FEATURES OVERSEAS STUDENT-ATHLETES AND SQUASH

OVERSEASOVERSEAS STUDENT-ATHLETESSTUDENT-ATHLETES ANDAND SQUASHSQUASH BYBY JAMESJAMES ZUGZUG

Muggy Mugaseth might be the answer team, which I played on, claimed top-nine players from Hong to the trivia question of who was the first Kong, India and South Korea. Harvard and Yale boasted numer- international student-athlete to play inter- ous players from India, including the Ezra and Pandole brothers D In the 1960s Anil Nayar, second from left, was a celebrated international student-athlete at Harvard. He led the Indian national squad at the collegiate squash. and Cyrus Mehta. Penn had Anil Kapur and Dinesh Nayak in the 1967 World Team Championships in Melbourne: (l-r) Sanjit Roy, Anil Nayar, A.R.V. Peermohamed, Fali Madon and Dinshaw Firoze Pandole. The cover of Squash: A History of the 1970s. Pakistan gave Arif Sarfraz, who played at Princeton in the Game features a photograph of the 1951 1970s. Israel was another supplier: Johnny Kaye and Tal Ben- Barnaby told him to go hit some balls. Dinny Adams, a senior he went to Barnaby’s office to fetch his coach. Barnaby watched. Harvard men’s squash team. Standing next Shahar both played at Harvard in the early 1990s. and No.1 on the team, walked into Hemingway. The custodian at He finally asked Nayar about his squash resume: out came the to a six foot five David Watts is Jehangir Mu- But it was always hopscotching through happenstance. Before Hemingway told Adams that there was some freshman from India fact that Nayar had won the national title of India and the BJO. gaseth. Known as Muggy, Mugaseth was a di- the Internet and email, luck played a big role. The most famous in court three, the lefthanded gallery court, who could really smack “I don’t have the red carpet here today,” Barnaby famously minutive but brilliant cricketer from Mumbai, international recruiting story is Anil Nayar, the future U.S. Squash it. Adams watched for a few moments of Nayar soloing, and then said, “but I’ll have it tomorrow.” India in the class of 1952. In May 1951 in the Hall of Famer. From Mumbai, Nayar had won the British Junior Manchester Guardian, Alistair Cooke covered a Open U19 title in 1965 and wanted to study at Harvard. His coach Harvard v. Yale cricket match played in Boston. in Mumbai, Yusuf Khan, wrote to Mo Khan, the pro at the Harvard Mugaseth, Cooke wrote, was a “supple Club in Boston. Mo Khan wrote back, asking for a letter. Nayar young man from Bombay who had one of wrote a letter in Pashto to Mo Khan, who translated the letter those long, beautiful unwinding runs” up to bowl the ball. and handed it to Eric Cutler, an admissions officer at Harvard Mugaseth anchored the Harvard squash team his junior and and a squash player (he later assisted with the women’s team at senior year. Jack Barnaby, his coach, called him “a stylist.” He Harvard and coached squash at Noble & Greenough). Cutler wrote played eight on the ladder and was a big reason why Harvard a letter to Nayar, asking him to take the SATs. Nayar wrote back, captured its first official national intercollegiate team title in 1951. sending his results. Cutler mailed an admissions form. Nayar Since then overseas squash players always been a part of the sent it in. Then in June Nayar received a telegram from Harvard, U.S. collegiate scene. In the hardball era, it was not uncommon. saying he had been accepted. Think of all the things that had to North Americans always played for U.S. teams: a half dozen go right—and all the letters back and forth across the globe. Canadians won the men’s national intercollegiate individual title Nayar dutifully arrived on campus in September. At an orien- in the hardball era, and the only family to have both a brother and tation event, he met the squash coach, Jack Barnaby. It turned a sister win the individual title are the Fraibergs from Montreal, out that Cutler had never told Barnaby about Nayar’s admission, Jordanna and Jeremy. Sometimes Mexicans like Rudy Rodriguez either because he forgot or because he wanted to play a joke on at Penn came north. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the three him. Anyway, Nayar introduced himself and said that he was a Gonzales cousins from Puerto Rico, Jaime, Jose and Fernando, squash player. Barnaby didn’t register who Nayar was. The next played for Harvard. day, Nayar went to Hemingway Gym, where the squash courts D Adorning the cover of Squash Magazine (l-r) overseas players Gustav Detter in April 2006, Ali Farag in October 2012 and Amr Khalifa in Asia was another regular source. The 1991 Dartmouth men’s were, and repeated to Barnaby that he was a squash player. December 2013 participated in some of the most electric matches in college squash history.

