In squash - The Podcast

Squash Player Magazine Editor in Chief Nathan Clarke jumps back onto the pod to recap the World Championships and set the stage for the iconic British Open which kicks off in a few days time. We also talk about the new Squash Player Magazine podcast which was launched just a few weeks back. Great chat.

For 26 years, Steve Lawton held down the fort as the head squash professional at the Vancouver Racquet Club. With over 30 years of experience playing at the highest level in Canada during an era where we had several players in the top 30 in the world, Steve brought to Canada a style of squash that had rarely been seen on Canadian courts, both in terms of squash flare and banter with the officials and his opposition. A true legend of the game, he's recorded big wins against top tour players at the World Team Championships and even took a game off former world #6 Jonah Barrington at the Canadian Open. In this episode, Steve and I take a deep dive into his incredible journey in squash—from his playing days to his enduring legacy in Canadian squash

Here's Johnny!! Back just in time to recap the season just ahead of the World Championships in a few weeks' time. Johnny's going to be at the World's in Chicago on the mic for SquashTV, and he's got his thoughts on how it's going to play for both the men and women.

At the age of 21 Mostafa Asal reached world number one for the first time, and he made it to the promised land once again a few months ago, recently retaining that top spot in a winner take all type final at El Ghuna earlier this April. In the aftermath of that win though, a youtube video titled "Mostafa Asal Cheating Analysis" was released highlighting 4 or 5 areas in Asal's game that they allege prove he is cheating. The video could have been an objective piece that identifies and discusses the leg trips, aggressive swings, and taking space issues, but instead the video is injected with troubling hateful language and doesn't raise any questions, only pointing fingers solely at Asal. Mostafa provides his thoughts on the video and how he's handling the upshot of it all. We also discuss the high stakes face-off with Ali Farag at El Ghouna, how he adjusted to life and squash in Pontefract, his relationship with coach James Willstrop, his brother Marwan and much more.

University of Pennsylvania men's team won its first ever Potter Cup in 2024, and proved they weren't a one hit wonder by winning it again in 2025. Head coach Gilly Lane talks about this year's win, winning two in a row, this year's team, the 7 seniors who will be moving on, College Squash individual champion Salman Khalil, and what it's going to take to make it a three-peat.

Parlaying a playing career which saw him reach world #1 in 2004 into an incredibly successful coaching career is not something you see very often, and the more of John White we see, the better it is for squash. John White ranks up there with the most exciting players in the history of our sport, and now he's developed a highly successful College Squash program at Drexel University from the ground up. John talks about Drexel's 2024/25 season which saw both men's and women's teams finish in the top 10, the tragic passing of former Drexel captain Filip Krueger, the National Squash League and the Philadelphia Lightning, and some nuggets from his days on tour.

Jamie Maddox is one of the most prolific content creators in squash today. For over a decade, Squash Stories has been the go-to online squash community, bringing players and fans together to discuss everything from the pro game and officiating to squash history, lore, and even the occasional laugh—all with squash as the backdrop. In this episode, Jamie and I discuss the evolution of Squash Stories, Mostafa Asal's return to world #1, the state of the pro game, the progress in officiating, and much more.

Squash Egypt has its first ever female President, Amna Eltarabolsy; former world junior runner up and world junior teams champion. She's been a member of Squash Egypt's board for several years, and now she's ready to take Egypt to yet another level. Amna lays out her vision, Squash Egypt's success at growing the game, its unparalleled junior program, LA 28, and much more.

Karim Darwish was one of the Egyptian greats, along with Ahmad Barada, Amr Shabana, Rami Ashour and Mohammed El Shorbagi, who laid the groundwork for Egypt's complete domination of the pro game. Darwish reached world #1 in 2009 and was part of 2 World Championship winning teams in 2009 and 2011. Karim's post playing career has been nothing less than impressive as well. He's the man behind the Wadi Degla Squash Academy, with 9 branches and counting, and over 2000 juniors across Egypt. Darwish also served as VP of the World Squash Federation and was part of the historic story behind squash's long awaited acceptance as an Olympic sport for LA 28. We take deep dives on all of this and so much more.

Not many can lay claim to being inducted into both the Canadian and US Squash Halls of Fame, but Gary Waite might be the one and only. 4 Time Canadian National Champion, World #1 Hardball singles and doubles, and as high as 12 on the pro softball tour, Gary Waite's eclectic squash accolades are unparalleled. Gary takes us back to the Sarnia wolf pack that laid the groundwork, memories and rivalries throughout the years in Canada, Canada's second place finish at the 1997 World Teams, his hardball days, his vision to bring hardball doubles into the mainstream of racket sports, Harrow Squash, Jack Fairs and much more.

