Squash is synonymous with class. Names such as Ashour, Shabana, El-Welily, Willstrop, David and Barrington conjure up images of fairness, honesty, respect and sportsmanship.
The saying ‘form is temporary, class is permanent’ is the lifeblood of so many players throughout squash’s history. It’s a fantastic attribute shared by the mass majority of players on tour today and over time.
However, with every yin, there’s a yang. From Jonathon Power’s historic on court outbursts, to Marwan ElShorbagy’s more recent fallout with the PSA, George Parker’s fiery temper in this year’s English Nationals, and *that* Mostafa Asal celebration, squash has had its fair share of controversial players over the past few years.
Sport needs ‘villains’ just as much as it needs the ‘good guys’.
A villain? In sports? I realise that on face value, that probably sounds quite…daft. After all, villains are the territory of superhero films and wrestling. But the theory that sports need ‘villains’ isn’t something new or unheard of.
Maradona. McGregor. Tyson. Mayweather. Neymar. McEnroe. Kyrgios. Brady. Zlatan. Suarez. Tiger. Power. Leeds.
They’re all names people love to hate. For one reason or another, each of the people in this list have had moments throughout their career where, within their sheer brilliance, they’ve had their fair share of scandal.
Why ‘villains’ make sport more entertaining
Psychology time. In my research into sports villains, I came across the Affective Disposition Theory. This suggests that people are constantly making moral judgements as to who is a ‘good’ or a ‘bad’ character, and taking sides based on their perception.
In sports, this results in a narrative of ‘good vs bad’, which then becomes part of the entertainment experience, and ultimately makes it more exciting to follow.
‘We all hate Leeds’ is a phrase many football fans in England will be familiar with. Yet, even with so much apparent hate, they’ve likely been talked about more than any other club this season. People love to hate Leeds, and the club has undoubtedly grown thanks to it.
Simply put, people tune in to sporting events, purely for the potential satisfaction of watching their perceived ‘bad guys’ get beat.
Translating this back to squash
Now, I’m not saying every other player should break rackets after every match and start wars with referees and governing bodies. That would be bad for the sport. However, throughout this season, the value of having a small handful of ‘villains’ has become far more apparent.
The tip of the iceberg was Mostafa Asal’s match with Paul Coll. With some poor gamesmanship and an unquestionably over the top celebration, that single match was the most talked about encounter of the entire 2020 season, and thus, a ‘good vs bad’ narrative was established.
While viewing figures aren’t available, it’s a reasonable assumption that Asal and Coll’s rematch drew a huge crowd. The initial match itself drew some ridiculous viewing figures on social media, and the PSA even opted to use footage of the match within its marketing. The story of the match made its way onto news sites across the globe as well. I’m a firm believer in the saying ‘all publicity is good publicity’, especially when it comes to the growth of sports.
Asal’s antics drew their fair share of criticism. Malcolm Willstrop wrote a brilliant piece on The Squash Site – not mincing any words as you’d expect. I spend most of my evenings at Pontefract Squash Club, and have a huge admiration the respect for both the sport and other players that Malcolm instills in everyone he coaches. I think it’s a dead-cert that Asal could learn a thing or two from the juniors there.
Ultimately though, while many, myself included, aren’t bought into how Asal conducts himself on and off court, it’s impossible to deny the anticipation that now surrounds his new found rivalry with Coll. The same can be said for why many enjoy watching players such as Marwan ElShorbagy and George Parker – when those players step foot on court, controversy often follows, and with controversy comes excitement.
The bottom line
I’m not suggesting people should all of a sudden change their view on players they perceive to be ‘bad’. Quite the opposite, in fact – embrace it! Choose a side and stick with it – it’ll only make the sport more interesting.
Squash becomes so much more engaging when there’s sides to take and a storyline to follow. I’m really excited to see how things develop over the next few seasons – questions such as can ‘Coll beat Asal?’, ‘will Parker settle his frustrations?’, and ‘will Marwan ask to ‘check it’ more than 6 times in a row?’ are all waiting to be answered.
To cut a (very) long story short: While ‘good’ characters are inevitably great for the sport and are fantastic role models for the next generation, having the occasional ‘bad guy’ make their way into the rankings is a great way to keep people engaged in the sport. You don’t have to like or even appreciate these players, but having an understanding of the unique value they bring to squash is something I think is really worthwhile.
The Fist Pump
Fair or Foul?
