In squash - The Podcast

Former World #1 Laura Massaro's autobiography All In was released a short while ago, and it's received tremendous reviews across the board. We take a dive into several topics in the book particularly those that had an influence on her goal to reach #1 in the world. We also talk about working with Joelle King, the recent World Tour Finals and the current player v. referee situation. Great Chat with the former World #1! You can pick up the book here: https://lauramassaro.co.uk/product/book/

Sabrina Sobhy is only two years removed from Harvard graduating class of 2019, and she already finds herself at number 21 in the world and most definitely in the ascendancy. Sabrina talks about the Sobhy squash tradition, 4 glorious years at Harvard under the guidance of Mike Way, the decision to turn pro and how things have played out for her on tour.

David Campion, stepson to Malcolm Willstrop and Head Coach of the England National Team, caps off our tribute to Malcolm Willstrop in style.

Nick Taylor marks the podcast's 2nd of 3 tributes to Malcolm Willstrop. Nick first worked with Malcolm at the age of 17, and from that point onward Malcolm was influential in shaping Nick's squash, not only his playing career, but perhaps even more now as a coach. Nick takes us back to those early days and provides some fond memories of his experiences with Malcolm. To top it off, NIck explains how as a coach many of Malcolm's pillars shape the way he approaches working with his juniors.

The passing of Malcolm Willstrop hit the squash world very hard last week. For those who were close to him though, it's obviously been extremely difficult. Simon Parke began receiving coaching from Malcolm at the age of 10, and the impact he would have on Simon was far reaching. Simon pays a wonderful tribute to Malcolm on episode 192, and we also take a look back at his impressive squash career.

On July 10th, 17 year olds Max Good and Caleb Boateng will bike from Philadelphia to Brooklyn to raise money for the Squash and Education Alliance. Max and Caleb's story behind this is pure and simple; a love for the game of squash, and giving back to the game at such a young age seems like a no brainer for them. It was a pleasure talking with the boys about their squash and the Squash Century Bikeathon. To help them reach their goal of $25,000 visit their link and donate:

https://donate.squashandeducation.org/campaign/bike-a-thon-for-sea/c325445

Marwan El Shorbagy has graced us with squash of the very highest order of late. Winner of the 2021 Blackball in Cairo and back in the world's top 5, Marwan has produced his best squash in years . We talk about how this came to fruition, his recent win at Blackball, coming to grips with officiating, the rise of padel as compared to squash, and much more.

At the age of 23, Peter Marshall was on the cusp of succeeding Jansher Khan as world number 1; a tightly fought 1994 World Open final proved it. What happened after that is nothing less than tragic. Marshall, in his prime, had to step away from the game for an extended period in order to deal with chronic fatique syndrome. What he accomplished leading up to that and upon his return speaks to his greatness as player and as a competitor. Peter looks back at all of this on ep. 189.

The World Squash Officiating (WSO)website is set to soft launch in a few days time, and it's been a passion project of Roy Gingell's for the past 5 years if not more. As Director of the WSO, Roy has good reason to proud of the end product; it's exactly what the squash world needs in terms of spreading awareness and consistency in officiating and the game. Roy's been at it for 40 years, much of that at the very highest level. He shares his insight and some incredible anecdotes on his development over the years, his first high stakes matches, changes over the generations, the matches he'd love to have back, the characters he's had to grapple with, and much much more.

After a highly successful 4 years of US varsity squash at Trinity College, and a budding pro squash career, Kanzy Defrawy retired from professional squash to pursue other endeavors which led her to the wonder city of Dubai in 2018. Kanzy talks about her vision of injecting new life into the game in Dubai and the untapped potential for squash in the super city. We also look back at her varsity and pro career, why she decided to retire, and we get her take on the current "go pro or go US varsity" debate.