The National Squash League launched in 2024 as a pro squash league unlike anything we've seen before. The brainchild of several young US squash brains including Timmy Brownell and Spencer Lovejoy, have come up with a concept that includes a match with 3 periods and a potential shoot out to determine the winning team. The Philadelphia Lightning are one of several expansion teams to join the NSL, and B.G. Lemmon and the rest of the ownership team in Philadelphia can't wait for the season to commence. Draft day, much like most professional sports, brings with it great anticipation as the list of players available includes none other than Mostafa Asal, Mohammed El Shorbagy and the Colombian Cannonball Miguel Rodriquez just to name a few. B.G. and I talk about all of this and more on Ep. 351

Miles Jenkins has been working with Joel Makin for the last 12 years; former college teammates at the University of Birmingham which was the beginning of the supremely successful player/coach partnership that we see today. Miles talks about those early beginnings with Joel, the evolution of Joel's game and the skillset which has him at #5 in the world, what is required to gatecrash Asal, Elias and Farag, and a deep dive into Miles' coaching philosophy. Many thanks to our sponsors Open Squash and Squashify.

Calgary's Bow Valley Athletic Club will host the Airsprint Private Aviation Canadian Men's Open in week's time and the Bow Valley brain trust, CEO Dean Brown and Darren Thompson, talk about the event, last year's epic final, this year's draw, the growth of BVAC since it reopened during Covid, and much more.

It's been an eclectic season for Canadian #2 and Pan Am Championships gold medalist Nicole Bunyan. We talk about her season which is about to get underway again and includes the Pan Am Champs, World Team Champs, PSA and of course Squash TV duties. Speaking of which, Nicole breaks down all of the finals day TOC drama both for the men and the women. And of course, she lays out a few things we ought to consider as regards our own game's as well as we flesh out some of her recent Squashletic content. Great chat!

2 PSA titles, top 10 status, 2nd place in the World Teams, and his third appearance on the pod! It's been a solid season for Marwan ElShorbagy, and he looks to build on this in 2025. We talk about his two wins, how competitive the top 20 is right now, playing for England, thoughts on playing a final in the first round of an event, and much more. Great chat as always.

Going undefeated at the World Teams including wins over England's Nathan Lake and a huge win over Ivan Perez to lay the groundwork for Canada's 11th place Playoff win over Spain definitely turned some heads and has some thinking the Canadian men might be back on track. Salah and I talk about the World Teams and Canada's best performance since 2009. We also look back a bit to his backstory which saw his family move from Egypt to Canada during his junior days with some encouragement from Canadian squash icon Gary Waite. Great chat with Canadian National Team # 2 Salah Eltorgman.

The first half of the 2024/25 PSA saw Hannah Craig make a name for herself, winning in Paraguay and moving well inside the world's top 100. 2024 ended with Ireland's long awaited return to the World Team Championships where Ireland placed a respectable 15th and Hannah won 4 of 6 matches. We talk about all of the above, along with her incredible years playing for Mike Way and the Harvard Crimson and most importantly her Canada/Calgary connection. Great fun, great chat!!

Canada's 11th place finish at this year's World Team Championship was the country's best since 2009, and Graeme Schnell's performance in the playoff v. Spain for that 11th place finish gave Canada the win. Graeme and I talk about Canada's performance at the World's, why things could bode well for Canada going forward, how he's managed to play his best squash in his mid to late 30s, the Calgary squash hotbed, and much more.

Finals day at the World Team Championships saw one of the most dramatic yet unexpected matches to kick off the men's final when Curtis Malik was only a few points away from giving England a 1-0 lead. Mazen Hesham's arsenal proved to be a bit too lethal in the end, but Malik put forth an incredible battle for 5 tremendous games. Curtis and I talk about his tremendous results at the World Teams which saw him go unbeaten until the final, the match v. Mazen, coach Crawford's decision to have lead off proceedings in the final, and much more.

At 35 years old, Nicolas Mueller is still playing top 20 squash, and has proven so this season with some very strong results, including a quarter final appearance in Qatar in October. Nicolas and I talk about Switzerland's 3rd place finish at the World Team Championships in Hong Kong last week, the promise that the team shows going forward, his passion for the game and dream to represent Switzerland in the LA 28 Olympics, and much more.

