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UPDATE: 15-Jul, Pakistan:
A financial dispute has landed Pakistan’s legendary squash star
Jansher Khan in jail at least for two weeks, a court ruled. A lower
court in Peshawar, the capital of the Northwestern Frontier
Province, remanded Khan into police custody for 14 days after a
local family complained that he had illegally occupied their house.
14-Jul, Pakistan:
Jansher Arrested in Lahore
LAHORE: Pakistan’s squash legend Jansher Khan was arrested on
Thursday and taken to the Peshawar Central Jail after a local court
cancelled his pre-arrest bail.
 Khan,
who allegedly assaulted and threatened to kill a woman and her
family with an unlicensed shotgun, had obtained interim bail after
assuring the court of an out-of-court settlement. However, he failed
to settle the issue prompting the session judge Ehtesham Khan to
strike down his interim bail. Jansher and three other co-accused —
including his brother in law — were arrested, handcuffed and taken
to the jail in a police van.
Rukhsana, a resident of Peshawar and the ‘victim’ of Jansher’s
assault, had alleged that the squash star and five others injured
and harassed her family. “They thrashed me and tore my clothes,” she
charged.
Jansher denied the charges and claimed that he was in Islamabad when
the alleged incident took place. But the police registered a case
against the Pathan under six different sections which carry
punishment up to death sentence. Sources say the incident was the
result of a failed money-deal involving Rukhsana’s brother-in-law
Abdul Shakoor who had taken a loan of Rs 10 lakh from Khan on the
condition that he would pay mark-up equal to that of banks. He
claimed to have paid Rs 17 lakh but Jansher was still ‘demanding’ Rs
40 lakh.
 Report
from DNAindia.com
Also see:
Malaysia Star
Mumbai Mirror |
13-July, Australia
81 and going strong ...
 At
81, Kerry Peterson says he feels as young as the people he
plays squash with.
That would make him anywhere between 20 and 50 years of age,
depending on what day of the week it is. "I feel the same
age as them until I see myself in the mirror and wonder who
the old fellow looking back at me is," he says.
Given his three to four one-hour sessions of squash a week,
Peterson's staying power would still be impressive if he
were half his age, but he doesn't think of it that way.
"It's a very low grade," he says modestly of his level of
competition at Willoughby squash club, where he has played
for the past 15 years. "They pair you up with a person of
similar standard."
He would like to play forever, and has been running around
squash courts for about 50 years. "I feel there are still a
few years in me."
Peterson attributes good genes to his good health. "My
mother was 99. My father worked until he was in his 80s."
Not that he thinks the word "work" adequately describes his
and his father's life in the carpet trade. "We called it
play. You have to enjoy your job."
When he is not on the squash court, he enjoys fishing. "It's
relaxing," he says.
Aside from exercising regularly, he is proud to say he
doesn't smoke and drinks very little. That said, mates
calling in on him are likely to be offered a beer. "It's OK
in moderation."
Sydney Morning Herald |
Crocodile Cup in HK
12-July, Uganda:
Jahangir aims
for Africa
 THE president of the WSF Jahangir Khan will visit Uganda
next next year. Khan, a Pakistani national, will come
ahead of the 2007 edition of the Tusker Sheraton Fuelex
corporate squash tournament.
Sheraton Kampala hotel general manager Jawaid Akhtar
revealed after the prize presentation of this year’s event
at the hotel on Friday.
“Khan will conduct coaching sessions for youngsters and
play an exhibition game among other activities,” Akhtar
said. “He is so keen on helping young players, he started
an academy in Pakistan for the same category.”
Akhtar, also a Pakistani national and a former squash
player, gave away awards along with National Council of
Sports (NCS) general secretary Jasper Aligawesa to the
tournament winners.
New Vision |
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13-July, India:
India & Pakistan to Clash
 Over
450 participants, including some top-ranked players from India and
Pakistan, will vie for honours at the Northern India Squash
Championship to be held in the Indian capital New Delhi from
July 14 to 18.
