THE SHRINKING DOLLAR

Jansher in London Return (Martin Bronstein photo:© 2007)

Both WISPA and PSA have been boasting about great increases this year of their tour prize money.  WISPA  prize fund for the year is up a massive 56 percent over last year and the PSA  are boasting that their total purse had doubled in four years. I am delighted to hear that positive news because a few years ago the picture looked grim; in England the alleged home of squash, there wasn’t a tournament worth more than a dime and the British Open almost went under through lack of sponsorship. In fact England still struggles to mount a major professionally-run tournament  and by major, I mean with prize money in excess of $150,000. 

Sharp-eyed readers will note the dollar sign in front of that amount. The reason is that the US dollar has become the currency of major sports events.  But here’s the rub: the dollar has weakened considerably over the last few years.  Five years ago it stood at around $1.5 to the pound Sterling. Now it trades at  two for one as well as being on par with the Canadian dollar. (When I lived in Canada twenty odd years ago, we had to pay C$1.34 for a US dollar). What this weakened dollar means is that players are losing out to the tune of 15 -20 percent on their paychecks.

When I checked this out with WISPA’s Andrew Shelley,  he said that inflation and other wage-eating effects are hopefully countered by increasing the ranking bands of WISPA tournaments so that  in order to stand still a $10,000 tournament would have to increase prize money to $12,000 next year. But those players who do not live in dollar countries, this will not make up for the  loss  when trading dollar for pound or Euro. Not being an economist, sorry, I have no solutions.

THE SHRINKING SQUASH JOURNALIST

What did this year’s US Open have in common with the British Open? They both had no press officer.  What this means is that the people running these tournaments are not really concerned with publicity and coverage. While the PSA and WISPA are boasting bigger purses, less is being spent on coverage. This would have been unthinkable ten years ago, when the major tournaments had a press officer, a proper press room  and made sure that journalists and photographers had everything needed in order to get the words and pictures out to the world.

At the British Open this year,  no hotel rooms were provided for journalists and only two journalists were given seats behind the back wall.  Colin McQuillan, who has been covering squash diligently for over 30 years, paid all his own expenses and was denied a seat behind the back wall.  This is an appalling state of affairs and I wonder yet again why England Squash, who own the event, allow this once prestigious event to become the plaything of a promoter whose ethics I have constantly  criticized for their lack of professionalism. Next year the British Open will also be the world open. I do hope that England Squash get their act together and take over the press function to ensure that the ever-shrinking squash press  get the service they deserve.

The US Open organizer may be forgiven for their oversight. This is the first year that they have staged the event.  There wasn’t even a press room and I understand that the photographers were using some bar in the Roseland theatre. This is absolutely bloody pathetic. Surely PSA should be advising promoters on how to get the best press coverage.

Once there were a dozen journalists traveling the world, covering the circuit. Now there are three writers and three photographers and if the treatment they have received of late continues, soon there will be none.

Perhaps Christian Leighton, chief exec of the World Squash Federation, should spend less time chasing Olympic glory and more time using his marketing skills to advise promoters world wide on the importance of the press in the big marketing picture.

A MONTH IN PROVENCE – AND RUGBY

The reason that I didn't cover the US Open was that September was spent as a rugby writer (mostly in France) covering the Canadian team in the World Cup.  My press accreditation  number was 942, so, yes, it was a huge event.   After the mickey mouse  press facilities (if any) of many squash events, it was nice to be part of a major event, with huge facilities, well-run press conferences and helpful staff in the press centre giving aid when necessary. I had trouble getting wifi connection and ended up with three Orange technicians huddled around my laptop ensuring that I got online. I spoke bad French, they spoke bad English and we communicated beautifully. And I have to say that watching the best rugby nations fighting it out on real grass in glorious sunshine made a welcome change from being indoors watching squash

A MINOR SKIRMISH ON THE TELEVISION RIGHTS FRONT

Jansher in London Interview (Martin Bronstein photo:© 2007)

I’d heard rumours that WISPA and  WSF were not seeing eye to eye on television rights for world opens. Thing is, WSF owns all world opens and the TV rights for those events. However PSA have negotiated those rights away and now control what happens to the television broadcasts of the Men’s world opens   WISPA want a level playing field  and from 2009 will get just that when their three-year deal with the Dutch sponsor begins.  The reason that WISPA want to control the rights is that they want to sell a complete TV package to countries around the world that will include other tournaments as well as the world open. But the WSF  can sell just the big one – the world open – without the buyer having to purchase other major tournaments

JANSHER MAKES A COMEBACK

Nobody quite believed it would happen when it was announced that Jansher Khan would be making a comeback after an absence of  ten years. But he was given a wildcard to the London Open, a  new tournament with minor prize money,  run by Zubair Khan, Hiddi Jahan’s youngest brother. It’s the kind of event that could have gone by unnoticed, but Jansher’s presence turned it into the London squash event of the year.

(He lost in four to Scott Handley; see report elsewhere on Squashtalk).

Everything is OK with me (Martin Bronstein photo:© 2007)

Before his match he gave a press conference in which he was more articulate than I had ever heard him. Here are some of his thoughts:

“I never really officially retired from squash. I played in Holland in 1998 and lost in five to Jonathon Power. Then in 2002 I played in a tournament in Pakistan and beat world number 14 El Borolossy in then in  quarters I beat Abas.  I had only trained for five weeks before that tournament  and that was not enough. I know that I have to train for six months to strengthen my muscles and bones.

"Before this event I trained  only two or three weeks.  I am not that superfit but I think I can play good squash. I love squash  and I want  to play squash. I have been  playing exhibition matches for the last five or six years, not for money just because I  love squash.

"At the moment, everything is Ok with me and don’t have knee injuries. I have willpower – I have always had willpower. This year I decided to play four or five major tournaments if I got the wild cards. If I had to play qualifying events, that would make it difficult for me

Confidence is more important than fitness (Martin Bronstein photo:© 2007)

"I play with the top players in Pakistan, but not in tournaments. We have seven or eight hard games and we are quite close.  I win sometimes and lose sometimes.

"I was never nervous in my whole life. When I was number one, even if I came to a tournament not completely fit, I had the willpower to win. And that would give me more confidence. Once I arrived in Hong Kong and somebody said to me that I was not fit enough to win. But I won the tournament beating everyone 3/0.

"Confidence is more important than fitness. You play for five months you will get fit, but you won’t get confidence. If I reach the quarter finals of major tournaments that would give me confidence. If I lost in the first round in three tournaments that would be very difficult for me to continue playing. I was world number one and to lose in the first round is not good for the image.”

I sincerely hope that the promoters out there  give Jansher his wild cards. They will be flabbergasted at the reaction of squash fans – and how fast the tickets will sell!

Jansher: I was never nervous in my whole life (Martin Bronstein photo:© 2007)

PHOTOS OF JANSHER BY MARTIN BRONSTEIN