The British Grand Prix concluded the other day and Ramy Ashour racked up another win. I lost out to Ramy in the 2nd round 3-1 in an hour of pretty high paced squash. People talk a lot about his racquet ability but it's his retreivals that often suprise me.
It's the biggest event in the UK but it would be great to see the event reach the top tier of tournaments on the tour. It is behind quite a few in terms of prizemoney offered, and points, which may be why some players skip this event altogether. One thing I can say I was impressed with was the court attendents. A couple of good looking girls and decent music to bring the players onto court and attend the court when needed was a breath of fresh air.
Squash needs to turn major tournaments into major events. It can't be just a squash tournament anymore. It needs to be a place where people can hang out all day with activities, contests, meet/beat the pro, food stands, a DJ and most importantly a bar that serves alcohol. Take darts for example, (Note: darts is not a sport) but have a look at what they've done to their game! They've attracted a massive following of not just darts fans, but people who want to go to an 'event' and have a good time. Imagine if you went to a darts event and everyone is sitting in stands, not allowed to move during play and don't not allowed a beerr? No chance it would reach the level of popularity it has reached right now.
The Men's World Teams in Germany was a prime example of how a squash event can and should be run - best squash event I have ever been involved in (excluding the Yamba Open - what a tournament that was!). The US Open is next up on the World Tour, let's see what those Yanks can produce for us!
