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SSA Windy City Open 2006
Since Jonathon Power announced his retirement from the professional tour just a few weeks after this event was played, then his matches from Chicago Vs Shabana, Palmer and Ricketts would be their last. Unexpectedly for that reason and for so much more, they would make squash history. US$100,000 in prize money was bound to attract the best of the best; all were eager to start off the year on a good note by collecting not only the largest purse available on the North American continent but also the highest number of ranking points that would set up their year nicely. The stakes were high; the chosen matches were absolutely incredible.
1. Jonathon Power vs. Amr Shabana Reigning World Champion versus the current World # 1; as they stepped on court before the match, both players understood that this was an extraordinary moment. The richest event in North America and the second richest in the Western world; major ranking points were at stake but more importantly, the winner of this match would prove to the rest of the world who the best man was. If there was a time we doubted that Amr had what it took to reach the top of the ranking, well his successes of the last few months should make us reconsider. In a recent interview in Toronto Amr admitted to his desire to put an end to his performance inconsistencies on court, now he’s absolutely determined to reach the number 1 spot in the world, and who better to take it away from but the man currently holding the position? And as it turned out he would never get that chance since Jonathon retired one month after this match – this one then turning out to be their last… Not only will you see countless amazing rallies from start to end, you will also witness the most incredible exchange we have had the privilege to capture on film in the last 25 years. For as long as we’ve been filming Jonathon, never have we seen him move and play as well as he did, not only in this match, but his match with Palmer in this same event (#3). The two most naturally talented players in the world in their last ever professional tour encounter – what a way to go, what an amazing gift Jonathon leaves us with.
2. James Willstrop vs. Nick Matthew And we thought we had seen the best these two had to offer in their Super Series Finals '05 encounter... well not quite. Wouldn’t it be great if there was a way to gage reaction speeds between players who meet their opponents once they join the pro tour Vs that of those they played 1000 times before joining as is the case with James and Nick? Indeed these two were practically neighbours growing up in the UK. Short of being able to measure this scientifically, as you’ll watch this match you’ll notice how much quicker they react to each others’ attacks than they would against any other tour players. What an amazing unique show it provides. Trading shot for shot and game for game each ending in almost identical scores, they inched their way to an extraordinary final game and the heart breaking decider that froze everyone on the spot. A conclusion that could possibly become a case study for referees who are eager to improve on the quality of their work 3. Jonathon Power Vs David Palmer Unarguably one of the best match of all times, and if after seeing it you disagree then we’ll credit you the cost of the DVD, no questions asked. Sadly for the world squash community and since Jonathon retired a few weeks after this match was played, this Chicago match would be their very last on the men’s professional tour. What an amazing way to go… what an extraordinary legacy. Having filmed these two great players in numerous occasions over the years then naturally we were expecting another highly physical match and even maybe a few heated arguments with the referees along the way, but to our surprise - there was almost none of it. 99.9% of it was only squash in its purest form – clean, tight and devastatingly effective throughout and until the bitter end for one of the players… We’ll spare you the qualitative description of this awesome battle letting the above wager and comment speak on its behalf.
4. John White Vs Mohammed Abbas It hasn’t been since the Canadian Classic 2003 match against Power that John has been featured in one of our top matches, so let’s pull the red carpet for this amazing athlete who, for very unique reasons, is unquestionably the most entertaining player on tour. For those of you who haven’t had the privilege to see him in action at his best, this could very well be one of your last chances since the years are catching up to him. Through an array of shots you never knew existed, he’ll blow you away just as he did his opponent on more than one occasion during this match. John hits the ball so hard and puts so much spin on it that you’ll loose sight of it on more than one occasion. If you’re confused and maybe a little dizzy watching, then you can imagine how his opponent Mohammed felt as he ran laps around the court over and over chasing the white thing… But to his credit, and even if he reacted to John’s attacks more than he initiated his own, Mohammed played amazingly well and pushed the match to its limit. Though maybe not without having to catch his breath and his bearings from time to time… because short of seeing where the ball was so many times, then he could at least keep his eyes on the front wall knowing that the ball would eventually end up there… or would it?
5. Thierry Lincou Vs Mohd Azlan Iskandar Mohd Azlan played this match with such confidence that you would have thought he had spent last year at the top of the men’s world ranking and not Thierry. Maybe it was because this was their first PSA tour encounter and that it’s never easy to figure and adjust to one’s playing style? Or was it that the younger player had everything to gain and the more seasoned one had everything to lose? Hard one to answer from the spectators’ standpoint, but as long as the match was of the highest standard then it’s really all that counts. And so it was, well at least until the nightmarish error.
6. David Palmer Vs John White Rarely will you ever see fiercer attacks being neutralized with more efficiency than they were here. Figuratively, if not literally, one player was on fire and the other clearly made it his mission to put the flames out. Thunder-clapping shots only John can generate were subdued by David and sent into the every far corner of the court. But John is never one to quit on anything, so through full split lunges or spectacular dives he’d retrieve shot after shot leaving the crowd in awe. No doubt, he has to have traded the footwork lessons for a diving one. This match has the most unique ingredients you’re not likely to experience again anytime soon on tour, this we can assure you.
7. Jonathon Power Vs Anthony Ricketts Jonathon is in a league of his own in terms of the base foundation of his game; a typical rally from Jonathon could best described this statement < Quick short steps to the ball then once on top of it he pretends to hit a shot which he strikes as shown, or in some other way or directions based on whether or not he feels his opponent has fallen for the trap >. Anthony’s game in contrast is far simpler – he runs every ball down seemingly forever until his opponents lose their legs or their will to keep up with him. So there you have it; two very different playing styles clashing for the last time on tour, attrition s deception / as flamboyant and as raw as they come, enjoy.
