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‘How can squash survive? Courts need to be new and shiny, not old and cold’
“All the time I come across a number of people who have discovered squash late in life and they all say they wish they...
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Spain’s best squash player Borja Golan retires at 40
“Hey, guys!” is a phrase Borja Golan once uttered on court. Whether it was aimed towards the old three-way referee system or to the...
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Nick Matthew: Five things we learned from the 2023 World Squash Championships
Three-time world champion Nick Matthew looks back at the World Championships in Chicago and picks out his highlights and insights for Squash Mad.
Nour El...
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Why Squash Mad needs to be at heart of covering our sport
Coverage of squash has changed drastically. UK newspapers have led the way in the game over the years but the last decade has seen...
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British Open 2023 staging in Birmingham was pure squash theatre
It was the Professional Squash Association’s COO Lee Beachill who first encountered Birmingham’s Rep theatre, widely considered the best indoor squash venue of them...
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World Squash 2023: ‘Nouran Gohar will be firing after British Open’
Rod Martin has dismissed any suggestion that World No.1 Nouran Gohar will suffer from a British Open hangover when she treads the board at...
Comment
Vicious cycle: the unspoken struggle of female squash players
Now seems like a great time to write about a topic I’ve been thinking about for the last few months. I want to champion...
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Are current fitness levels in world squash the same as Jahangir Khan era?
It is the most eagerly anticipated part of the draw in any major championship and the British Open quarter-finals are upon us at last.
Yet...
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British Open Squash 2023: The powerful combinations to boost home hopes
Lisa Opie, the 1991 British Open champion, believes that her modern day ‘Brit girl’ successors do not face the same pressure to win the...
Comment
Mostafa Asal: the boy of extremes who has polarised squash
Having a balanced view of squash’s most schismatic star Mostafa Asal is impossible. He polarises opinion like no other player in the game’s history....
Comment
‘Mostafa Asal is such a talent, but now’s the time to finally grow up’
The three-time world champion spoke to Squash Mad on squash's biggest controversy and says no one is winning from the World No.1's divisive fan...
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Decisions, decisions: What the stats tell us about squash’s ‘interference offenders’
JAMIE ABBOTT, co-founder of squash data business Cross Court Analytics, crunches the numbers on refereeing decisions in the men’s and women’s games.
Two feisty rivalries,...
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Why revamped World Cup has place on squash calendar
There will be a squash World Cup in Chennai, India, this year. That is about as much as we know at this stage, other...
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‘We need answers’: Sydney squash club feels council squeeze
Former Australian world champion Michelle Martin has long since battled to save squash courts from meddling councils and developers with little interest in the...
Coaching and Development
Nick Matthew exclusive: ‘Coaches who try to influence referees should be banned’
I attended the recent British Junior Open in Birmingham and came away with many observations which caused me concern. But let me begin with...
Comment
Birmingham theatre is perfect marriage for British Squash Open
Twelve years ago last month, I watched from non-plastic, comfy seats in Rotterdam’s spacious Luxor Theatre as Nick Matthew defended his world title on...
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Like global warming, squash federations facing collapse need to act before it’s too late
COMMENT by ALAN THATCHER (Squash Mad Editor)
The decline of squash is just like global warming. The evidence is staring us in the face, but...
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New Zealand Open was a fun-filled festival of squash that had the whole nation buzzing
By ROD BANNISTER (Squash Mad Correspondent)
Build it and they will come was certainly a relevant clarion call when it came to the New Zealand...
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Padel at the Pyramids highlights the growing gulf between the two sports as squash numbers continue to fall
By MIKE DALE
Padel’s extraordinary boom reminds many of us old enough to remember a similar explosion in another rebound racket sport in the 1970s...
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This gladiatorial warehouse arena, covered in graffiti, creates a unique atmosphere for squash in Nantes
‘I have never seen anything like this before – the louder the better, the drunker the better, it’s amazing,’ says Tesni Evans
EXCLUSIVE By JEROME...
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Mostafa Asal is a voice for calm as coaches are allowed back at courtside
EXCLUSIVE by ROD GILMOUR in Doha
The Q Terminals Qatar Classic may be the first tournament back where coaches are allowed in players’ corners, but...
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Nick Matthew’s Exclusive Commonwealth Games Review: So much more to come from golden girl Gina Kennedy
Experience, consistency and composure from James Willstrop and Declan James brought us another gold in the doubles
By NICK MATTHEW (Squash Mad Special Columnist)
England’s blend...