India's No.1 and world No.43 Ritwik Bhattacharya and world No.64
Saurav Ghosal will lead the hosts' challenge in the tournament while
world No.48 Khayal Mohammad Khan and No.64 Basit Ashfaq will be the
elite players from Pakistan in the competition.
Pakistan is fielding 50 players where Nepal is being represented by
12 players, president of Delhi Squash Association Vijay Goel said at
a press conference on Thursday.
The total prize money of the tournament is Rs 4.50 lakh, of which
the men's open title winner will earn a purse of Rs 50,000. |
13-July, Jamaica:
Sponsorship boost for
Caribbean Juniors
LUCOZADE SPORT'S injection of $200,000
has accommodated Jamaica's hosting of the prestigious Caribbean
Junior Squash Championships which are set to get under way this
month.
 With
the competition set for the Liguanea Club from July 26 to August 2,
Lucozade announced its sponsorship yesterday at the competition's
launch at the New Kingston club.
The championships were initially set for the Bahamas, but that
country pulled out and Jamaica stepped up.
Wisynco, through its Coca-Cola brand, has also got on board with a
contribution of $100,000, while the National Commercial Bank,
KeyCard and Pan Caribbean Financial Services have invested $50,000
each to the competition.
The tournament has attracted a number of other smaller sponsorships
as well with the West Indies Alliance Insurance Company, Jamaica
National Building Society and COK Co-operative Credit Union giving
$25,000, $10,000 and $5,000, respectively.
The championships will feature eight countries and more than 120
players competing for the title of the Caribbean's junior players.
The competitors are The Bahamas, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, the
Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), Guyana, the Cayman
Islands, Bermuda and Jamaica.
Jamaica-gleaner &
Jamaica Observer |
Palo Alto:
Power still wowing the crowds
 The
crowd in the Arrillaga Family Recreation Center went quiet as
Jonathon Power, who was the number one ranked squash player
in the world as of March, and Martin Heath, the ex-number
four player in the world, stepped on the squash court.
The two had come to the Bay Area to play in a San Francisco
doubles tournament, but accepted Stanford Coach Mark
Talbott’s invitation to play an exhibition match to benefit
“Giving on the T,” a financial outreach program spearheaded by
Tennyson West, a San Francisco Consulting firm. The philanthropy
program provides money for such charities as the East Bay
College Fund, Joy of Sports Foundation, New Leaders for New
Schools, and Save the Children literacy programs in the Central
Valley
 Talbott,
a former world number one himself, was incredibly pleased to
have the two great players visit Stanford.
“It is a great occasion when we can offer an exhibition of this
type of talent,” said Talbott, adding that the money raised for
charity, “only served to make the night all the more exciting.”
The crowd of around two hundred packed into the squash courts
and stood rapt as Power and Heath, from Canada and Scotland
respectively, played four games of a best-of-five match, with
Power winning 3-1. As the points when on and the shots grew
tougher, the impression the skill level made on the audience
became all the more obvious.
One Stanford Squash player could be overheard commenting that
Power’s shots didn’t look “physically possible.”
At the end of the match, Power addressed the crowd and urged
them to “support the game of squash on the West Coast,” a
message that certainly hit home for the Stanford Squash Teams.
The women went varsity last fall and the men hope to follow.
 Heath
too urged the crowd to make a contribution.
“Giving from the T is a great cause,” he said, “and should be
enthusiastically supported by all of us.”
As the Stanford teams took pictures with Heath and Power,
Talbott surveyed the scene contentedly.
“That was really something,” he said.
Stanford Daily |
Barbados:
Meakins cruises to sixth national squash title; Simpson
claims hat-trick
 Karen
Meakins, the prohibitive favourite and top seed, duly
claimed her record sixth consecutive ladies squash title in
Saturday's final, all without the loss of a single game,
when she defeated the #2 seed, Sonia Perkins, for the
fifth straight year in the final 9/2 9/2 9/5.
It was certainly a day for records to tumble, as the action
in the 32nd edition of the annual Barbados National Squash
Championships, sponsored by the Barbados Olympic Association
and played at the Barbados Squash Club on Saturday evening,
reached an exciting conclusion.
