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04-Jan-2005:
Lincou on Top,
Willstrop to Five
The first PSA Rankings for 2005 feature some dramatic changes, with
Thierry Lincou, as expected, regaining the world number one
position, but James Willstrop's rise from 13 to number five
came as an unexpected bonus following his win in the Pakistan Open.
Full top twenty and report ...
COCORICO ...
 Oh come on, I’m allowed to have a
little victory shout, aren’t I?
How many times in the history of squash did we have a World Champion
who was also World Number One?
From the top of my head, I would say, Jahangir, Jansher, Peter Nicol
and Jonathan Power. I was told that Geoff Hunt would probably also
qualify… In other words, not many, “la crème de la crème”, as
you say over here…
Twelve months ago, a lot of people didn’t recognize Thierry as world
number one, although he reached the position fair and square, mostly
because at the time, he hadn’t won any major tournaments.
Well, the feeling this time around is all together different.
 When
I was in Pakistan, most of the players came to me to tell me how
glad they were that Thierry was now World Champion and World Number
One, as he had been extremely consistent for these past months, and
rightfully deserved the supreme ranking.
Of the seven tournaments in a row Thierry took part in, he won five
of them: Super Series,
Hong Kong, Super Gerrard,
Canadian Classic, and of course,
of course, the World Championship
in Qatar.
Not bad for a frog, now, is it....?
For a few months now, I’ve learnt to know him, and all those around
him who have made him the great young man he is today. I’m glad to
say that to know him is to love him. With Thierry, what you get is
what you see, and what you see is what you get. There is no
pretence, no game, no hypocrisy, only who he is. Plain and simple.
His perfect attitude on court and his kindness, his simplicity and
generosity, his determination and love of the game, have made him,
like a lot of other players of the circuit, a perfect ambassador for
the sport of squash.
Ladies and Gentlemen, the new World Number One, Monsieur Thierry
Lincou.
Framboise |
 “I
think the number one ranking is a reward for my last eight
months, during which I think I was very consistent, as I won 5
tournaments, 3 of which were accountable for the rankings.
“These eight months have been absolutely fantastic for me, not
to mention of course the World Championship Title to crown it
all. Last year, I lost the number one ranking pretty quickly,
and that affected me deeply, more deeply than I wanted to
admit, and that’s why I had it at heart to occupy it again.
“But I knew it was going to be hard, much harder that the
first time. The first time, you may succeed by surprising
everybody, but the second time, everybody is ready for you! To
get there a second time, one has to confirm one’s results, and
I think that what I’ve done by winning five tournaments during
the season.”
Thierry
Lincou |
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THE AFP STRANGE REPORT….
While I was talking with Thierry, on the last day of the year, he
happened to mention an article dated the 4th December 2004, by whom,
he wasn’t sure, except that he was an English journalist, who
appeared to have “changed slightly”, to say the least, what the
Frenchman said after his victory in Qatar.
Here is the extract from the article: (please note that there is a
passage that doesn’t seem to make sense, “xusing”, but it was in the
original text…)
Lincou's belief that he can
remain at or near the pinnacle was first communicated to the
world championships master of ceremonies Robert Edwards in
xusing gaffe-prone interview.
"Some players are getting older," Lincou said, trying manfully
in a foreign language to describe the opportunities which may
be opening up on the crest of a new wave. "Some players are
finding it more difficult now."
Under pressure from the microphone, Lincou felt obliged to
elaborate.
"Peter Nicol is getting older," he said, falteringly, unaware
that the 31-year-old former world champion from Britain was in
the audience, and listening interestedly.
"He finds it difficult to play as well as he did," Lincou
continued amidst laughter, and was rescued by Edwards. "I
think we'll move on before you dig yourself any deeper,"
Edwards said, although the incident passed without rancour and
in good humour.
However Lincou was correct. Jonathon Power of Canada and John
White of Scotland, both recent world number ones who have
turned 30, are both slipping back, and Nicol's future at the
top will depend upon his being able to complete protracted
training stints as he once did, something injury and
exhaustion have conspicuously prevented him from doing for
about 18 months.
Otherwise Beachill, aged 27, should be around for a while,
though Lincou has shown that he is beatable, and the other
longer-term contenders could be Anthony Ricketts of Australia,
Nick Matthew of England, and Amr Shabana and Karim Darwish,
the two Egyptians. |
Thierry was gob smacked by the
interpretation of his little speech, which, by the way, didn’t occur
after the final, but actually after the semi-final…
Thierry just had played two long games in two days against Anthony
Ricketts (3/2 in 72 minutes) and Graham Ryding (3/2 in 62 minutes).
Robert Edwards, compere of the evening, told him that he looked very
tired, and that he may have a problem being fit for the final.
Thierry then told him that yes, he was tired, but that he was lucky,
he was always able to recuperate well, but that it was harder and
harder, as you get older, and that it’s more difficult for the great
players who are slightly older. And then quoted Peter Nicol, who had
said the day before, after his match against Ryding, that his match
against Power had exhausted him. To which Robert Edwards laughed and
said that Peter was sitting in the audience. Thierry and the
spectators laughed at the joke, and that was all there was to it.
How on Earth this leads to an article where suddenly, “Lincou's
belief that he can remain at or near the pinnacle was…” Bla bla bla,
God only knows…. And then a whole analysis of the age of the
players, and who was going to be able to fight Thierry, etc, etc,
etc.
“I was really shocked by the tone of the article,” said Thierry, “as
I appeared to lack respect for those great champions who are older
than me like Peter Nicol, Jonathan Power or John White. Anybody who
knows me even a little bit knows very well it couldn’t be further
from the truth. My point was about the ability to recuperate after a
succession of hard matches, not about the performance during a
match. I never ever said or thought that I could get to the top
because the others are getting old. It would be a lack of respect
not only for them, but also for the young generation.”
“I always have and always will respect those great players, and I
don’t think that it’s because they are older that I can stay at the
top! If I succeed to stay at the top, it will be by working very
hard, like I always do, not by waiting or hoping that the others
will drop out of the race!”
“Really, could you imagine me standing in front of such a
prestigious crowd, and telling them something as pretentious! My
exact words after the final were “I’m very happy to have won this
Championship, and to inscribe my name near the two legends that are
Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan.”
I’m sure the journalist in question didn’t mean any harm, well, at
least I hope so. Although it is always slightly annoying when people
have a laugh at the expense of someone whose first language is not
English….
And I’m also sure that his French, his Swedish, his Dutch, and his
Arabic are as good as Thierry’s English… |
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