The short film Crack Shot tells the story of a troubled young squash player who finds himself entangled in a confrontation with the determined parent of another up and coming junior. The short film hit the streets about a year ago now, but it recently came to my attention and perhaps the larger squash community following a great Squash Player Magazine piece on the film. Alex Cohen is the young film maker behind Crack Shot, and he has a vision for growing this highly entertaining, thoughtful and contextually relevant and relatable story into a feature length film. Great chat, and you can check out the film here: https://youtu.be/u5lhJHUwvOs?si=SupNxhaDbuNwVzTe

Squash Player Magazine Editor in Chief Nathan Clarke breaks down several topics, but primarily all things Hong Kong in terms of the World Teams and last week's Hong Kong Open. Great chat.

20 plus years as England Squash National Team Head Coach, David Campion has been an instrumental part of contemporary England's National Team success and player development. In January, he stepped down from this role and today we talk about what led to this decision and what's on his plate going forward, including his new role working with Italian National Team Head Coach Marcus Berrett. We also talk at great length about elite performance and elite mindset. Great chat.

The youngest ever world junior champion, the youngest male winner on the PSA tour, and now into the world's top 30 at the age of 17, Mohamad Zakaria is most certainly following in the footsteps of all the Egyptian greats before him, and then some. Mohamad and I talk about his achievements to date, becoming the youngest ever world junior winner, his success on the PSA tour and what he's learned from playing the very best in the game. We also talk about his relationship with coach Ahmed Shohayeb.

Ranks right up there with the best conversations on the pod to date. Bill Buckingham and I talk about the joys of retirement, the evolution of Squash Radio, his years working for US Squash and the recent hiring of Nick Taylor as the US National Team Head Coach, LA 28 and beyond, the National Squash League, the PSA and Squash TV, and of course Barry Gibbs.

Recently appointed Irish National Team Head Coach Arthur Gaskin returns to the pod after a 4 year hiatus, the fault of which lays entirely on the shoulders of In Squash Pod host Gerry Gibson. Arthur talks about how the National Team position came about, the team itself, expectations and his vision. We also discuss where LA 28 figures in the plan ahead. We also look back at his time as a player with the National Team and coaches from previous teams, and his fond memories of working with two coaching legends during his playing days, the great Malcolm Willstrop (rest his soul) and Rod Martin.

Former world #2 and World Open champion, legend from one of the greatest eras in squash history, Rodney Martin joins the pod again and whenever we have Rod on, school is in session. Rod talks about the players he's been working with including Olivia Weaver who finds herself knocking on the door of the world's top 3. We also talk about his coaching philosophy when dealing with pro level players and why fundamental technique is the key to producing your best squash.

Youssef Ibrahim's US Open performance was not surprisingly electric as he more than lived up to his moniker the gunslinger; not only that, he once again performed at a top 10 worthy level, giving world #1 Ali Farag a real run for his money in the quarters. Youssef and I talk about his season till now, his US Open run, managing his chronic knee issues whilst putting himself in a position to perform at the highest level, and his first year with the Atlanta Tornadoes of the National Squash League.

Another tremendous chat with Johnny Williams which basically amounts to a rapid fire recap of what we've seen from the men and women on the PSA tour after this season's first three big events. Don't forget to check out www.opensquash.org and get involved with the Fall Fundraiser event which kicks off on October 17th.

Jackson Bragman's Bragman Breakdown is eclectic, highly entertaining; not only does he lay out College Squash and most recently and prolifically the National Squash League, he also takes on the WWE, movie reviews, and a wide range of other pop culture topics. Meanwhile, he's a full time student playing college squash Denison. Clearly, impressive is an understatement. Jackson deep dives on the highly acclaimed new US pro squash league, the NSL, and I also get his take on the college squash landscape, including Denison's chances of making inroads towards the Potter Cup. Great chat!!

After leading the English junior boys to the World Team Championship in 2022, Josh Taylor's stock had risen significantly. At the time he saw his future growth still in England, but no doubt there were opportunities aplenty, and low and behold, Josh is stateside running and growing a tremendous squash academy which is turning into quite a hub for players of all levels, including the likes of Joel Makin and several others on the PSA tour. Josh talks about his decision to move stateside, Bee Squash and The St. James, his coaching philosophy, what it takes to develop top juniors, and much more. Don't forget to check out The Open Squash Classic which starts today, October 6th; for more details go to www.opensquash.org

Delaying play, player dissent, foot faults, and interference have all been part of the WSO's mission to clarify these rules through their 2023/24 directives. Lee Drew joins the pod to discuss these issues generally and what we've seen so far in the first two events of the season. Quick heads up—recorded this in my office, and the acoustics weren't the best from the host side. Apologies in advance! Still, a great chat with Lee, who has that silver radio tongue and sounds fantastic. Huge shout out to Open Squash, www.opensquash.org. They have their bronze event coming up on Oct. 6th, so stay tuned for that.

