 in the world. Followed by Joe Kneipp and Beng Hee who were both top 16, followed by Borja and Bianchetti. I was impressed that I was able to see world class Squash which was my first time watching top class Squash.
Steve: My trip coming back from Majorca was an experience. Due to the Snow storms our travel time of 2 hours was extended to a grueling 24 hours from Majorca to Almere using all forms of transport from flying, to trains, to driving and then trains again and then finally the last 10 minutes of walking again to home from the train station.

Q: What stage of life and career do you see yourself at now?
Brad: I would like to consolidate my playing career whilst making decisions for the future after Squash. I am interested in a future in education or law.
Steve: Learning more about Squash and trying to establish myself as a professional.

Q: What are your goals and plans for this year.
Brad: Stay healthy, play good and compete at my best.
Steve: My priority is the Super series events – to play as many as I can. By the end of the year I would like to be within the top 50 in the world. I want to come back to Europe after the Australian Open and establish a base here and get myself some good league matches and tournaments.

Q. Anything you would like to say to the many Squash players out there.
Brad: For the kids, set your goals and go for it!
Steve: Have fun, enjoy the Squash and always be open to learning.

All the best guys and we look forward to following your careers. Talk again soon.
Who's cooking tonight by the way ?

The year ahead

2010-05-26T00:06:00.000-07:00

Even though results on the PSA tour haven’t been even close to what I wanted, I feel there has been constant improvement in my game this year. I have been working on the flaws that were brought forward at the World Teams Championships in September last year. The improvement has also been a result of continuous hard and effective work even at times of adversity. I have taken a lot of confidence and learnt in abundance.

Practice and training needs to be converted into results and I know that even one good match can turn things around or change the shape of a career. It has happened to me many times at different stages of my life and I believe in it. I have carefully planned the whole year to give myself a decent number of challenges and to help me achieve my goals. These mostly revolve around international PSA events at a variety of levels.

I plan to play in the smaller sized Toulouse international in France from 16-19 June. In preparation for the event I will be playing a small international event in Italy the weekend before which should give me some good mach practice. After Toulouse, it will be back to training before heading out to Malaysia for the much bigger Malaysian Open in July. On the way there I will be stopping in the UK for a week for training. After the Malaysian event I will be returning to NZ – which I look forward to. My next PSA event will be the Australian Open in August which is now back on the calendar as one of the biggest events. After fulfilling my commitments in the southern hemisphere I plan to return to Europe for next season and give it my best for the last few months of the year.

It is an exciting time for me as I plan this knowing that I will be better and more experienced than ever before. I look forward to these events and sharing the experiences with you.

The year so far

2010-05-24T07:52:00.001-07:00

After being based in Almere, Netherlands for nearly 8 months, I look back at the year so far. It has been a good training base and an excellent environment to help me train and be closer to tournaments. I live at the most convenient place with two other Squash players, Steve Finitsis and Bradley Hindle of Australia. We bike five minutes to the sports centre where we train. Sportscentrum Almere has one of the best gyms I have trained at alongwith Tennis, Badminton, Basketball courts alongwith 8 Squash courts.

The year didn't start very well with an injury on the second day. I was on court with my training partner Steve and felt a twinge in my right calf as I took off from the T to the backhand front corner. I stopped immediately and couldn't put any weight on it at all. It was scary and I knew it was a bad one. For the rest of the week I limped, with the right calf unable to take any weight. It was a tough time as I was unable to train for the whole of January. I iced the calf, put it in hot water and massaged it three times a day - the whole exercise took an hour each time. I couldn't understand why it had happened. I had been doing a lot of strength work so it wasn't that the muscle was weak. Someone in NY said that it was lack of minerals in the body which could be true. However, one thing that is consistent with the back injury I had last year was that I was sore from previous training sessions and the muscles were compensating for each other.
It was only in mid February that I was able to train again. Coming out from injury I was extremely keen and took the training head on. Steve and I hammered the weights in the gym session and I got on the treadmill to clock the interval sessions. This was followed by good routines and hard games with Steve and Brad. I was the best prepared for Canary Wharf Classic in March. I drew Chris Ryder whom I had never played before and expected a tough match. However, it wasn't to be as I played much differently to what I am used to. I was running more than playing and found that all the work had turned me into a fitness player. I was doing well and kept trying to push the pace up. It might work for othersbut didn't for me as I failed to adjust and went down in 3 games to an in-form Englishman. Very disappointing.
At that stage, it had been a year since I had visited the family in Pakistan so I took a much needed active break from the Squash scene and had a ball back in Pindi. It was great to see everyone doing well. I was there for ten days and decided to return to train for the Irish Open towards the end of March. The tournament later fell victim to the ash clouds of Iceland and has been postponed till September. My next event was Internationaux de France at the start of May.
I adjusted a few things in training and used the four weeks to prepare well for it. I felt well prepared for the event and expected a good match against another Englishman Shaun le Roux. We finally got to Bordeaux after a long trip and found the oldest building ever to have a squash club in it. It was a warm and welcoming atmosphere at Monsieur Robert's place but the playing conditions were very hard with an uneven front wall as well as the floor. I started well and took the first game but he did well to get back into the second and capitlaising to take the third as well. I fought back to win the fourth but couldnt hold form in the shootout of a 5th game to go down in 5.

With all the disappointment in the year there was some celebration when I took out a small invitational event in Luxembourg in April organised by Wellingtonian Nathan Sneyd. Snibby looked after us well and we had some good matches and a great time in Lux. There was a good bunch of happy players at dinner which included Paul Tuffin, Steve Finitsis, Dylan Bennett, Peter Creed, Jethro Binns and ofcourse our hosts Snibby and a couple of good locals.

Currently I am in my second week of training after a week off after the last French event and look forward to the next one in Toulouse starting on 16 June.

More later.