I'm going to post my own article on Lee Beachill's retirement very soon.
But in the meantime, read his coach Malcolm Willstrop's excellent review of Lee's fine career:
Willstrop on Beachill
Right: Did any player hold the ball better?
Next month the Super Series finals are to move to a new home at the Queen's Club in West London.
The Finals have mostly been held in recent years at Broadgate Arena behind Liverpool Street station in the City. Since the arrival of ATCO boss Ziad Al-Turki as the Chairman of the PSA board, the men's tour has been looking for increasingly prestigious venues to boost its profile.
The Queen's Club is probably best know as the venue for the Stella Artois Tennis Championships which traditionally provide a grass court warm-up before Wimbledon.
A good thing? Broadgate may have attracted passing City workers, but was it too small, too hidden away? Will Queen's Club bring better facilities for players and spectators and greater media attention to the event? Or might it suggest that squash is still the preserve of the private members' club?
You decide. Have your say by voting in the poll to the right of the page ...
With recent success as runner-up in the Tournament of Champions in New York - and heavily fancied for the British Nationals next week - it's fair to say that Nick Matthew is the hottest Brit on the tour right now.
For a player who has struggled with injury in recent times, 2009 could be the year that the Yorkshireman finally gets the recognition his commitment deserves ...
It is testament to Matthew's strength that he has been able to hold a position in and around the top ten while sustaining injuries. With Lee Beachill apparently set to retire at the Nationals, the number of English players who are set to challenge Egyptian dominance at the top of the rankings this season will diminish, and when at the top of his game, few are better equipped than Matthew to lead the charge.
Approaching the peak physical age for a squash players, there is a possibility - if he can keep fit and impose his own tempo on his opponents - that Nick may be able to enjoy a spell as the pre-eminent English player. His quarter final win over higher-ranked England teammate James Willstrop in New York will have been a psychological boost (as will have beating Ramy Ashour) prior to the Nationals, where the two Englishmen are seeded to meet in the semis.
They have a warm-up tomorrow night, where they have drawn each other in the latter stages of the Swedish Open.
Squashblog will not be in Manchester, but looks forward to watching Matthew in the final stages of the Canary Wharf Classic and Super Series finals in March.
Nick's journey back from injury
Matthew beats Willstrop: US Open 2007
Matthew rocks the Guardian
In a welcome demonstration of openness, the PSA board have agreed to answer questions put to them via the Squash Site forum.
With the recent departure of Richard Graham, Ziad Al-Turki's election to the board, new tournaments announced and the Olympic vote due later this year, the PSA is in a high-activity transition period.
Got questions about the new PSA set-up? Ask them here.
It only seems like yesterday that squashblog popped into the world, kicking and screaming at the low profile of the sport.
It's aims were lofty. Much was expected as it toddled around tournaments, griped at governing bodies and wailed for (media) attention.
But how have things changed in those two years? ...
Great players have retired, young prodigies have emerged, initiatives have been announced, courts have open and (mostly) closed.
You can read about all that here and at greater length elsewhere.
But squashblog was created with a different perspective: to look behind the headlines and give independent, objective comment about the wider state of the game - and provide a platform for you to respond.
It seems a good time then to look back and see how the sport has changed over the past two years. A useful way of doing this is to use the categories that I have used since the creation of the site (at the top of the page). Let me know if I'm off the ball!:
The pros
Actually this first one isn't a category I refer to in this site at all, but it is right that they are mentioned first. Many of the improvements noted below wouldn't have happened without the positive attitudes, professionalism, hard work and commitment of the majority of the top pros.
Squash is blessed with, on the whole, a decent, commited crop of professional sportsmen and women who appear to take genuine interest in the development of the wider game as a whole. The rewards for professionals are relatively modest compared with others sports. To the credit of most of those on the professional circuit, they don't appear to bemoan this fact, and get on with representing squash with a dignity and respect for each other that puts other sports to shame.
Media coverage
Very little has changed in the mass media in the UK: squash rarely merits a story in any of the British national dailies (there has however been some excellent coverage in local press) and I can't remember the last time it was on terrestrial TV. Web streaming has advanced, but is not yet ubiquitously accessible. Websites have come and gone: the emergence of Squash 360 appeared to invigorate the landscape, but ceased all too quickly. Squash Site, which provides the only reliable day-to-day news service for all professional events, has struggled due to the ongoing politics that sadly seem to dog squash.
Elsewhere in the world media coverage appears to be on the increase: the success over the past couple of years of Egyptian players has raised the profile even higher in the country, and coverage in India and Pakistan and the far-east (such as Malaysia) is stronger than in Europe. The US - the market that promoters would really like to crack - has had strong regional coverage but little national attention.
Men's game
Anyone who has watched professional squash for more than a few years will have witnessed the change in speed of the game - more attacking play has been great for spectators can only help the game where it's image is concerned. But the velocity of the men's game over the past 24 months has increased such that some feel the soul of the game is being lost (the debate here seems to be heading the same way as 20/20 v test match cricket). PAR scoring has obviously been a factor, but it is difficult to argue that the squash has become less exciting because of it.
