The Jonah Barrington Column: March 2024

One of the sport’s greatest thinkers and a pioneer for the professional game, Jonah Barrington offers his thoughts on all of squash’s biggest talking points in his monthly column – written exclusively for the PSA World Tour website.

In this month’s column, Jonah discusses the the rivalry between Ali Farag and Paul Coll at the top of the men’s game, the rise of Japan’s Satomi Watanabe, and much more.

By Jonah Barrington

I am writing this after two intriguing finals at the Optasia Championships, but this time my special focus is on the men’s match.

Yet again we have had another compelling match between two very different world-class players in Ali Farag and Paul Coll.

I’ve been fascinated by the very recent interview (by Robert Mitchell) with Ali and his enduring rivalry with the Kiwi. The track stretches back into the juniors where Ali was already one of the top contenders and Paul was near to the bottom of the ladder.

The Egyptian’s assessment through the years of Paul’s long pathway tells a remarkable tale of determination and application across a period of time and, in more recent times, the analytical updating of his opponent’s still burgeoning game by the other.

Matters came to a head for Ali in 2021 and 2022, when unexpectedly, the man from down under turned him over in these two years, and on each occasion, the favourite (Ali) to take the British Open title in what were two very remarkable enduring matches.

The first was the clearest reward for the switch of coaching to Robert Owen in England. It was a game built on Paul’s most natural athleticism, some technical adaptations and an undiluted focus and patience to repeatedly provide a tactical masterclass essentially, or so it seemed, in defence.

Ali Farag and this generation of pro players or spectators had never seen so many lobs, primarily cross-court, utilised to negate the fertile creative and intricate skills of the No.1 in the world.

However, great players will almost always seek out ways to counter a developing problem, and Ali, in the Optasia Championships final, until the demands of Paul and Ramadan took their inevitable toll, was in part using his rival’s aerial tactics too.

Rivalries in sports have always fascinated me, and this one is certainly not the exception. Both players have patently real respect for each other, and their technical, mental, and physical match-ups are providing a special anticipation and enjoyment for our sport’s spectators – long may it last.

Turning To The Women’s Final:

Nele Gilis is now the prey for a mass of good players behind her and that can raise the temperature and pressure.

This is a new experience for her, and she has to come to terms with it and embrace that pressure. She is closing down on her ultimate dream, where she dearly wanted to be.

With the right mindset and continuing drive, she will only learn and move forward.

Satomi Watanabe is, to my mind, the real deal and can only move in one direction if she remains healthy and obsessively hungry – there is no other way.

Athletically strong and technically good (other coaches may well disagree), Satomi has a squash-orientated brain and seems readily aware of her opponent’s strengths and potential weaknesses.

The women’s game is increasingly blessed and another contender from the far East will be something to savour – as always time will tell.

By the way, Nele, watch the build-up to the “Michael Absalom flick,” and be ready next time!

So, it was a terrific tournament to follow the wonderful Windy City Open and hopefully next year the return yet again of Amanda Sobhy. I do trust her rehab and recovery are going well. Remember, Olympic Gold still beckons!

The Amazing Hesham:

Mazen Hesham is box office, whether winning or losing.

However this maverick professional is in much better shape than for some years and I would hate for him to remain at the death an exciting loser, yet another one of the many over the years who have flattered to deceive and have been at times, harshly condemned as pretty losers.

Mazen is much more than that. He is very technically gifted but has to show discipline and composure when the going gets really tough.

Ramy Ashour, actually my all-time World No.3, since the beginning of time, could always revert when necessary to simple (not that easy) quality line and length and knew instinctively, you could say, when to draw the line!

Mazen must now put his house in order- he is still playing the role of the hunter – although that can change.

And Another Thing:

I read with considerable interest Richard Eaton’s well-scripted article about the Geoff (Hunt) and Jahangir (Khan) early-80s rivalry in the all-new Squash Player mag.

We are made so well aware of the dire depths of discomfort the game has always enforced on those who have endured the extremities of battle.

Unfortunately, the Aussie, almost twice the teenage Pakistani’s age, had sadly reached the point when his body would just not keep pace with his amazing mind and willpower.

Had he been even five years younger, then I believe he would have continued to meet the demands of that immense challenge by perhaps deploying slightly different tactics (he was working on that, believe me!) and pushing Jahangir to even greater heights.

As it was with Geoffrey gone, none of the other players, other than Gamal Awad, in one outstanding marathon (Jahangir Khan beat Gamal Awad, Chichester Festival, 1983, 166 minutes, 9–10, 9–5, 9–7, 9–2.) just not good enough to pose a threat.

It was not until some five years later that Ross Norman, very athletic, highly motivated and in great shape caught Jahangir finally rather less prepared and with his pants down!

I do take issue with Richard in terms of what he has written, about what may seem to him now to have been the dark age at the top end of the game, and unintentionally albeit, seemingly disparaging, indeed disrespectful of so many quality players wielding small-headed rackets.

He was never privy to the mighty Khans and the supreme skills of Abou Taleb, and that wizard Merlin Qamar Zaman, in his prime period, let alone those like Gogi Alauddin, the original web-weaver, and the mighty Hiddy Jahan when on a mission.

Of course, the changes (e.g. scoring system, lower tin, and state of the art high tech rackets) have increased the intensity, but I laugh when I see Paul Coll, at his best, the personification of athleticism and patience, doing exactly what many did during the Neanderthal Period.

Even Ali Farag, a recurrent world champ, employs similar tactics as he now spins his web.

I have always said that the full front wall was put there to be used – not merely to test the endurance of the ball with thoughtless bashing below the cut line!

The Sports Science support and medical knowledge would certainly have been so welcome during that “dark era” but I can assure you that so much of the training (i.e. ghosting and running for starters) is at the core of today’s background work and gyms actually did exist in those (Queen) Victorian days.

Also we did eat and live our lives with common sense prevailing.

I could say more but I won’t. Terrific article notwithstanding that really tells the tale from the inside.