42 Squash Magazine January 2020 January 2020 Squash Magazine 43 FEATURES OVERSEAS STUDENT-ATHLETES AND SQUASH

44 Squash Magazine January 2020 January 2020 Squash Magazine 45 FEATURES OVERSEAS STUDENT-ATHLETES AND SQUASH

Red carpets started to roll a quarter century ago, just the very best but some ranked in the teens and twenties Squash has not undergone this transition in a from overseas. In 2018, Division I men’s tennis players came from when intercollegiate squash switched from hardball and even thirties. Moreover, a few programs—Drexel, George vacuum. The global forces that prompted the ninety-eight countries. The U.S. supplied 820; the other nations to softball—the women in the fall of 1993 and the men Washington, Stanford and Virginia (but not Trinity, as often switch from hardball to softball were the gave 1,392. That is 62.9% from overseas. (Spain sends the most in the fall of 1994. It was as if America had only played claimed)—offer athletic scholarships that usually go to inter- same forces that affected higher education tennis players.) Thus, tennis has twice as many countries rep- tennis on red clay and now had gone over to grass- national students. in general. Starting in the late 1990s uni- resented on their teams as squash and well more than double court tennis, so now all the world’s grass-court Nowadays, international recruits are just a part of the sys- versities renewed an effort to diversify their the percentage of overseas players. players could seamlessly play college squash. tem. Like with so many changes, young Americans find the student body and have a more global outlook. Golf is more closely in line with squash. For Division I women, It was easy to pin-point the school in the internationalization quite normal. In fact, for most, it is a boon. Counting not only how many U.S. states their student hailed from there are sixty-seven nations. The U.S. supplied 1,368; the others vanguard: Trinity. The Bantams started Fifty-two countries send a student-athlete to a U.S. collegiate but how many countries, they started seeking out students rather gave 642. That is 31.9 from overseas. For Division I men, there are deliberately bringing in international squash team—this is not simply an influx of players from one than just letting them come a la Nayar. fifty-one nations. The U.S. supplied 1,929; the others gave 567. squash student-athletes in 1996. The nation. The Americans learn about other cultures, other ways of In this century, the percentage of international students has That is 22.7% from overseas. (Canada sends the most golfers.) first man was Marcus Cowie, Trinity viewing the world. They travel to their teammates’ home cities. skyrocketed. In 2000 Mount Holyoke was 13% international; in Other Division I sports are the same. Who knew that women’s 2000. When he arrived in Hartford, They go to their weddings. If college is supposed to be about 2014 it was 28%. In the same period, Harvard, the university most bowling attracted bowlers from thirteen nations? Who knew Wendy Bartlett asked him about any broadening your experience, what better way than to forge well-known overseas, went from 7% to 13%. Colby went from 6% that men’s soccer is nearly 40% from overseas? Who knew that Englishwomen he would recommend. deep, abiding friendships with people not like you? For me, I to 15%. Columbia went from 7% to 17%—in 2014 it had nearly crew is so diverse, with forty nations sending rowers for He mentioned Gail Davie and loved learning more about my 12,000 international women’s teams? in January 1997 Davie ma- teammates’ countries. Indeed grad and undergrad It is not despite triculated. Then a cascade: so much learning happened at students on cam- globalization players from more than two Dartmouth that my teammate pus, the third high- but because of dozen countries, a slew of from India, Raman Narayanan, est raw number in globalization that national championships and delighted in spoofing on the the country. In 2019 Americans will continue the men posting a 252-win American taste for the exotic. the student bodies to be relevant in collegiate streak. Sometimes Trinity’s He’d fool the freshman by tell- of most universi- squash. The num- entire top nine were interna- ing them he came from a vil- ties with a varsity ber of countries tional students. lage where everyone’s name squash team were sending students The internationalization of was a palindrome. at least 10% inter- to play collegiate collegiate squash was bumpy. A consequence of the re- national. The lead- squash will probably The parents of American ju- cruiting is that