Who would have predicted the dominance of the Egyptian trio of Shabana, Ashour and now Darwish two years ago? The fact that the top ten players have been representative of so many different countries is great for the global appeal of the sport, but it would be great to see a rivalry emerge a la Nicol/Power. I thought Ashour/Willstrop would fill this gap ... perhaps this year.
The PSA tour is expanding, with events in new locations and more money coming in. However, the trajectory and stability which seemed to have been established at the top of the organisation before Christmas will need re-assessment after the shock departure of Richard Graham.
Women's game
Though seemingly the better ran of the professional tours, I can't help but think there is an element of resting on laurels. It would be great to see some bigger events in the UK and US, but is there demand?
WISPA has a 'great product'; Nicol David is a great ambassador for the sport, and a great role model for younger players. Like the PSA tour, the plurality of nations represented at the top of the game should be a great draw for promoters.
Almost two years ago to the day I wrote an article that suggested that the level of competition at the top of the women's game might not have been what it was. Have things moved on?
The Malaysian star has indeed become the dominant force, and the Grinham sisters (while swapping places in the world rankings) are now considered beatable by lesser-ranked players. There are flashes of resurgence (Grainger, Atkinson) or hints that new heights are about to be scaled (Duncalf, Abdel Kawy), but no-one looks like challenging David early in 2009.
Again, a good old rivalry in the top five would shake things up.
Governing bodies
Where to start. Apparent lack of direction at the WSF, a resignation at the top, the Olympic campaign seeming to be without co-ordination and professionalism. Progress towards getting its house in order appears to have been made around the time of the October's World Open, but the organisation will be primarily be judged over the next year by what happens at the Copenhagen vote.
The election of Richard Graham by the PSA looked to have given a clear signal that marketing, promotion and media coverage - all things that squash has been historically not done well - were to be addressed. How will his departure have a bearing on the way these key areas?
New initiatives and events have been announced or planned, many at the instigation of new Chairman Ziad Al-Turki. The investment and enthusiasm that Al-Turki is bringing is being welcomed by all in the game, but it will take two years before we will be able to judge whether this investment has endowed professional men's squash with a stronger footing to grow in the medium and long term.
Most of the money flowing into the men's game is coming from the Middle East, which (along with Egypt) has pulled the epicentre of squash away from Europe over the time this site has been up and running. The development of professional squash in regions or countries that display a greater enthusiasm for the sport is welcomed and should help to bring different perspectives and ideas to the game.
But the money coming in from the 'top' has to be matched by increased participation, whether in playing or spectating. Photos from some big-money events in the Middle East, for instance, often show rather empty stands. Also, it would be sad if money only made squash inaccessible to women in certain countries, again whether playing (as an amateur or professional) or watching.
Squashblog hasn't fired many words at national bodies since it started, and it is perhaps a little unfair to suggest that the WSF, PSA and WISPA can do everything alone - especially with their budgets. We hope to look at the performance of these in 2009.
Provision
I've tried to keep a regular eye on court closures - and the occasional opening! - where they make the local press. Great to see local activists fighting to retain squash courts in their area, but all too often they lose out to the gym developers.
The proposed facility at the University of Sussex is probably the most positive story in this area to come out of the UK recently - let's hope the facility sees the light of day. The closure of the historic Lambs club in London brought an end to an era; if the loss of the Lambs had any positive knock-on effect locally, it was in bringing home to many the fact that the capital is losing courts at demoralising rate - and motivating them into saving the courts that are left (Sobell, Finsbury).
Some countries are going in a different direction. Egypt - on the back of the success of its pros - is building more and more courts to satisfy demand.
Participation
This is a difficult one to judge without accurate statistics from national governing bodies. There have been a number of great initiatives aimed particularly at young people over the past couple of years, with the Mini-Squash programme for kids in the UK, and multiple schemes in the US - often allied to social programmes aimed at keeping teenagers off the streets.
Olympics
So much has been said on this site and elsewhere. Some people had better be working very hard behind the scenes!
Click on the Olympics link at the top of the page ...
Technology
Trials and tests have continued, with radar guns, instant replays, electronic scoring and other bits and pieces making an appearance. Great to see promoters and organisers getting innovative, and it would be nice to see some of these become benchmarks for future tournaments - there were no instant replays on the big screens at the Worlds, for instance.
It's time to get serious. Developments in filming squash for TV have certainly brought better coverage, but the advances have been incremental. There simply are not enough media players out there, competing to provide the best coverage, which in turn will drive up quality.
We'll be following closely the degree to which the 'TV issue' is a factor in the latter stages of the Olympic campaign later this year. Here's hoping it's not the deal-breaker: let's not kid ourselves - televising squash has not been cracked.
Marketing
Announcements by England Squash and the PSA that they are to employ professional consultancies to help with their marketing and public relations is a step in the right direction. This hitherto neglected area is key to competing in sports marketplace, and we look forward to seeing the results.
Perhaps less visible advances with the WISPA tour. As I keep reading in the squash press, they have a 'great product' - let's see some bolder initiatives marketing that product in 2009.
