You might remember Annabelle Bullough, 11 years old, who wrote for us after her stay in El Gouna.
So, as she LOVES our sport, she went to the British Open, and stayed in the Event Hotel, having a great time, spending time with the players, watching some great squash, and some not that great squash, she recalls.
Let’s read what she felt about the event, shall we? Remember that she is only 11 years old, and that what she sees can really affect her… “Careful the things you say, Children will listen, and learn” (S.Sondheim)
Annabelle in Birmingham
Hi Everyone!
I can’t believe its been two months already since Fram really kindly asked me to write some thoughts on the El Gouna 2025 Platinum Squash tournament after we met there while watching the action.
Since then I’ve watched the World Championships and Palm Hills on SquashTV which was cool, but watching squash live is so good and I’ve been missing it!
So you can imagine how excited I was when my dad told me he had got us tickets to the British Open Semi-Finals and Finals in Birmingham.
I guess Birmingham and El Gouna are about as different as you can get in terms of a place to watch sport, but I was certain the squash was going to be just as amazing and it definitely didn’t disappoint!
Staying with the Players
We arrived at Birmingham on Saturday and checked into our hotel, the Hyatt Regency, which was so nice with lovely staff.
Why does the hotel matter?
Well my dad had chosen it because it was right next door to the squash venue and even better it was where all the players were staying too!
From the moment we arrived we were bumping into players in the lift, the gym, at breakfast, literally everywhere! And professional squash players all seem to have one thing in common – they are so friendly and don’t mind giving up a moment to say hi or have a little chat. I was a bit shy to start with but by the end I was on nodding terms with most of them!
Missing Ali
I would like to say it was really sad that Ali wasn’t there.
I had been so looking forward to watching him as he is absolutely one of my favourite players and was so nice to me when I met him in El Gouna. I’m so glad that even though I’m young I got to watch him play some of his most amazing matches live, including that incredible final at Optasia in 2024 when he almost beat Paul Coll despite fasting for Ramadan.
Enjoy your retirement Ali!
The Venue
So onto the squash. Firstly, I’d better mention the venue.
The Rep Theatre is so fantastic. It’s massive, with a huge stage. The pink court looks incredible and the music and lighting made the atmosphere so exciting.
Also, it had the most amazingly comfortable seats! The fanzone inside was really fun and you could meet the players after their matches. It was completely sold out and I knew it was going to be special.
The Matches
The women’s semi-finals were a little one-sided with the top seeds coming through as expected, but the quality of squash on display was brilliant. It was especially awesome to see Nour El Sherbini up close after she had just won her incredible 8th World Title. Legend!
Then it was time for the main event. Mostafa Asal, World No 1 and World Champion vs Joel Makin, hometown hero and world No 4. This was a tough match for me because Mostafa has been so lovely to me when I’ve met him, he always takes the time to chat with us, the kids, whether he loses or wins. And Joel plays at my club and I see lots of him, and he’s a friend too.
I was determined to sit back and just enjoy the squash.
Being a kid in the audience: awful!
But actually I didn’t enjoy the match at all.
The first game which Joel won was ok, but after that everything changed. I’m so not an expert. I play squash pretty badly and just enjoy watching it. So I can’t really say much about what was happening on the court. But I can tell you what it was like to be a kid in that audience.
And it was a horrible experience for me.
From the second game, some of the men in the audience began to get very loud and aggressive. There was a lot of swearing, rude shouting, and even terrible things being shouted at the referee.
My dad said it was Saturday evening and the bar had been open. But honestly, it was quite scary and I didn’t feel safe. One of my Dad’s friend’s sons who is a little younger than me and was also watching couldn’t cope and decided to leave. I nearly went too.
I’ve been to watch Premiership football matches, which were a lot more child-friendly. Watching the World Championships on SquashTV, there didn’t seem to be a lot of atmosphere, which wasn’t great, and I do think it’s absolutely ok for fans to get really into the matches and cheer, etc. But this wasn’t positive. The vibe was nasty, and actually, it made me really sad.
Discovering Diego
I’m glad I didn’t leave because afterwards I got an absolute treat.
Somehow, I had never seen Diego Elias play live before. My dad had told me what a unique player he was to watch and he was so right! Watching him demolish Paul Coll with such elegance was just what I needed to remember why I love watching squash live.
After a good night’s sleep and breakfast (fun to be eating your eggs and bacon sat between Gohar and Elias!!) my dad took me on a trip around Sea Life, the Birmingham Aquarium which was really cool.
Soon after, it was time for the finals.
Finals at the Rep
Sitting right up front and centre in such an amazing venue for a diamond final is so exciting. Watching the best of the best playing their best is just so inspiring.
Gohar vs Sherbini was an absolute classic. They are both so incredible in different ways. Sherbini could have taken it in the 4th but congratulations to Gohar for a brilliant win. I loved every single minute of it.
And you could see how much respect there was on and off the court.
The men’s final didn’t quite hit the same heights, mainly because Elias just played the most incredible squash and I think Asal was quite tired after a 20+ match winning streak. But it was a really nice match to watch.
We stayed through the prize giving, right up to the very end, because it had been such a brilliant event that I wanted to enjoy every last minute.
I’m already excited for the 2025/26 season. It will be hard with no Ali Farag to enjoy, but I’m sure there will be lots of amazing squash to watch.
What now?
Next for me?
British Nationals in August at my club St George’s Hill. Such a fun event – come if you can. Then the London Classic at the Ally Pally which is another amazing venue and after that, possibly, if I can persuade my dad – my dream trip to Cairo to watch the Egyptian Open in front of the Pyramids.
Lets face it, being a travelling squash fan is pretty cool!!! If Fram let’s me, I’ll report back on some of those too! [yes please, signed Fram]
Bye for now!
