What's been happening in the world of squash (2nd to 8th of January 2017)

The renaissance of Farhan Mehboob

Farhan Mehboob is back in the mix. The mercurial lefthander from Pakistan was only 20 years old when he reached his highest world ranking of 16 in 2009, but after that he didn't have the brilliant career most of the squash experts expected for him. Mehboob hasn't played a PSA event outside of his country for more than two years, but last week he won his second 25k tournament in a few months in Islamabad, beating the likes of Yip Tsz Fung, Mohamed Reda and Leo Au (all ranked between 31 and 41 in the world). We caught up with the 28 year-old just a few hours after he won his eighth PSA title.

Farhan Mehboob started 2017 on a high with a win at the President Gold Cup on home soil (Photo credit: www.radio.gov.pk)

My-squash.com: Hi Farhan. First of all, how do you feel after this victory? You beat three very good players along the way.

Farhan Mehboob: I am very happy! I can't explain with words how I am feeling right now, just after this great victory.

My-squash.com: How do you feel about your game at the moment? Would you say you are playing near as good as you were when you reached world #16 in 2009?

Farhan Mehboob: My game is good at the moment, but there's still a lot of work to do if I want to equal my best ranking!

My-squash.com: You haven't played a PSA tournament outside of Pakistan for a while now. There's been some talks that the reasons for this situation could be financial or visa-related, is this true?

Farhan Mehboob: I haven't been playing outside of Pakistan, not because of financial or visa problems, but due to my health as well as family issues. Squash in Pakistan is promoted by Pakistan Airforce, and they support each and every player by all means.

My-squash.com: Can you say a few words about the current situation of Pakistanese squash? There's been a lot of tournaments in the country in 2016 as well as a few youngsters coming up, do you feel like things are moving in the right direction?

Farhan Mehboob: Yes, I am really satisfied with the progress of squash in my country, and our chief is putting some serious efforts to regain the position we used to have in the squash world. Many upcoming and young players are coming forward. I am glad to see them rising, and they all are pursuing a quest to brighten our country's name.

My-squash.com: Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. Hopefully, we'll see you in World Series tournaments soon.

Farhan Mehboob: Yes, Inshallah soon.

Fight night in Texas

That's a new kind of exhibition match that took place last Saturday in Houston, Texas. Sponsored by the Hutkay.fit brand (partner of several professional players nels), “Squash Fight Night” was a clash between reigning world champion Karim Abdel Gawad and his predecessor Grégory Gaultier, with $50,000 at stake ($30,000 for the winner and $20,000 for the loser). "I like to think outside the box," event promoter Jahanzeb Khan told us. The Pakistanese had already organized the so-called Egypt v Pakistan Challenge Series 2016 in his home country a few months ago. He introduced a few innovations in Houston: the match was played in a best of seven games format, with a three minute break between games. Besides, each player was allowed to use two two-minute breaks during a game, as well as to extend one of the three-minute breaks to eigth minutes. Let's cut to the chase: Karim Abdel Gawad came out as the victor 4-2, in front of a packed and delighted crowd. The match lasted more than 2 hours (including a 15-minute break taken by the Frenchman after he was hit in the back by his opponent in the fifth game). “This match today is a great idea for the sport, said Gawad afterwards, and we need more creative ideas to move squash forward. We need that kind of initiatives more than once a year. So thanks to Jahanzeb and all the people who came up with the idea.” “It was a good experience, added Gaultier. The atmosphere was great, thanks to the organizers for putting their trust in us.” Unfortunately for him, he won't be able to participate in next year's event. “The loser of the fight is not eligible for three years," Jahanzeb Khan explains. "The prize money will be zoomed up to an extraordinary $100,000. Gawad will face the winner of the Houston Open (PSA $70,000 event which will take place in April). He's also participating in this so if he was to win it, we'll pick his opponent for the next fight. This tournament is therefore a great opportunity for the players to qualify for the 2018 Fight!” In the meantime, the top players will be in New York for the Tournament of Champions, whose qualifying draw started this Tuesday.

Event promoter Jahanzeb Khan with "Squash Fight Night" winner Karim Abdel Gawad (Photo credit: Hutkay.fit)

British Junior Open recap

After 8 consecutive wins between 2006 and 2013, the British Junior Open champion in the Boys U19 category was not Egyptian for the third time in four years. Is that a sign that their current dominance on the Men's PSA World Tour could be challenged in a few years? Only time will tell, but one thing is for sure, this year's event was a unexpected triumph for India, with three players in the top 3! Velavan Senthilkumar and Abhay Singh had set up a surprise final, both not having had a major result neither in the BJO nor the World Championship. That being said, the former had won the Asian Junior Championship in the fall. In a tournament full of upsets – most notably with World Junior Champion and seed number 1 Eain Yow Ng's exit in the third round - Senthilkumar had a scare in the second round against England's Curtis Malik, coming back from two games down. Then he ousted seed ¾ Victor Crouin, who had beaten him in the Worlds in the summer, and downed seed number 2 Youssef Ibrahim in the semis. Unseeded Singh upset seed ¾ Belal Nawar and also came back from the brink against another English boy, Kyle Finch in the quarters. The final was a close affair between the two Indians, but it was Senthilkumar who came out as the victor after four games and just under an hour of play. Adithya Raghavan made sure Indian's triumph was complete by clinching the third place.

Velavan Senthilkumar and Hania El Hammamy, 2017 BJO U19 champions (Photo credit: British Junior Open)

While Ireland got its first BJO crown ever thanks to Dennis Gilevskiy in the Boys U13, Egypt still grabbed six of the eight titles in play, including a full sweep in the girls categories. In the U19, 16-year old Hania El Hammamy completed her “Grand Slam”, joining compatriots Raneem El Welily, Nour El Tayeb and Yathreb Adel in the list of players who have won the BJO in U13, U15, U17 and U19. In the final, she beat another Egyptian, Zeina Mickawy, who had had a fantastic tournament before that, upsetting seeds number 2 and ¾, Amina Yousry and Sivasangari Subramaniam. El Hammamy will have little time to enjoy her victory: she will start her ToC qualifying campaign in a couple of days.

Without a doubt THE picture of the week: despite all her efforts Amina Yousry was beaten by fellow Egyptian Zeina Mickawy in the quarters (Photo credit: British Junior Open)