Image
The PSA in particular has done a lot in this area over the past couple of years, one example being a nice promo from Pro-Active TV suggesting the urban possibilities of settings, clothing and music. There is a lot of mileage in this, and it would be interesting to see this take on squash's image perhaps coupled with an initiative for youngsters.
Squash clubs - at least in the UK - still set the tone where image is concerned. Though not the yuppie playgrounds they might have been in the 1980s, a perception, at least, still exists that squash is cocooned in bubble of exclusivity - at least in the south of England. This image is even stronger in the US, where the ghost of Gordon Gekko still haunts city club courts.
Real or not, this idea of squash has to be dispelled if participation is to increase and more courts are not to be refurbished to make way for subscription-based 'health clubs'.
Prize money
Money from the Middle East now out-muscles anything that can be offered in Europe or the US. $3 million is reputedly on offer across the men's tour this year, a large increase on where things were five years ago.
The women's tour prize fund has grown hugely in the past 5-6 years, and it is a strong reflection on the running of the organisation that the sponsors keep stumping up bigger purses.
What looms over all this, of course - and with Bear Sterns going to the wall there has already been one big squash event casualty - is the impact the credit crunch/recession might have on sponsor's marketing budgets.
Partnerships and sponsorship
Some initiatives have already been mentioned above under marketing, image etc. Also worth considering that players have their own individual sponsors, but I would hazard a guess that the figures do not remotely approach tennis player sums, and I would doubt that these would be affected by the financial situation unless a player was sponsored by a small manufacturer that went bust.
As I've written on this site at length in the past, squash has rather a flirtatious relationship with the finance industry when it comes to sponsorship. In the US JP Morgan can find the money for the current Tournament of Champions, but I cannot remember the last time an City of London company put a penny up for an event.
Why can't squash court :) those big earners who regularly play the game?
I asked these questions nearly two years ago; with changing economic times, look out for an update here on this topic soon ...
Popularity
Like judging participation, this is a very hard one to call. In those developing countries (see below) and those countries that have had particular success at a professional level (such as Egypt), squash seems to be growing in popularity.
It is in the 'traditional' squash-playing countries that there appears to be a decline: England (or the UK as a whole - you can't play if there aren't any courts!), Australia (doubts about the commitment to the game from top-level sports administrators), and Pakistan (fewer youngsters coming through).
France, a country not previously renowned for its squash prowess, has had significant success in the professional game (Lincou and Gaultier) and this seems to have filtered through to swell grass-roots participation. Whether these two things are related is difficult to tell, but the French pros do receive more media coverage in their country than, say, the English players do in the UK.
Developing countries
By developing countries I mean countries that are developing where squash is concerned - into this category I have written articles mainly about the US and India.
Does Malaysia qualify as a developing squash nation? They've got the best women in the world, and the strength in depth of the professional men has really come on over the pas year or so. Having recently visited the country it appears to be another racket sport that has taken hold amongst the population - following on from badminton which is extremely popular.
Juniors
We've not followed the junior scene with a huge amount of scrutiny over the past two years. What we have observed can be summarised thus: Egypt rose as England weakened.
Officiation
Some interesting initiatives/experiments, often using technology as described above. There is surely scope for improving or expanding the tools that the officials have at their disposal - where other sports are taking the lead, squash may be able to learn lessons.
What appears to have changed over the past couple of years or so - and the move to PAR scoring has something to do with this - is the number of contested points or player-official conflicts. This was noted by IOC officials as something that squash must improve on, and progress seems to have ben made.
Credit must also go to what appears to be a very small group of officials who travel the world refereeing/marking professional squash events. I would guess that the remuneration is small, but most games I have seem have been officiated to a very high standard.
Disagree? How will things have moved on in another two years?
Have your say below ...
I keep banging on about the lack of pro squash events in London, so it's great to start the new year off with something positive to report.
If you get yourself down to Dolphin Square in London (Pimlico tube) this Friday 16th January you can see Peter Nicol and a host of other top pros in action.
The event is also free to members and non-members ... all details below ...
Friday 16th January 7pm
This Friday 16th January the newly refurbished Dolphin Fitness Squash Club will be giving London's squash players the chance to see the World stars in action and then get on court with them. The evenings squash that is being put on in association with PeterNicolSquash.com will feature an exhibition match involving World 9 Peter Barker & World no.13 Azlan Iskander.
Club members and guests will then have the opportunity to step on court with former World no.1 Peter Nicol and the host of world ranked players that train under the watchful eye of Peter Genever at the club.
Entry is free to members and non-members, but booking is essential.
Book your place by contacting Peter Genever at pgsquash@hotmail.co.uk
January 16th 2009, from 7pm:
Exhibition match:
Peter Barker world 9 vs Azlan Iskandar world 13
Play-a-pro involving:
Peter Nicol MBE former world no1
Tom Richards world 43
Nafiizwan Adnan world 58
Robbie Temple world 71
Nafzahizam Adnan world 103
Joe Lee world 108
Lauren Briggs world 18
Last post of the year before disappearing until mid-January. So (a belated ) Happy Christmas and Happy New Year!
Thanks to everyone who has supported the site this year: let's keep the debate going in 2009.
Things I wanted to write about at length this year but ran out of time ...
