Timmy On Tour
Hello avid squash fans!
Welcome back to the chaotic series of Maspeth on Tour, currently being brought to you by myself (Timmy Brownell), Steel court regular and frequent flyer on the PSA World Tour.
For this season’s first installment, I figured I would take you on a speed run of some of the squash and non squash happenings that I’ve been a part of in the last few months and give some insight that isn’t generally available to the public!! That being said, strap in…
The end of last season was a bit of a whirlwind, finally coming to an end in front of one of the loudest crowds I’ve seen, against arguably the best player in the world. Check it out!!!
Photos; Courtesy Timmy Brownell, PSA
Hello avid squash fans!
Welcome back to the chaotic series of Maspeth on Tour, currently being brought to you by myself (Timmy Brownell), Steel court regular and frequent flyer on the PSA World Tour.
For this season’s first installment, I figured I would take you on a speed run of some of the squash and non squash happenings that I’ve been a part of in the last few months and give some insight that isn’t generally available to the public!! That being said, strap in…
The end of last season was a bit of a whirlwind, finally coming to an end in front of one of the loudest crowds I’ve seen, against arguably the best player in the world. Check it out!!!
I have to say, it was one of my favorite squash experiences listening to the noise in the Rep Theatre in Birmingham. The voices rang down straight onto the court given the acoustics of the room, and we even had to stop play once to let the crowd finish chanting! Squash needs a heck of a lot more of that, and I was really happy to be a part of a match where both players truly enjoyed putting on a show for the crowd.
After the season’s end (I actually had to play one more week after the British Open at US Nationals), I got to spend a few days at Acadia National Park in Maine with my girlfriend Sara- it did not disappoint!! Many people underestimate the impact of a few days off on the mind (and of course, the body!) and how it can set you up for next few weeks or even months. I found this trip to be just what the doctor ordered. Fresh air, some amazing views, and some seafood and ice cream on the water. Tough to beat.
Summer training was a little different this year without our head coach Beng Hee there. It certainly didn’t feel the same without him, but we did gain a new Philly Superstar in Alina Bushma, Steel Court mainstay! She was in the gym every day this summer working hard, and I can’t wait to see her shoot up the rankings this year. Probably my favorite morning from summer training was the infamous scavenger hunt, where contestants have to run around the local shops and landmarks and take selfies of all their tasks. I was paired with Alina, and I’ll even share a few of those blackmail material selfie’s here (We ended up losing to Spencer Lovejoy and Dillon Huang by a few points, absolutely rigged).
The first event of the season for me was the Egyptian Open (in, you guessed it, Egypt!!). I personally have struggled competing in Egypt, as nobody can really trust the food and something always seems to go awry with courts/scheduling/hotel/transport- as Marwan Elshorbagy put it best after beating Paul Coll there: “In Egypt, you just never know!” I have to say, this time around the hotel was quite amazing and I did actually enjoy myself a little bit, but unfortunately yet again I found myself (along with half the other foreign players in the draw) not feeling my best after trying to eat as safely as possible to no avail. Should’ve just gone for it and had the tuna tartare I guess, if you’re going down you might as well go down swinging! Personal highlight for me was watching fellow American (and Steel court player!) Marina Stefanoni defy the odds and win not one, not two, but THREE qualifying matches to make the main draw of the event, in which she shot the lights out and won her first round match!! This was a stellar performance, and one that should garner some more attention, so hats off to you Marina!!
The next event of the year for me was in Paris, where I had the pleasure of playing on the stadium court in the Cirque d’hiver Bouglione against the World #1, Ali Farag!! I was able to stay with my godmother Sabina and her family, which includes the very talented triumvirate of Camila (future software engineer), Chiara (fashionista and recent masters graduate!), Cecilia (current law student), as well as Patrick (below average backgammon player), and Bloom (the head of the household, pictured below!). It was an amazing week from start to finish, and I’m happy as well I got to show that part of our family what squash looks like on a glass court against the best in the world!!!
This brings us to current day, where I’ve just returned from my most recent event in Doha. Qatar is without a doubt the most well run event on tour, where the players are looked after exceptionally well (car rides to the courts, amazing hotel rooms, good food, phenomenal facilities, you name it!). I wish I could’ve been there longer, but I ran up against Mostafa Asal in the first round- we had a few mega rallies and shared some good laughs on court, I have to say I am thoroughly impressed by not only his power and speed, but also his squash IQ and ability to react to unknowns. That side of his game is very underrated, and it’s no surprise he’s topped the field in the first two majors of the season. My favorite story from this event happened after a practice session with Leonel Cardenas from Mexico, which we were scheduled as the last practice of the day and as a result missed the player shuttle to the opening banquet. We spent about 25 minutes wandering around outside in fancy clothes and 95 degree heat looking for the banquet room, eventually we made it just in time for the magic acts and steak dinner! Apparently, we missed 25 minutes of straight violin solo music so I have to say, we hit the lottery (sorry to you violin enthusiasts out there). I enjoy overlapping with players in funny moments like this, as it reminds you that we’re all just people and can share a few laughs!