Perkins, who is a former champion jockey, tried hard and
never gave up during the 26 minute match, but the difference
in class between Meakins, the Caribbean's #2 player, and the
rest of the local ladies field is as vast as it has ever
been. Punishing length on both wings, coupled with
impressive volleys and clinging drops, combined with
excellent court coverage gave Meakins the edge early on, and
she never loosened her stranglehold on the match. The next
challenge for the 33-year-old local squash champion will be
to try to equal the record of 11 total Barbados ladies
titles held by Natalie Small (nee Webber).
The men's final was a complete contrast and one of the best
ever seen; and it was contested by two players, who have
grown up competing against each other many times over the
past decade at both the junior and now senior level.
 The
22-year-old top seed, Gavin Cumberbatch, who had
missed the last four national championships, while studying
at Yale University where he captained the squash team in his
final year, would have started this final quietly confident,
since he had convincingly defeated his lanky 22-year-old
left handed opponent in straight games in the Inter-Club
League earlier in the year.
 On
the other hand the #2 seed Shawn Simpson, the
two-time defending men's champion and national volleyball
representative, would have been confident in his own
superior fitness and retrieving ability.
The match began at a frenetic pace and left the spectators
gasping at the weight of shot and the agility and speed
about the court of both players. After 22 minutes, it was
one game all with both games being won at four, but few
would have guessed at the drama to follow.
The pace slowed, the rallies lengthened and the match began
to be a battle of attrition and patience. Although
Cumberbatch took the third game in a further 19 minutes, it
seemed the greater toll had been taken on him, not his
opponent.
Simpson then never trailed in the fourth game, which he won
for the loss of three points. Cumberbatch then tried to pick
up the pace once more in the fifth, but Simpson was not
fazed and was not to be denied.
A spectacular overhead forehand spike into the nick took him
to his first match ball at 8-4. Cumberbatch bravely clawed
his way back to 7-8 before two winners saw Simpson home 4/9
9/4 6/9 9/3 9/7 in 74 minutes, the longest match in the
tournament this year by far. |
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Portugal:
Amir
El Samahy wins Open Jardins da Ria 2006
Amir El
Samahy won the Open Jardins da Ria 2006 in Squash (8th
game of the national competition from the National
Federation of Squash). In Jardins da Ria (North of
Portugal) this open received a record 69 players from
throughout the country, Spain and Egypt.
In the final,
the player representing Egypt (although resident in Spain)
#2 from Spain and #237 of the world beat the of Portugese
#1 André Lima 3-0 (9/0, 9/1, 9/0).
In this open
the organisation presenting a new raquet sport SPEEDMINTON.
It's like a squash, tennis and badminton in a unique
sport. Al the players enjoy the tournament. It's a place
near the sea with a good conditions.
Pedro
Mendonça
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New
Zealand:
Kitchen beats off the men
to reach final
It's not often New Zealand women's squash No.1 Shelley
Kitchen betters the feats of former No.1 Susan Devoy.
But thanks to the adverse weather conditions (yes the weather
can play havoc with squash sometimes) Kitchen, the world No.13,
did just that during the weekend's North Island championships at
Napier's Hawke's Bay club.
Auckland's Kitchen reached the final of both the open men's and
open women's sections. Four-time world champion and eight-time
British Open champion Devoy never reached the men's final when
she attempted the feat a couple of times during her playing
career.
 "I
was lucky in the men's division as the four top seeds were
unable to play because of the Napier-Taupo road being closed,"
said Kitchen.
Kitchen, 26, never dropped a set on the way to winning the open
women's round robin section of the Bluewater Hotel-sponsored
championships. She beat second seed Paula Darlington of
Palmerston North 9-1, 9-4, 9-1 in the title decider.
In the men's open section Kitchen never dropped a set until the
final when she was beaten 9-6, 9-7, 9-1 by Wanganui A1 grader
Paul Tuffin who is ranked ninth on the national rankings.
"With the other Kiwi women who are ranked in the top five on the
country's rankings not here it was good to get some tough
competition from the men," said Kitchen who hopes to break in to
the top eight on the world rankings this year.
Hawkes Bay Today |
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