I am Old School. I am a sensitive, emotionless person. I cry easily but I often blanket my joy and happiness. Somehow, being brought up under colonial parenting and schooling, the “stiff-upper lip” stuff has been painted tightly over my sporting face. “Play up, Play up and play the game” and “Not whether you won or lost, but how you played the game” stuff
Squash buddy , Neale Emslie and I have known each other since schooldays, played each other first when were at opposing universities, and have since then probably played each about 500 times. Of those, 95% have probably been five-setters, and the win-loss ratio hovers around 51 – 49% depending on good or bad years. Neale is a good man. Principled, patient and caring. Slow to anger. A sportsman to his fingertips. A lovers of all sports.
But perform a Fist Pump in his presence, and his wrath unravels. You will endure eternal strife!!
The other day, Corona-virus lock-downed, I watched a recording of that epic Gregory Gaultier – Mohammed El Shorbagy, JP Morgan semi-final encounter. While I admired and loved watching the subtle changes of pace, the elastic retrieving, the brutal scything skills of that cliff-hanger, my old school rules pulled at my conscience, my stomach turned, as I watched the French General, fist-pump, hip thrust and conduct the crowd in a display of gamesmanship that bordered on….let me not say it. I quivered at Gaultier’s performance. Is this what players who I am coaching, are watching? Will they want to imitate this behavior? Had Bushbuck , as he is affectionately called…( though he moves more like a giraffe) , witnessed the drama, we would have had to call in the medical teams and ambulances, as his heart rate would have risen, his anger would have boiled into revulsion as Gaultier took fist-pumping and gamesmanship to the Nth degree.
Was this the quietly-spoken man who I had met at the World Coaches Conference in Poland some years ago? Was this the pleasant man who had taken us through an amazingly skilled practice session? What schizophrenic competitive cloaks, fall over a person once enclosed in that claustrophobic squash courted cell?
Having said that, was this display, also not an amazing display of guts, of using the brain, and experience to upset the rhythm of the opponent, just within the rules. Did he not cleverly upset Shorbagy’s calmed mind, and suck him into rushed over-reaction. Is this not what a coach wants? That his players be internally, physically and mentally tough, resilient and single-minded
I am also not a great match-play player. In friendlies, frequently, I will beat folk supposedly much better than me. But in tight league, or tournament matches, the tension becomes too much, and frequently, I crumble. As a coach, I have read up and spent hours discussing notes on sport psychology, and breathing, and meditation, and playing point-for-point, and, reducing the score to 0-0 in my mind, and…
And I wondered? If I wanted to win a bit more often. Maybe I should be more emotional. Maybe, I should let it all hang out. Watch all the top sports and there will always be that out-pouring of emotion when players win a big point, score a goal, make that massive putt. With so much pressure hanging on the result of matches these days, the millions of TV viewers, the press build- ups, the knowledge that this win could catapult you up the rankings, roll in lots more money… Can you blame our top sportsmen? Even Roger Federer, probably the epitome of calm, cool and collected shows visible signs of internal pleasure, dare I say, mini fist-pumps.
I am a non-golfer. I play in corporate days, so I play terrible golf on lots of beautiful courses. My really good shots are few and far between. And occasionally, very occasionally, I clutch a big putt. The ball wanders, first quickly, and then lazily, 10 meters later, it slips into the hole. And then I do. I FIST-PUMP. I am the man. For the moment.
Sadly, invariably, my next drive, skewers westwards, and I am brought back to reality of the rough life of golf
I enjoy my squash, even if I do lose. The friends I make through my sport are important to me. While I understand that that competitive streak maybe a lot stronger in others than in me, I will leave fist-pumping to those who are seriously under pressure. Let those who have the mental strength to control their emotions, and re-focus, after a winning rally dally in fist-pumping fun. And I will continue to persuade my pupils that whether they win or lose, it is more important how they play the game.
The controversial top player is going to be good for the game. One must remember that it’s a tiny percentage of the players who are outward fire in the heart players. If we look at history in sport, the so called villains brought publicity, excitement, viewership up to higher levels, as opposed to when they were not competing.
And most of the time, in fact probably 90 %of the time, these athletes are wonderful people outside the sports arena.
Squash like life needs personalties
What a load of cobblers.As in all professional sports you are a role model.I do not want to see juniorsfist pumping,shirt ripping nor
dancing on court.Leave your personlity at the court door and get on with playing with dignity.Squash is not and never should be football.
I take your point Keith and I agree it’s not a great influence on juniors. However, there is the key point about marketability of the sport – a player like Asal will have sponsors chomping at the bit, simply because they know of his potential to go viral with those clips. More sponsors means more money into the sport, which means more growth and ultimately more people interested in it. It’s a double edged sword…