Alan’s Blog

‘Turning professional was not for me’ says Hall of Famer Anil Nayar By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor I was expecting a book about squash. But the life story of former Indian and American national champion Anil Nayar is not just about squash. It’s a book about kindness, sportsmanship, honesty and decency. These are [...]

  Clubs instructed to fully engage in assessing the risks and managing a safe return to play By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor England Squash have published a comprehensive – and cautious – set of guidelines to enable squash clubs to reopen and return to play. The guide is published on the England Squash [...]

Daniel picks Ali Farag and Anthony Joshua as his top role models By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor Squash has a new superstar … and he’s just 10 years old. Daniel Tiwana has amazed viewers with his own lockdown training video on YouTube. More than that, he has captivated the squash community with his [...]

Nick and Daryl discuss lockdown issues and how squash can grow when courts are open again By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor Nick Matthew and Daryl Selby have enjoyed a few words on court down the years, both in jest and during the heat of battle. Now they are entertaining the squash community with [...]

  Instead of awards, Herts help out with vital PPE equipment By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor It’s always good to hear about squash players going the extra mile to help their local communities during the Coronavirus pandemic. It’s a real pleasure to receive some news from Paul Main about an extra-special initiative taking [...]

PSA ‘cautiously outline a roadmap for the return of the Tour’ By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor The PSA are exploring all options in a bid to relaunch the World Tour as soon as possible, although it could be several more months until tournaments are back on the calendar. PSA staff, working from home [...]

Special offer: 10% off for Squash Mad readers in USA and Canada  By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor Trapped at home during the lockdown, squash fanatic Mark Anderson dug out an old card game he had created for his family some 15 years ago. A Eureka moment followed when he decided that a card [...]

Keeping clubs clean and safe: We can’t afford to get it wrong By MIKE HEGARTY and ALAN THATCHER  As squash clubs and federations make plans to reopen facilities – and some already have – I am publishing this article to make readers aware of the huge risks involved at every stage of such operations. The [...]

Laura leads my lockdown recovery as the squash world waits to reopen By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor What day is it? Where am I? If you are losing track of time during the coronavirus lockdown, join the club. Right now, under lockdown, my domestic priorities are mowing the lawn every week, nurturing my [...]

WSF president Jacques Fontaine issues Covid-19 update​ By HOWARD HARDING – Squash Mad International Correspondent Squash players across the globe are coming up with all kinds of novel ideas to get their daily “fix” of hitting a ball against a wall. And business carries on for the World Squash Federation with meetings being held via [...]

Olympics sets the standard for the rest of the sporting world By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor A leading UK scientist has claimed the postponed Tokyo Olympic Games cannot go ahead next year unless a vaccine has been produced to destroy the coronavirus which has forced the world to go into lockdown. By extension, [...]

MTF volunteers hand out aid parcels in homeland where she received death threats By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor Life, in many ways, has turned full circle for Maria Toorpakai, the Pakistani squash player who suffered death threats from the Taliban as a teenager. As a child, she grew up in the tribal South [...]

JK on the front line to get aid through in Pakistan By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor Jahangir Khan, the greatest player in the history of squash, is helping to distribute aid parcels to families in Pakistan in response to problems caused by the Coronavirus pandemic. Jahangir is a  leading supporter of the Shahid [...]

As many nations order courts to close, some UK clubs carry on with hygiene advice for members Squash Mad Reporting Team: ALAN THATCHER, JAMES ROBERTS, ALEX WAN Squash clubs across the globe are taking a mixed approach in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Some are closing their doors completely, while others are staying open and [...]

Skills and sportsmanship make it a special occasion in final men’s battle before PSA Tour shuts down By ALAN THATCHER – Squash Mad Editor The quality of the squash was simply breathtaking; brilliant shot-making matched by some unbelievable retrieving. But one of the main talking points surrounding Friday’s final of the St. James’s Place Canary [...]