1. Player of the Year: For me this had to be Karim Darwish (bottom), who stepped out of Shabana and Ashour's shadows to win in Qatar and Saudi, and a runner-up in the Manchester World Open.
It seems a little strange to overlook Ramy's remarkable achievement in winning the World title, but the velocity of his rise made it kind of inevitable sooner or later (maybe for him the achievement will not be 'when' but 'how many'). Karim's ascendancy to his highest ranking of number 2 in the PSA rankings appears to have more in common with Shabana's career; his elder countryman began his domination at roughly the same age Darwish is now, after adding a missing mental component to complement his shot-making talent.
Darwish spoke after Qatar about 'playing to win rather than just playing': he has clearly also worked on the mental aspect of his game, and it's great to see a player who may have been thought of as a 'nearly-man' (that World Junior title seems a long time ago now) prove his doubters wrong though patience and application.
2. The scoring debate/row/storm/scandal: Yes, it really was called all these things in various parts of the squash media. I felt this kind of got buried under the World Open coverage - though hats off to Ian McKenzie for conducting something like a proper debate at the Squash Player site.
The bigger story here is not in the scoring change to PAR itself (which I happen to agree for the good of the professional game), but in the decision-making process. As Tom Cruise (nearly) said: show me the mandate!
3. Olympic Task Force: some positive news about squash's Olympic bid probably passed many of you by (nearly me included) as it slipped out just before Christmas. It appears that a sense of urgency has finally hit the WSF with less than a year to go before the IOC vote on Olympic inclusion, and an 'Olympic Task Force' is being set up which, amongst other things, will engage with new media "by using the internet to approach all those Squash players and enthusiasts worldwide who would like to support the campaign".
After assuming that the governing body had taken the lower-key route that I suggested when things were looking dicey , does this now mean that things are swinging the other way? Let's judge when we see that internet campaign - and the other initiatives - emerge. Happy to help!
Read the WSF press release here.
4. Squash websites: yo-yoing up and down like the FTSE-100. What's going on? Does squash get the media it deserves?
5. The PSA board: now composed of a good mix of voices that will hopefully bring objectivity and new ideas to the development of the men's tour. Let's hope this is matched by representative, transparent decision making over the next year as the organisation enters a new era.
6. Women's tournaments in London: I'm being selfish here. While it was great to see the best women players in action in Manchester at the Worlds, they surely deserve a platform in the capital. There's nothing like Canary Wharf or the Super Series for the WISPA pros, and looking back over event calendars I can't find the last time a prestige-venue women's tournament was held in London - and that's where their governing body is based! Why?
I'll try and revisit most of these in the New Year. In the meantime, keep sending in your comments, thoughts, ideas etc.
Happy 2009!
Alan Hansen would surely nod sagely in appreciation of the 'strength in depth' of Egyptian men's squash.
But after their recent win in the World Team Championships, I reckon he might extend his favourite epithet to the women too.
Second seeds and in their second consecutive final, but did anyone really see it coming? And what about my premature suggestion that the Netherlands might be right up there? ...
The future is obviously not quite orange, as the Egyptian trio despensed with the Dutch girls with little difficulty in the quarter-finals.
I suggested in that previous article that when Natalie Grinham becomes eligible to represent the Netherlands that they might challenge for this title - it will be interesting to see whether her sister joins her one day.
Well done to the Aussie girls, btw, who put up a decent fight against Malaysia and beat the Dutch in a minor-placings play-off. The Australian team is weakened since the Grinham sisters departed, and Donna Urquhart, Kasey Brown and Lisa Camilleri vindicated their selection (is there any team game that Australia aren't any good at?).
England pretty much sailed through to the final - my tip for dark horses New Zealand offering little resistance in the semis. So much for another of my predictions!
The big unknown was always going to be Malaysia and Egypt after they were drawn together. Malaysia's world number one Nicol David hasn't lost in this event since 2004, and she won her second rubber against Egyptian number one Omneya Abdel Kawy after Engy Kheirallah had taken the first,
The decider saw Raneem El Weleily take on Malaysian Delia Arnold. The 19-year-old from Alexandria took the first two games before dropping the third, only to come back to win 11-3, 11-6, 10-12, 11-9.
'A packed crowd of partisan fans'
According to the WSF press release the final was played in front of "a packed crowd of partisan fans" - given the apparently thrilling climax to the last rubber, it must have been a crazy atmosphere.
How wonderful if must be to watch live professional squash in Egypt right now. Video footage rarely gives a good impression of the atmosphere at a live squash game, and for now we'll just have to read about it.
If only some of that atmosphere translated to events over here in Britain, which are often marked by a distinctly British reserve (for what women's tournaments there are over here - more on that another time ...)
Anyway, the result came down to the last few points of the last rubber. Engy Kheirallah was pitted against Alison Waters, and after two games all, the last game went right down to the last, as the press release describes:
"(But) the 27-year-old Egyptian won the point on a stroke, before moving on to her own match-ball at 11-10 - which she won when a ball off the back wall from Waters failed to reach the front wall."