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BBC answers furious complaints from squash fans about lack of coverage from the Commonwealth Games
EXCLUSIVE by ROD GILMOUR (Squash Mad Correspondent)
The BBC has assured squash fans of coverage of their sport after an outpouring of dissatisfaction at no...
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Geoff Hunt Exclusive: Mostafa Asal reminds me of the great Jahangir Khan
‘Asal is every bit as single-minded as Jahangir,’ says Aussie legend Hunt
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY RJ MITCHELL (Squash Mad Correspondent)
GEOFF HUNT has revealed that Mostafa...
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Lee Witham Part 1: Covered outdoor courts are just the starting point for reviving squash
‘Pandemic helped me to focus on new ideas to help this great game of squash to bounce back’
By LEE WITHAM (Squash Mad Correspondent)
Yesterday we...
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Nick Matthew Exclusive: The rules need to be much clearer to avoid shocking injuries like this one when Nouran Gohar drilled Hania El Hammamy’s...
‘As Rodney Martin said, it was no good the referee telling Gohar to effectively play the ball by awarding a no-let in this situation...
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State Of The Game: Busy Berko bounce back in buoyant style after lockdown
‘We had a low point in August but worked hard to engage with members, especially those who didn’t renew,’ says popular chair John Shaw
By...
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Why squash will not recover from this spiral of decline that has been accelerated by pickleball and Covid
‘Squash has taken so many wrong turns during the 50-year cycle of life I have observed here in North America, one of them being...
Comment
Yes, it rained on our parade but an open-air court in Vancouver can only help squash to recover in Canada
We were unlucky with the weather but we need more events like this to raise the profile of our sport
By ROBERT EBERHARD (Squash Mad...
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Mohamed ElShorbagy has sat on the throne of squash for so long and Egyptians will always be proud of him
‘He is one of the most distinguished masters of the game,’ says Black Ball CEO Mohamed Raef
By ALAN THATCHER (Squash Mad Editor)
Mohamed ElShorbagy deserves...
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Exclusive: Nick Matthew backs Mohamed ElShorbagy swapping The Pyramids for the Three Lions as he switches international allegiance from Egypt to England
‘I have always had great support from England Squash and as a British citizen I will give it my all playing under the English...
Comment
The Rise, Fall and Future Of Squash: A documentary by Daniel Gothard
I learned a lot about the game from interviews with stars and key squash figures
By DANIEL GOTHARD (Squash Mad Correspondent)
I am Daniel Gothard, a...
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‘I love squash so much but I can do without this casual, ingrained sexism,’ says coach Nicky Horn
‘I left because I was treated differently as a woman and paid less than the men’
By NICKY HORN (Squash Mad Correspondent)
Andre Agassi once said:...
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Nick Matthew’s Commonwealth Games Countdown: England have five-year plan to revive men’s elite squad but please be patient
Joel Makin will go flat out to prove a point if he meets Mostafa Asal in El Gouna
EXCLUSIVE: By NICK MATTHEW
HISTORY was made in...
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Exclusive: Ali Farag now one of the all-time greats, Jansher Khan tells RJ Mitchell
‘He showed quality and character to bounce back after losing 3-0 to Paul Coll in British Open final’ says Jansher
EXCLUSIVE By RJ Mitchell
JANSHER KHAN...
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Exclusive: Jansher Khan talks to Squash Mad about today’s top stars and his friendship with Mohamed ElShorbagy
‘Having French legend Gregory Gaultier in his corner is a shrewd move for Mohamed’
SQUASH MAD EXCLUSIVE By RJ Mitchell
JANSHER KHAN believes that Mohamed El...
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World Championships success: Karim’s magnificent Museum piece is a festival of fun for squash lovers
Karim’s Cairo carnival of squash raises the bar after months of innovative planning
By ALAN THATCHER (Squash Mad Editor)
Karim Darwish is one of the key...
Comment
Padel and pickleball boom leaves squash standing still
Having downgraded squash, LifeTime aims to build 600-700 pickleball courts across USA
By ALAN THATCHER (Squash Mad Editor)
As Covid regulations are being relaxed in many...
Comment
Squash numbers fall as padel helps Edinburgh to recover after lockdown
Squash Mad’s post-Covid analysis of the state of the game
By ALAN THATCHER - Squash Mad Editor
A global review of the effects on squash caused...
Comment
Mohamed ElShorbagy the latest of Egypt’s trio of world champions to express outrage against Israel
By ALAN THATCHER - Squash Mad Editor
Mohamed ElShorbagy is the latest Egyptian squash superstar to comment on political issues involving the Arab world and...