In squash - The Podcast

Reigning German National Champion Raphael Kandra has emerged a force to be reckoned with among the top tier of squash. Currently 15 in the world and 16 in the race to Dubai standings, Kandra is more than excited about the 2019 campaign. A brilliant performance at last year's British Open which saw the German come through qualies to reach the semi-final, beating Nick Matthew and Marwan ElShorbagy along the way, was an incredible story. He's not resting on his laurels though; it's onwards and upwards for Raphael, and that means more great squash for us.

Countless PSA tour titles, 3 World Open titles, 3 British Opens, 3 Commonwealth golds and 10 British National Championships: Nick Matthew left the game as an all-time great. Nick and I chat about his character building junior years, what it means (for us across the pond) to be a Yorkshireman, and how competing during the Power/Nicol and Shabana/Gaultier/Darwish eras was different from today's play on tour. During that later era, his rivalry with James Willstrop took shape, and Nick lays out the backstory. Currently, "the wolf" is at the Tournament of Champions, and he gives some incredible insight on the event, the players, officiating issues, and most importantly, the Champions Lounge.

Riding a bit of momentum heading into 2019, Sam Cornett has her sites set on the Tournament of Champions in NYC and the World Championships in Chicago this February. Having reached 3 of 4 Challenger Tour finals since November, winning 2, is proof that she's ready to roll in 2019. Ranked 31 in the world currently, Sam's only a few spots away from her personal best of 28, and at this rate she is poised to make inroads beyond that.

Elite Squash founder and director Hadrian Stiff says the key to enjoying our squash and ultimately to performing at our best is through the harmonization of body and mind on court. How do I bottle those occasions when I go out there, enjoy my squash and play the game without thinking? When you listen to him lay it out, you'll be inspired. Hadrian's unique approach to coaching has obviously proven successful when you look at the players under the Elite Squash umbrella. He goes deep into his philosophy behind squash and we take look at his backstory which explains how his philosophy towards the game came to be.

With the 2018 Irish Open title under his belt along with several very strong performances in 2018, Tom Richards enters the new year on a high. Perhaps playing the best squash of his career, Tom and I chat about the influences during his early years, namely St. George's own Danny Lee. Throughout his professional campaign, Stephen Meads, of "who is Meads?" fame has been tremendously instrumental, and Tom is very excited to have Jesse Englebrecht on board more recently as well. We talk about what each of them have brought to the table for Tom. We also discuss some of his playing heroes, including both JP and Peter Nicol. At any rate, all of this has him playing very good squash of late, and this bodes well for 2019.

Shajahan Khan comes from a family replete with squash pedigree; father Zarak, and uncles Hiddy and Zubair all top 10 players in the world. Shajahan has been making great inroads of late, especially after his big win at the Memorial Open in Canada earlier this year which earned him a spot in the World Championships in Chicago in February. He'd really like to put Pakistan back in the thick of things, and with a great team backing him, and his attitude and game plan in place he might just be on his way.

The proof is in the pudding, and for Rob Owen the proof is that his players have been playing unbelievable squash over the past few years, and the 2018/19 campaign has been particularly noteworthy. For those of you who know Rob, then you'll likely enjoy his look back at the backstory that has brought him to where he is today, one of the top coaches in the game without question. If not, you need to a listen to this great chat about Rob's career and his thoughts on the game as it is today.

Jamie Crombie has just launched thesquashexchange.com, a personalized squash training website which brings something new and exciting to the value of online squash material that already exists. Jamie's backstory is three-pronged and nothing less than impressive; he ranks among Canada's all-time greats, he's a long-time and very successful teaching professional, and he's parlayed his athleticism on to other sports representing the US in the world duathlon on four occasions. Jamie and I break down how thesquashexchange came to be and what it brings to the table.

From brilliant professional career to putting himself on the map as one of the top coaches out there, Nick Taylor's squash resume speaks for itself. Nick and I talk about the early glory days when he was winning European Squash Championships and getting to the finals of the British Nationals. The passion of course was there, but Nick's passion for coaching might be even more palpable. We covered so much ground here including his new role as Director of Squash at Infinitum Squash, what it takes to build a program from scratch, junior development, masters squash, and use of the red-dot ball in our training and solo practice.

The 2018/19 campaign couldn't have gotten off to a better start for Raneem El Welily; 3 finals, 2 victories, and a real look at regaining the #1 world ranking. Raneem and I talk about her summer training in Egypt where she worked hard with her coach Haitham Effat. We also take a look back at that memorable 2015 season when she took the number 1 spot from Nicol David (who held top spot for over 100 months in succession) and became the first ever Egyptian woman to achieve world #1 in professional sport. We also discuss a recent TedTalk she gave and her feelings on driving in Cairo.