The Egyptian took the match - and won the title for her country - 4-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-0, 12-10. Apparently there was "immediate pandemonium around the glistening court as Egyptians jumped up and down, screaming with joy". More of that over here please!
It would be great to find out how many spectators attended the event, as would it be to find how many watched it on TV. As I noted in the previous article on the event, the tournament was available to watch for free on 247.TV.
Anyone with any numbers - or any reports on the quality of the streaming footage - please send then on ...
The December 2008 edition of International Squash Magazine dropped through my letter box last week. With great photos but little beyond a narrative view of what's happened recently in the squash world, I rarely give it much more than a cursory glance.
But an article featured on the front cover - 'Saudi Arabia - Wbere Squash Makes a Better World' - had me turning straight to page 9.
I could see the point of the piece, but some of it sat rather uncomfortably ...
The article, written by Richard Eaton, concerns the current development of the game in Saudi, and focuses in particular on the Saudi International, which Eaton writes was:
"... created with the twin aim of transforming the lot of the professional player and of altering perceptions of Saudi Arabia".
The article goes on:
"The tournament began to have a long-term public relations effect for Saudi Arabia. Players and people who came to Saudi told family and friends about it. Players were taken to museums to understand something about the country's history. The tournament hosted a traditional night. And last year some players stayed on after the tournament enjoying the nearby resort, the great weather and the lovely hospitality".
No doubt all this is true, but there is something uncomfortable about reading of "great weather" and "lovely hospitality" (which journalists and others have very much enjoyed), when the country is frequently cited as having an appaling human rights record.
Describing the fact that squash players were "paying to play" in Saudi as "horrific" is a particularly poor choice of words - there are plenty of other, very real, horrors happening every day in the country.
The ethical questions hanging over all this are similar to those that occupied many column inches in the run-up and during the Beijing Olympics: large and tricky issues, which it would be interesting to know the governing bodies' positions on.
Eaton's heart is clearly in the right place, but on this topic I think it pays to choose words very carefully: it's not only squash that seems to be getting a good deal.
December 2008 edition of International Squash Magazine
Human rights in Saudi Arabia
PS - When was the last women's professional squash tournament in Saudi Arabia?
A while back I wrote an article about the decline of professional squash events in Australia (the country has not staged a major tournament for the past 17 years).
So good news earlier this week, as the PSA's new Chief Exec revealed in an exclusive interview with the Telegraph some of his ambitious plans for the men's tour over the next few years: top-level squash appears to be heading back there ...
The exciting development seeks to align the structure of the PSA world tour by 2010 to something akin to grand-prix format of the Master's series in tennis or F1 motor racing, with the biggest-money events all contributing to the 'race' that will culminate in a Finals event at the end of the season.
The Super Series has offered something similar over the years (though a kind of race-within-a-tour), but what distinguishes the new venture appears to be the higher-profile of the tournaments together with a higher proportion of PSA ranking points linked to performance in each of the top events. The 'final' would therefore prevent a bigger prize and incentive to aim at throughout the season. It would also mean that players would move between tournaments within a region, cutting out unnecessary plane journeys.
Mr Graham explained about the structure:
"Rather than it risking being a shoot-out, where players simply get prize money for winning, I hope we can structure it so that it had some relevance as to who would prevail at the end of the season".
From 2010, the calendar will have 10 distinguishable top-tier tournaments, while prize money will be offer at least $3 million over the year.
Plans are afoot to stage a tournament on Australia's Gold Coast, which would be a welcome step to re-igniting the public's interest in squash in the country and maybe sneaking some back page column inches (apparently they like their sport over there).
The programme also announced that a tournament would be staged in Namibia for the first time. It is yet to be decided whether the British Open will be included in the list.
Mr Graham has set the PSA a target for the PSA to "secure two major events by the end of 2008", and it appears that this goal has been achieved. Great to see explicit, measurable targets being used to develop the game for once - though I'd like to see more detail soon about how exactly the tour in 2010 will distinguish itself from the Super Series competition that has run with a degree of success for 16 years.
Australia & Namibia Declare Intent To Host PSA World Tour Events In 2010
The Women's World Team Championships 2008 is currently at the quarter-final stage in the National Stadium, Cairo.
Though reigning champions England are weakened by the recent retirement of Vicky Botwright, their strength in depth has carried them through to the final stages relatively untroubled.
And if you know where to look, you can watch it for free ...
Live coverage will be available free to squash fans worldwide following an agreement reached between the World Squash Federation and 247.TV.
"This will be the biggest ever live webcast of a squash tournament - and the audience is also expected to break all records for a live audience," said 247.tv spokesman Peter Wickson. Watch live coverage at 247.TV
During the recent Olympics presentation in Lausanne, the fact that web streaming of squash matches has become commonplace was given as evidence that the sport is embracing new technologies and selling itself to a worldwide audience.
Web streaming of live events has only really started to become mature in the past couple of years as the baseline client technology of regular users has become sophisticated enough to allow let people watch coverage uninterrupted.
I remember a year ago at the British Open it was announced that the public was going to be allowed to watch the Final live for free - a great idea, until the server crashed due to unprecedented demand: a vindication, of sorts!
