“I Feel Stronger Than Ever” – Declan James on Injury, Qatar & More

Fourteen months ago, Declan James was riding high after claiming Commonwealth Games gold alongside James Willstrop. 

Fast-forward three months and his season was over. A ruptured achilles tendon suffered on court ended his campaign in November, leaving him to face an operation and a long road to recovery. 

Now, almost a full year later, the 30-year-old is preparing to make his return. 

He’s playing in this week’s QSF 3 in Qatar, entering as the No.5 seed through his pegged ranking. 

The venue – Doha’s Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex – is a place James knows well. He’s played the QTerminals Qatar Classic there six times throughout his career, and that familiarity is something that played a factor in the decision to make his return there. 

“I’ve got great memories in Qatar,” he said. 

“It’s one of my favourite stops on the tour, and it’s probably one of the nicest places we go to. 

“There’s warm weather, good courts, nice hotels and you get looked after well. It’s quite easy to get to , and there’s not a big time difference, so all these factors definitely played a big role in that.  

“I wanted to go back to somewhere familiar to get started again, somewhere that I know I’ll feel comfortable, so I’m very much looking forward to getting back to Doha.”

For some, a whole year out of the game might have been tough to come back from, especially following an operation that left James in a cast for three weeks, and a boot for six more. 

James, though, took the positives from a bad situation, making the most of an opportunity that many players don’t get. 

“It gave me chance to spend more time with family and friends, which is obviously something you sacrifice being a professional on the tour,” he said. 

“It was the first time since I’d started playing professionally that I’ve been in one place for a considerable amount of time. I wasn’t travelling and could stick to the same routine, so I’ve embraced it and I’ve enjoyed the whole process really. 

“It’s been a nice change and probably a nice rest for the body too, in terms of the travel, the jet lag, the tournaments and the brutal matches, which hopefully will serve well me going forward in my career.  

“It’s been a pretty interesting year but I’m excited to get going again now.” 

The road to recovery after surgery was a gradual process, particularly in the early stages.  

James was unable to get back on court until four months after the operation, which took place 10 days after the injury. 

Fortunately, though, James was more than happy to get back exercising in any way that he could.

“I love to train, I love to be in the gym every day,” he said.

“As soon as I could get back in the gym, even if it was just doing upper body work, it made things a lot better because I was just able to train. I was actually quite surprised with how much I could do quite early on, even with the boot on, to get back into the strength training. 

“I did my first solo hit (on court) literally four months after the operation, and it was gradual progress from there for the next few months. Just static hitting at the start and then being able to move around a bit more, and it felt like every week was an improvement, so I was never bored and I was never negative about any of it, it was all positive for me.” 

The time spent training has left James feeling in the best shape of his career. 

That said, he’s under no illusions about the demands of playing competitively at the top level, especially after such a long period out. 

“Physically, I feel stronger than I ever have,” he said. 

“I’ve done a year of off-court training and a year of training in the gym, where all you’re focusing on is physical improvement, so I feel like I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in. 

“But of course, it’s different when the lights are on, when the adrenaline’s flowing and the nerves are there.  

“I feel confident in where I’m at physically, but I’m obviously respectful of the fact it might take a few events just to get that match sharpness back and get battle-hardened again.

“It’s obviously a lot different having that match fitness, that tournament fitness that you can’t replicate, so I’m being realistic about the first few months, and I’m just going to take it match by match, event by event.”

The amount of time James has missed has left him in a somewhat unusual position with regards to the PSA World Rankings. 

He has two further entries after QSF 3 on his pegged ranking, but will then revert to his official ranking, which currently has him outside the world’s top 200. 

With no points to defend beyond November, that gives James a pressure-free run ahead and the chance to climb quickly back up the rankings, though he’s not pinned down any specific targets for himself just yet. 

“I haven’t set myself any ranking or tournaments goals for this season at the moment,” he said. 

“That’s something that I’ll sit down with my coach for and probably do after the first couple of events, after I’ve got a bit of a gauge of where the level is at. 

“This season’s basically a free season for me because I’ve got two tournaments on my ranking now, so the next eight tournaments are completely free for me. 

“I can pitch up to any tournament of any level and the points are going to be beneficial for me. There’s not many times in your career, possibly only at the start, where you’re going to play 10 events and the results not matter in any of those because it’s all going to be beneficial to the rankings. 

‘So, I’m going to enjoy that for the next season, enjoy that freedom, and the only pressures will be coming from myself and what I expect of myself.”

Enjoyment may be the immediate priority, but that does not mean James doesn’t have lofty ambitions down the line. 

In fact, the former World No.15 has his sights set on being better than ever, hoping to mix it with the best in the world. 

Speaking about where he wants to be in terms of his squash, he said: “The goal is not to get back to where I was, it’s to be better than that. I’m not interested in hanging around at 50 in the world, with all due respect.  

“It’s an unbelievable level. Anything inside that top couple of hundred players is such a good level. People don’t realise how strong the game is at the top, but I’m here to achieve what I think I’m capable of, so I want to better the level I was at before and to get into the mix with the top guys again.”