One of the most intriguing, exciting and as it turns out successful player/coach dynamics on tour today is undeniably James Willstrop and Mostafa Asal. James took over has Mostafa's main coach just over a year ago, and the tremendous impact that it's had on Mostafa's squash is indeed palpable. The Marksman joins the pod to talk about the progress that they've made together and his thoughts on Mostafa early on. James also takes a deep dive on Pontefract and the Malcolm Willstrop ethos which remains its guiding force to this day.

Current World #11, recent winner of the European Closed championships, Victor Crouin is ready for some home cooking whilst playing in the Paris Squash 2024 PSA platinum event which kicks off tomorrow. Victor takes several thoughtful deep dives today including on his current form, winning the European closed, the door-slam incident with Mohammed El Shorbagy, the officiating "Directive, and much more.

Paris Squash 2024 kicks off in a few days time, and former world #2 Camille Serme is a big part of the team that got that ball rolling with a PSA event in Paris this time last year, and now we have a platinum event the very best in the game taking their talents to this one. Camile talks about Paris Squash 2024, last year's learning experience, being on the comeback trail as a new mother, and French interest in this year's event.

15 years at the helm of Harvard Squash where his teams have won at least 15 Potter and Howe Cups combined, an absolute legend of the college squash coaching ranks, it's hard to believe that there was once a day when Mike Way was in Jonathan Power's corner leading him to World #1 and to becoming North America's first and only World softball champion. Mike takes a look back at his 15 years at Harvard, what it takes to build a college squash team, the challenges behind the Crimson's recent season, Harvard and collegiate squash legend Amanda Sobhy, Ali Farag's incredible run of form and the Egyptian Open final, and much more. Big shout out to Open Squash, www.opensquash.org, where growing the game and making it more accessible and more affordable for everyone is what it's all about.

Nick Taylor's playing career was impressive, but his coaching accomplishments dating back to what he accomplished in Jersey as the Director of Squash could be even more noteworthy. This past August, US Squash announced Nick Taylor as their new national team head coach to succeed Ong Beng Hee. Nick and I talk about this next chapter, his coaching journey and the growth of his academy, and the vision and challenges that lie ahead in his new role which includes ramping up for LA 28. Great chat and many thanks to Open Squash, www.opensquash.org , where growing the game and making it more affordable for everyone is their mission.

2024 World Junior Championship runner up Ju Young Na shocked the squash world when he upset defending champion Hamza Khan in the quarter final, and then continued to play absolutely amazing squash straight to the final where he lost to world junior #1 Mohamed Zakaria. Ju Young's performance bled into the team event where he led Korea to trip to the final against Egypt. An unbelievable performance with an inspirational backstory. Ju Young Na joins the pod today to talk about this historic result at the world juniors, his squash story and much much more. Huge shout out to Sang Hoon Lee for translating and helping lay the groundwork, and to the great sponsors of this podcast www.opensquash.org and www.sunrise-courts.com

Numbers don't lie, especially when you've got a team of number crunching experts like the one assembled at Cross Court Analytics. The insight generated from the numbers clearly runs levels deeper than what is revealed to the naked eye whilst watching Squash TV or even watching back a match of your own. Jamie Harlington joins the pod again and breaks down a few of the many incredible analytics that he and his team have identified during the course of the 2023/23 PSA season, including what the numbers say about the two world championship finals, Sherbini v. Gohar and Elias v. Farag, how the length of a match impacts the number of officiating decisions, how certain players respond to breaks in play and much more. You can check out all of this and much more at www.crosscourtanalytics.com . Big time shout out to the sponsor of today's podcast www.sunrise-courts.com

Hadrian goes in depth on his technical philosophy in part two of our chat. Once again, Hadrian's thoughtful approach speaks volumes when it comes to explaining technique and training routines that work. Many thanks to www.opensquash.org for sponsoring this episode of the In Squash Podcast.

2023 US National Champion and 4x PSA tour title winner Andrew Douglas announced his retirement from PSA professional squash two weeks ago to pursue a law degree at NYU. Andrew's squash resume is impressive, from numerous junior accolades, to going to back to back Potter Cup finals while playing for Penn, and winning 4 PSA titles along with a US National championship. Andrew talks about his career, why he decided to step away and some of the decisions he had to navigate before deciding to embark on this new chapter.

Hadrian Stiff makes a triumphant return to the pod and in case you didn't know, he's taken over the high performance junior squash program at Heights Casino in Brooklyn New York from Jonathan Power. This first of two episodes highlights Hadrian's thought provoking and practical approach to the mental side of the game. He takes deep dives on everything from how crucial it is at the junior level to get this right and how he has seen process, patience and persistence lead to success with the some of the greats that he has worked with including Mohammed El Shorbagy, Joelle King and Eain Yow Ng. Part two focusses on technical side of the game and will be released soon.