Here's hoping that viewers of the 247.TV coverage have more luck.
Hong Kong spring upset, New Zealand look strong
Ninth seeds Hong Kong scored a 3/0 win over France to take a place in the latter stages. Hong Kong number two Joey Chan put the outsiders ahead, beating Celia Allamargot 11-8, 11-6, 13-11. It was left to the squad's third string Shin Nga Leung to ensure Hong Kong a place in the top eight - their highest-ever finish in nine appearances since 1990 - when the 19-year-old beat Maud Duplomb 12-10, 11-7, 11-9.
Third seeds New Zealand garner fewer column inches than they should, perhaps because they have been overshadowed by their neighbourly rivals Australia for so many years.
Now what Australia are no longer the force they once were in women's squash (many reasons - see here and here), the main challenge to the English girls comes from Egypt, though the Kiwi trio of Jaclyn Hawkes, Louise Crome and Shelley Kitchen have justified their third-seed status through a number of notable individual performances over the past year, and I would suspect that neither of the top two teams would want to face them in the final.
Women's World Team Championships 2008
A poll that has been on squashblog since the end of the Beijing Olympics asked readers to identify the one key factor in getting squash into the Olympics.
The results were mixed - an indication in itself that there is still lots of work to do before the IOC vote in Copenhagen a year from now ...
The recent presentation in Lausanne concentrated on emphasising the sport's best virtues, suggesting an admirable lack of cynicism in the voting process.
It appears that the WSF have therefore taken the more conservative route that I suggested after the resignation of Christian Leighton in August, and voters in my little poll seem to agree that this is more important than making a big impression on the cocktail party circuit.
But is this enough, especially in comparison to the efforts of squash's rivals in the Olympic vote?
'Improved marketing of the game' also garnered almost a quarter of the vote in the poll. When compared to the huge budgets of rivals such as rugby sevens and golf, squash can clearly only do so much.
So when it was time for squash to present itself to the IOC in Lausanne, I was interested to see how things had moved on from the previous - unsuccessful - vote, when squash missed out on being included for London 2012.
Effective sports marketing in today's world is inextricably linked with the media. During that presentation a rather amateur-looking PowerPoint presentation was accompanied by a short film that appeared to have been made in the 1970s (this can be seen left).
The pitch simply came across as far too amateur in approach, and hugely out of touch with modern techniques of marketing and media presentation. I remember reading similar criticism on a leading squash message board (which mysteriously was removed soon after). I doubt whether this was the main factor why squash did not make it into 2012, but the efforts were clearly to be marked "could do better".
So I awaited the Lausanne pitch with interest, to see what progress had been made.
Speeches were again accompanied by simple PowerPoint presentation designed to impress IOC delegates (this can be viewed here). I am sorry to say that this does not suggest that the intervening years since the last vote have been spent learning from the way that others sports sell themselves as exciting and dynamic pursuits.
The words are admirable and present a persuasive argument. But communication is also about presentation. Is this the work of a professional organisation? How is this slideshow different from the one that was produced during the last vote?
The Lausanne presentation was also meant to feature a very hastily-commissioned 'high-level DVD' (this had not even been commissioned at the beginning of September, as discovered and reported by Squash 360) that would showcase squash at its best. This was apparently show at the WSF AGM in Manchester during the World Open, and I have yet to hear whether this DVD was used in the Lausanne pitch (I have made an enquiry to the WSF but have received no reply - updates here when I receive them).
An 'Olympic pledge' poster and a few PowerPoint slides are therefore all the props to show since the vote for 2012 inclusion. Those who ticked the 'marketing' box in my poll look like they might have a point.
A look back at my articles on Olympic inclusion show that it is almost exactly a year since Amr Shabana complained in the Gulf Times about the lack of effort that was being made on the players' behalf in trying to get squash into the Olympic Games. In mitigation, it would be unfair to demand that squash can compete with the marketing juggernauts that the likes of golf and rugby (see bottom of page) can fund. There simply is not the money in the game.
But with years to prepare for the vote, can we really say that the world's best player - on the evidence presented here - has been answered with the level of effort that befits his talent and own dedication to the sport?
On a wider, political level, what efforts have been made by the other squash governing bodies to hold those organising the Olympic bid to account?
There are 11 months left to make amends.
More on the Olympic vote
The WSF President met Jacques Rogge this week in Lausanne before presenting the case for squash's inclusion in the 2016 Games.
With next year's vote on Olympic inclusion approaching rapidly, it is reassuring to see that steps are being made by squash's top administrators to promote the sport's best virtures at the highest level.
But how did the presentation go down? And what are squash's rivals up to?
Outgoing WSF President Jahangir Khan introduced his successor, Mr N Ramachandran, who was elected at last month's WSF AGM which was held during the World Championships in Manchester.
The WSF delegation took the opportunity to present a commitment signed by top squash stars, led by world number ones Nicol David (Malaysia) and Amr Shabana (Egypt), pledging that the Olympics would be the ultimate prize for any squash player.
The much-anticipated pitch to the IOC that followed was headed by IOC member Tunku Imran, Susie Simcock and Jahangir Khan, along with N Ramachandran. Sarah Fitz-Gerald and WSF Technical Director Andrew Shelley completed the group.