Stay tuned for more on the Maspeth on Tour Series, as there’s some big events coming up as well as some fall Steel Court matches!
A Busy Start To 2024
Welcome to the second edition of Maspeth on Tour! As the Steel Court touring pro, it is my job to give some updates on the events I’ve played in the past few weeks and see if they can stack up to the holy land that is the outdoor court in Maspeth, New York…
(spoiler alert, nothing can!!).
Ok, let’s dive in, because it’s been a busy start to the year! First up was the Tournament of Champions in New York City. I played an exciting match against “The Gunslinger” Youssef Ibrahim at the Harvard Club, they had decent plaster courts but they’re a bit old and have strange lighting- I have to give the Steel Court a decisive victory there. There is another court that they used in the tournament, but I didn’t get to play on it so Steel court wins by default.
Always bring extra water and sunscreen or you’ll end up like poor Andy here!!
Hello All!
Welcome to the second edition of Maspeth on Tour! As the Steel Court touring pro, it is my job to give some updates on the events I’ve played in the past few weeks and see if they can stack up to the holy land that is the outdoor court in Maspeth, New York…
(spoiler alert, nothing can!!).
Ok, let’s dive in, because it’s been a busy start to the year! First up was the Tournament of Champions in New York City. I played an exciting match against “The Gunslinger” Youssef Ibrahim at the Harvard Club, they had decent plaster courts but they’re a bit old and have strange lighting- I have to give the Steel Court a decisive victory there. There is another court that they used in the tournament, but I didn’t get to play on it so Steel court wins by default.
Next up I headed to Detroit, Michigan for the Motor City Open. We got a few inches of snow which was awesome, and my mom Christina Brownell was able to join me for the matches! There was an amazing diner attached to the hotel that we ate most of our meals at, and the club members we very friendly and brought a great atmosphere. I played two marathon matches, taking out Addeen Idrakie first round 3/2 and losing 3/2 to Mohamed Elsherbini in the second round. The courts were decent ASB, but a bit slow and sticky for my taste so I’m again going to say Steel Court wins handily.
Next up on the calendar I ended up in Houston, Texas of all places! You wouldn’t expect there to be much squash in those parts but they’ve done a fantastic job over at the Houston Squash Club, local squash kingpin Jahanzeb Masood has built the community from the ground up and I have to say, it should be considered a squash hot bed in America at this point. I took on their local superstar Huzaifa Ibrahim first round, he was very talented but needed some extra oxygen after the first 15 minutes! Next up I had a battle with world champ Karim Abdel Gawad, I have to say he hits the ball just as cleanly as he does on TV, but he also acts the same way. Normally, he waltzes into the first round and his opponents lay down for him. I wanted to fight and make him respect my squash and I think after the first game and a half, he started to! He even gave me a few snarky comments in the fifth game, which I was happy about because it meant he wanted to win and actually thought I belonged on the same court (maybe not that last part, but I can dream!). The glass court there was only a 3 wall glass and was quite fast at the start (which I personally was loving) but the paint was too dark and the lights were placed incorrectly and shone brightly on the top end of the front wall, so I have to say Steel Court wins 3-0 and sends the Texas court to the consos.
Next on the list we have my first time at Windy City Open. I was lucky enough to draw the glass court for my first round matchup against legend Saurav Ghosal, so I was really looking forward to seeing if the Steel Court finally had some good competition. Unfortunately, in classic PSA fashion they fumbled the practice times and I didn’t actually get to hit a ball on the court until the match started! The venue hall was amazing at the University Club, and Saurav is one of the fairest players on the Tour, so that first day was quite enjoyable, albeit nerve wracking as always in the first round of a major! I got to play another one of my heroes in round 2, Miguel Angel Rodriguez, and I even made him do a signature Cannonball dive and told him in spanish “It looked just like it does on TV” and he laughed. It was a hard fought match, and I lost 3-1.
The last stop on this rollercoaster of a blog is in Nashville, Tennessee where I got to partake in the first ever National Squash League Draft. Several top players were there including Victor Crouin and Youssef Ibrahim, and the weekend was full of laughs and good memories. I even got to see Victor Crouin eat a donut, something I never saw in 2 years of being college teammates with him (he is human, I promise!!). This was a really special weekend for me, as a lot of work has gone in behind the scenes to make this league a reality. I ended up being drafted to the Nashville Crushers, and it was awesome to feel the support from the home fans.
Well, that was quite the blog post for edition 2 of Maspeth on Tour- see you all in the next one!!