British Nationals kick off today and the Malik clan is once again represented like no other. Curtis leads the Malik boys, with a world #40 PSA ranking and seeded 5/8 this week. Curtis had his best PSA season to date, finding his way into the main draw of several big time PSA events. We talk about the British Nationals for himself, his 3 brothers and sister Torrie, his progress on the PSA tour, the general behind the Malik success - father Camron and much more. Check out Sunrise Courts at www.sunrise-court.com to see all of the great growing the game initiatives they have on the go.

At 2-1 down and 10-10 in the fourth, the fate of the Korean junior men's team was hanging in the balance. Jeong Uk Ryu then went ahead and produced the point of the tournament and completed the comeback to put South Korea in the junior men's final where they lost to the heavily favored Egyptians. Jeong Uk and I take a look back at the world juniors and we talk about his squash story, the past, the present and the future. Great chat and many thanks to Sang Hoon Lee for providing translation during the episode :). Don't forget to check out our great sponsor Open Squash at www.opensquash.org

Ep. 317 is the first of two successive quick fire podcasts on Korean squash which created a tremendous buzz following Ju Young Na's 2nd place finish in the world junior boys' individual event and the Korean boys' incredible 2nd place finish in the world juniors team event. Sean comes on to talk Korean squash, what the scene is like there, both at the elite and squash enthusiast level. We also take a deep dive into their elite level program with respect to coaching, player development, officiating and much more.

From winning national championships at Princeton to promoting and growing the pro game through Squash Engine and so much more, John Nimick is one of the game's prolific trailblazers. John has dedicated his life to this great game of ours, and it was an honor to talk with him. We cover it all including his early days winning championships at Princeton and his time on the high profile pro hardball tour, the crossover days of the hardball and softball pro tours, the history and evolution of the Tournament of Champions, US College Squash, and some great thoughts on things squash needs to consider leading up to LA 28. Great great chat. Check out our tremendous Open Squash at www.opensquash.org

2023/24 was sneaky good! She reached a career high of 5 and winning both the Manchester and German Open titles, reached the World Tour final and had some confidence boosting wins over top 5 players. She'd also love to cap all of that off with her maiden British National title, and that event kicks off next week. Gina and I look back at last season, the ups and downs, her tribute to the recently retired Nour El Tayeb, the difficulties she's had staying healthy and of course her thoughts on the British Nationals. Great chat and a big shout out to our mutual sponsor, Open Squash, www.opensquash.org

Chris Gordon has been among the very best American pros since turning pro over 20 years ago. Clearly, he's been there, done that, including reaching as high as 44 in the world in 2013. Chris is well respected for his squash insight as is evident through regular squash tv commentating appearances for stateside PSA events, and he took the mic again for the recent World Junior Championships in Houston. Chris and I recap the event which turned out to be the most exciting WJC in recent memory. Many thanks to our sponsor, Sunrise Courts who are working towards growing the game. Check them out at www.sunrise-courts.com

Former world #3 Simon Rosner's PSA career may be over, but he's definitely not retired from the game. Simon is the head coach of the German junior men's and women's teams who competed for the past two weeks in the World Junior Championship in Houston. Simon talks about their performance and what needs to be done to make progress going forward. We also talk about the talk of the town, the Korean Junior boys, with his illustrious career and the work he has done over the past few years with up and coming Swiss talent Dimitri Steinmann. Great chat!! Check out our sponsor www.opensquash.org, where growing the game is the be all end all.

During this year's British Open the Squash Summit brought together people looking to grow the game from around the world. Damian Burgess took part in the event and provides a great recap on each of the key sessions including squash in the Olympics, challenges with regards to growing the sport, and Rob Owen's session on Independent squash minds and his thoughts on such topics as coaching standardization and gambling in the pro game. Speaking of growing the game, don't forget to check out Open Squash and everything that they are doing in this regard at www.opensquash.org

Amanda Sobhy had been in the form of her career in December 2023, reaching the final of the Hong Kong Open after taking out world #1 Nour El Sherbini in straight games. Game 1 of the final saw her go down with a ruptured right achilles; she ruptured her left achilles in 2017. Well, she's on her way back and with any luck we will see her on court again soon. Amanda talks about the misfortune in HK and her form leading up to that event, her rehab, her thoughts on the how things played out on the ladies tour this past season, and much more. Check our our great sponsor Open Squash at www.opensquash.org