The WSF press release after the presentation detailed the following as key areas of the pitch:
- Squash is a sport for our time: A sport giving great competitive exercise in a short time period, which has strong national federations and features development initiatives all the way from local level to elite.
- The sport is already featured in every major international multi-sport Games, except for the Olympics.
- It has uniform scoring.
- It is drug-free.
- Competing in the Olympics would be the pinnacle of the career of any squash player.
- The sport has had world champions from all regions, as well as around 150 national federations belonging to the world body.
I have yet to read any reaction to the presentation - details here when I get them.
The PowerPoint slides that accompanied the presentation can be viewed here.
The rivals
One of squash's rivals for inclusion in the Games - rugby sevens - has produced a promotional video with a host of stars for its pitch. Click here to watch.
Another big rival - golf - has also produced a series of videos with stars such as Vijay Singh and Ernie Els endorsing the bid. Watch it here.
So how did the squash pitch measure up? Time will tell ...
More on the Olympic vote
The first World Squash Championships held in England for over twenty years were an opportunity for the sport to showcase its finest talent and provide a spectacle that would indisputably warrant Olympic inclusion.
But how did the event measure up ? ...
The National Squash Centre is a great purpose-built venue, and - being out-of-town - usually attracts what might be described as the 'squash community'. Unlike the adjacent Manchester City football stadium (any Premiership game is potentially a big draw) and the cycling velodrome (after the successes of Chris Hoy et al in Beijing), the status of squash is not (yet!) such that many first-time punters are likely to make the trip out to Sportscity to see squash for the first time.
So it's a real challenge for the sport to attract newcomers to come and watch professional events. Would the promise of the sport's top tournament be a big enough draw?
I'm happy to report that I did speak to one or two who were watching pro squash for the first time (all were impressed), even if the taxi driver who dropped me off outside was oblivious to the event happening in his own city (more on promotion and media coverage later).
The Manchester crowd know their squash, and every game I saw was at near-capacity. It would have been nice to see the crowd getting a bit more involved, but maybe the size of the prize at stake mitigated against spectators getting too over-excited. Still, given that the players were competing for the biggest prize in the game, I wish the audience would not be so reticent in showing their emotions!
The National Squash Centre doesn't have the natural sense of drama engendered by a glamour venue such as Canary Wharf, for example, and given the cavernous dimensions of the place would perhaps take double the spectators to really generate a cauldron.
That said, there was a definitely greater sense of anticipation than at other events held here - especially when the home favourite Vicky Botwright was on court - that was worthy of a World Championships.
The squash itself was of the highest quality. I almost feel that this is a redundant sentence nowadays, such is the level of competition at the top of the men's and women's games.
Left: Ashour v Darwish in the men's final (full match on YouTube)
I once read an argument put forward in a newspaper article around 10 years ago about what was considered the 'golden era' of snooker. Many feel that the glory days for that sport were in the 1970s and 1980s, when snooker enjoyed a much higher profile.
The same parallel could be drawn with squash.
Yet the counter argument that was put forward in the article suggested that - on the contrary - the present era (this was the late 1990s, early 2000s remember) was the greatest, even though media and public profile was lower: the standard of players had never been higher, there had never been a greater number of players competing for the top prizes, and the outcomes of tournaments (unlike earlier years) could not easily be predicted. It could be claimed that snooker is still in that 'greatest era'.
The same could be claimed about squash today. There have never been so many top players who compete consistently at such a high standard (especially in the men's game), and the winner of tournaments is never a foregone conclusion.
The irony for the sport is that, in a crucial year for raising its profile in the run up to the vote on Olympic vote, the oblivious majority of the public are missing out on a sport in its purest, most professional and competitive form.
I digress ...
This was a World Open of upsets - in both the men's and women's draws - and this served up two finals that few would have predicted at the start of the tournament. The success of Botwright in what was her last professional appearance gave the home crowd someone to root for right until the end, even though the fairytale ending to her career was not to be.
Many predicated that Ramy Ashour would have won his first World crown at such a young age, but the outcome of the men's final was by no means certain right until the end. In a rare visit to the UK he (and, to be fair, Darwish) gave the crowd a demonstration of 'Egyptian squash' that was full of flair and guile.
The attitude of the players was mostly excellent, with the matches that I saw containing very few contested points. The scoring changes and more attacking games that those changes seem to have been a catalyst for appear to have played a large part in this positive move.
This was especially important given the attendance during the week of Sir Craig Reedie, a serving representative on the International Olympic Committee. The sport was under scrutiny during the week as it had to underline its credentials for inclusion in the 2016 Olympic Games, with a vote on this being taken next year. A criticism levelled at squash in the past was that there were too many stoppages and that the players liked to argue with the officials too much.
Whether scoring changes, attitude of the players or better officiating resulted in there being fewer disruptions, the event as a spectacle game across as a great advert for the game, and hopefully went someway to dispelling some of the myths about watching live squash. Sir Craig gave a media briefing toward the end of the week that I missed, but I hope he was suitably impressed.