the level of play er was Rochester, rise but the percent- niors grumbled loudly about has jumped considerably. Many which was 27% in- age has steadied precious roster spots being of the best young players in the ternational. around a quarter and taken up by non-Americans. world play collegiate squash. Squash is exactly will probably remain Although other schools were This in turn has directly helped like other NCAA there for some time. accelerating their recruiting, Team USA. Our players, wheth- sports. Interna- More schools are cre- Trinity was the poster child. er Julian Illingworth in the tional student- ating teams, so as col- In March 2004 the Harvard mid-2000s or Amanda Sobhy athletes are now legiate squash expands, Crimson dubbed Trinity the a decade later, benefited from a central part of Americans will probably Evil Empire. Fans screamed competing against world-class the U.S. collegiate fill most of those roster nasty epithets, sexual vulgari- talent while in college. sports story. One spots in part because ties and xenophobic curses at “The influx of international hundred and nine- American juniors—unlike in Trinity players. Once at a dual squash student-athletes has ty countries sent tennis—are among the best in match, fans held up signs say- greatly benefited many college a student-athlete the world. They are the best in ing, “They might be national squash constituents,” said David to U.S. colleges in the world because they travel champs but they can’t speak Poolman, the executive director 2018: for example, to tournaments in Europe, English.” Of course, the reality of the College Squash Associa- Afghanistan sent attend camps in Africa was far different. The Trinity tion. “The on-court competition one and Zimbabwe and train in the Middle students were good students, is very exciting, with varied styles sent sixty-two. East. And because with the team’s GPA usually on display and the standard of Division I sports the world comes higher than the student aver- play improving every year. Our are filled with international kids. American varsity squash teams to the States. Remember a quarter century ago when only a half age and at the top of all Trin- D A Mexican native, Rudy Rodriguez played at Penn and twice was voted member schools’ communities are about a quarter international (27% to be exact); players hail dozen nations sent players to the U.S. Junior Open? ity’s teams. Only one overseas the Ivy League Squash Athlete of the Year. and athletics departments gain from fifty-two other countries. Some sports have even smaller “Strength through diversity is one message I recall from recruit at Trinity never graduated from the program. Moreover, an added element of diversity, which can help strengthen and percentages. In 2018 Division I collegiate baseball teams had my days at Cornell,” said Kevin Klipstein, the president and the players were not hired mercenaries who returned from refine their campus cultures. The international students gain seventeen countries of origin, but outside of Canada (with 101) CEO of US Squash. “How else would we expand our worlds? whence they came: after graduation, most of them stayed in access to a phenomenal education and a potential home away and Puerto Rico (with twenty-three) none of those fifteen other The squash community is a reflection of our larger world. the U.S. squash community, working as coaches and teaching from home, while domestic students can expand their horizons countries sent more than five—while the U.S. provided 7,379. So To have such a diverse group of players in college squash pros and joining the professional singles and doubles tours. socially, culturally, and physically through relationships with for- just 2.1% of baseball players are overseas kids. is invaluable to the sport in the U.S. for a host of reasons, Some top-ten programs today barely do it—in recent decades, eign teammates. It is a testament to both the college experience How about Division I tennis, perhaps our most analogous sport? including competitively, and more importantly, enriching every Dartmouth has had just one player not from North America—but and the intercollegiate squash experience that top junior players In 2018, women’s tennis players came from 106 countries. The athlete’s life through these deep interpersonal connections overseas players have filtered into many varsity programs, not from around the world want to play for four years in the CSA.” U.S. supplied 1,059; the other nations gave 1,423. That is 57.3% which last a lifetime.”

46 Squash Magazine January 2020 January 2020 Squash Magazine 47