8. David Palmer Vs James Willstrop A clash between titans on a monumental scale - James, the creative young giant and apparent heir to Jonathon had good victories against David in the last two years; but then the opposite was also true. Would the artist be able to express his liberal talent against the best ‘neutralizer’ on tour at the moment? Well the best answer is yes… and no. Rarely will you have seen the sport of squash be made to appear so easy to play than in this single match; nothing fancy or blatantly spectacular, just the right shot was played at the right time - tight, short or long and effective. This great match is definitely one to watch & learn from before heading to the court.
9. Anthony Ricketts Vs Graham Ryding Graham has a remarkable array of shots, he trains extremely hard and he is one of the tour’s best movers around the court. These qualities should have been enough to keep him within single digit ranking his entire career, but it wasn’t to be for some reason. If you haven’t had the chance to see Graham push another top player in the ropes then this is your chance. He started the match blazingly fast mixing pace and shots that Anthony just couldn’t handle. But as mentioned earlier about Anthony in his match Vs Power, he can and will run all day if it’s what it takes to take his opponent’s will to fight away. We can all wonder how many matches Anthony won in his career over more talented opponents just from the influences he conveys on court through his highly energized body language which sends the message to his opponents that he wants to win at any cost. A great clash… and a psychology 501 case study maybe also.
10. James Willstrop Vs Karim Darwish Karim and James both won the Junior World Championship two years apart and respectively in 2000 & 2002, so they’ve both proven that they can rise to big occasions. Karim reaching # 5 two years back and James # 2 last year is a testimony to the high level and consistency of their games, and this has to be a sign of great things to come on the rivalry end of things. If Karim hasn’t produced the big wins that James has over higher ranked player in the last year, then we suspect that his training regiment off court has been so incredibly intensive that he may not have had enough left in him to take on the best once reaching the main draws. We all know that there is such a thing as over training so let’s hope that experience will have taught him to pace himself more effectively just so he can eventually collect the fruit of his labour. (Since he beat both David Palmer and Lee Beachill in the event that followed this one (ToC06) then it appears his time may have come). Once you will have seen this mach and the others here above, then you may reflect on the amazing fine line that separates top players such as James and Karim. The punishment one player can inflict on another can just as easily be inflicted back on him by another player in the following rounds, or by the same one in subsequent events. Not knowing who will be the sharpest on any given day, and why, is where the real pleasure lays for us spectator; what a treat! |
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Cost: $54 plus GST and Shipping - Power vs. Shabana Match $54 plus GST and Shipping - Willstrop vs. Matthew Match $54 plus GST and Shipping - Power vs. Palmer Match $49 plus GST and Shipping - White vs. Abbas Match $49 plus GST and Shipping - Lincou vs. Iskandar Match $49 plus GST and Shipping - Palmer vs. White Match $45 plus GST and Shipping - Palmer vs. White Match $45 plus GST and Shipping - Power vs. Ricketts Match $45 plus GST and Shipping - Palmer vs. Willstrop Match $45 plus GST and Shipping - Ricketts vs. Ryding Match $45 plus GST and Shipping - Willstrop vs. Darwish Match $149 plus GST and Shipping - Best 3 Matches $225 plus GST and Shipping - Best 5 Matches $295 plus GST and Shipping - Best 8 Matches $339 plus GST and Shipping - All 10 Matches
Purchase by VISA or MasterCard Only: Telephone: (416) 426-7201 |
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Jonathon Power Legacy Package Through a series of the matches we have had the privilege to film and produce since 1999, this is a tribute to one of the greatest squash player of all times - Jonathon Power, the man who played his entire career to beat of his own drums. The first professional squash player in the history of the sport to have retired on his own terms – and at the top of his art.
Matches:
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Cost: $175 plus GST and Shipping - Any 5 Matches $256 plus GST and Shipping - Any 8 Matches $289 plus GST and Shipping - Any 10 Matches $359 plus GST and Shipping - All 15 Matches
Purchase by VISA or MasterCard Only: Telephone: (416) 426-7201 |
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Peter Nicol Legacy Package March 1st 2006 at New York's Tournament of Champions and shortly after having lost his match against Gregory Gaultier, Peter announced that this was his last participation in the event and that he would not play in the PSA tour next year. Coincidentally, 2 days later Jonathan Power made his own announcement that he was also retiring from the game. Although Peter may elect to play a few select events such as the Commonwealth Games, his and Jon's announcements confirm the end of an era for the sport that see two of its icons leave the scene that they have dominated for so long. Giving credit where credit is due, Peter was the more dominating of the two since he held the top of the ranking spot for the longest period since the late 90s. From the first time we filmed Peter in NY in 1994 Vs the world #2 Brett Martin who was then one of the most formidable player on tour, we knew that Peter had what it took to make it far, very far. His attitude and determination on court then closely resembled that of the few young players who are now pushing through the ranks and on whom we have written about on this site. It was magic. Without further due, here as follow is the list of Peter’s matches from our library.
Matches:
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Cost: $175 plus GST and Shipping - Any 5 Matches $256 plus GST and Shipping - Any 8 Matches $289 plus GST and Shipping - Any 10 Matches $359 plus GST and Shipping - All 15 Matches
Purchase by VISA or MasterCard Only: Telephone: (416) 426-7201 |
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Jahangir Khan's Rise and Fall 1981 Vs Geoff Hunt in the World Open Championships - Toronto, Canada
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Cost: $49 plus GST and Shipping - Both Matches
Purchase by VISA or MasterCard Only: Telephone: (416) 426-7201 |
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