Local media coverage and promotion of the Championships appeared to be strong, and it was great to see banners hung around Manchester city centre marketing the event. What was disappointing was - again - the lack of coverage that the event attracted in the national press. Some of the broadsheets failed to even carry an article - even after the Finals - and results were relegated to the sports results listings.
Well done to the Telegraph though, who had regular reports throughout the week online, its rejuvenated squash coverage arriving just before the biggest event of the year.
Online coverage was patchy due to some of the journalists from the more popular squash websites being either unavailable or unwilling to cover the tournament. Squashblog, although only there for the semis and finals, enjoyed its highest visitor numbers to date, with most visitors (many from overseas) looking specifically for updates on what was happening in Manchester - so a squash media-hungry audience is out there!
The role of the 'squash media' (specifically internet coverage) in the development of the sport was one of a number of things that was getting political 'behind the scenes' during the week: the move to universal PAR scoring and the Olympic vote being the other big themes.
From an objective point of view, I'm happy to report that none of these things appeared to effect the running of the tournament, and the paying public was treated to a professionally-run, unpredictable and exciting week.
If I was to identify the one thing that has to be improved if the Worlds are to be held in the UK again I would suggest a change of venue. The National Squash Centre is a great facility for the players and probably the administrators, but holding the event in the middle of a large city would have attracted a greater buzz, afforded better facilities for the spectator, and crucially made the event more visible.
If you can't attract newcomers to come and watch squash then take it to them. On the train back I wondered how things would have been different if the event (or maybe the latter stages of it) have been held in Exchange Square in Manchester, or maybe at Salford Quays.
The portability of squash is often overlooked as one of its great selling points as a spectator sport, and promoters shouldn't shy from experimenting with this features in order to attract new audiences - even when staging the biggest tournament in the calendar.
Hi-Tec World Squash Championships Manchester 2008
A draw for a men's tournament that doesn't feature the name John White will be all the poorer for it.
The 35 year-old announced his retirement after losing to James Willstrop in the recent World Open.
Here we pay tribute to the original squash nomad ...
Left: John announcing his retirement in Manchester
When I first started to watch professional squash in 2002, John White was securely berthed in the top five in the world and was starting the ascendancy that would take him to the number one spot in March 2004 (a position he held for a couple of months).
It was evident that he was a tough competitor, and that few on the tour relished playing such a hard hitter. 'Big John' (always a slight misnomer as the six-footer was slimmer than photos suggested - kind of the opposite of my first impression of Ramy Ashour) was living in Nottingham after moving from his native Queensland, Australia via a spell in The Hague, and would always be a contender in the latter stages of the UK events that I attended.
White was tough in a never-say-die kind of way, and was easier for the British crowd crowd to warm to than, say, Anthony Ricketts. When on the receiving end of poor decisions he rarely remonstrated with the officials, and this brought the respect of players and spectators alike.
Rallies were never lost causes to White. Some say that being tall is not really an advantage in squash, but John exploited his reach to keep in the fight - even if it meant risking injury (see below, left!). Probably the best match that I saw him play was against Thierry Lincou in the semi-final of the Canary Wharf Classic in 2007. John's physical commitment pitted against the Frenchman's guile that day was a great display of contrasting styles, and made for a memorable evening's squash - and a great advert for the game. The Canary Wharf event attracts many who would not normally come and watch professional squash, and they could not have picked a better evening to attend.
As I reported at the time (also see video below, left), one particular rally that White eventually won brought the crowd to their feet for the longest standing ovation that I've seen.
White's 1998 conversion to Scottish representation (his father was born in Edinburgh) meant that I saw him competing a number of times in the British Nationals (a title he won in 2004), and he would also represented Scotland in the European Championships, the World Cup and the World Team Championships.
In March 2005 White moved again, this time to the USA, where he and his family established a new base in Philadelphia. His successes in US tournaments brought him back into the top 10, and his frequent trips back to the UK to compete in events brought warm appreciation from spectators.
In 2007, White was appointed Director of Squash and head squash coach at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Aside from his inspiring commitment on court, what also endeared John to spectators was his sense of humour. I remember a double exhibition during the Super Series at Broadgate a few years back, where he pretended to ignore the other three players and go for a lie down beneath the tin.
This - and the other practical jokes, asides etc. - were loved by the crowd. You got the feeling that White - although a model professional - equally recognised that the paying punter came to be entertained.
His biggest achievements? A look back at the records shows that his greatest successes on the tour came relatively late in his career. White went full-time in 1991, but not until April 1998 did he break into the top twenty. He was runner-up at both the World Open and the British Open in 2002 (aged 29).
He then took the PSA Masters title in 2003 (beating Thierry Lincou in the final 15-8, 17-15, 17-16), and then there was the British Nationals in 2004 (beating Lee Beachill in the final). His performances at Canary Wharf (where he also reached the final in 2007), will also stick long in the memory (he reached 30 tour finals in total).
Plus that 'big hitter' label will still remain - 172 miles per hour, which remains a world record.
In the video interview at the top of this page Andy Nikeas sums up White's contribution to squash: "a finer ambassador you could not wish for".
Few would argue with that.
JWSquash - John's website
