Fram Reports

People who work behind the squash scene know how angry I was with Mostafa the ‘Raging Bully’. For several months, I didn’t watch a single match featuring Mostafa. I just didn’t recognise his matches as Squash Matches.

But after he worked, trained, talked with James and felt the “Pontefract Power”, he started to show his true talent, his true nature, and it didn’t damage his squash talent, on the contrary.

I find what Mostafa said in this Olympics article remarkable of honesty and true courage. I wish all the people who were stupidly supporting those “everybody hates me for no reason” stances were as courageous and admitted they got it wrong…

I would admit when I’m wrong. I will the day it happens.

Ha.

“My family felt everyone was against me and we were overwhelming ourselves with a thought that wasn’t true…”

Mostafa Asal on his inspiration

That ‘big man’ is former world number one and six-time world championships medallist James Willstrop.

If the Englishman seems like an odd choice of mentor for Asal culturally, it’s because he is. And that was exactly what Asal was looking for.

“I went to train with him in England at the Pontefract Club in Yorkshire. We worked on serious things like attitude. I didn’t know this kind of stuff when I was in Egypt. It was something different for our mentality,” Asal continued.

“I chose to work with him because there wasn’t any other option but to leave Egypt. My family felt everyone was against me and we were overwhelming ourselves with a thought that wasn’t true. Because James was from outside of our bubble I actually listened to him and learned how to behave because he had the best attitude inside the court.

“Mentally was so hard for me because you get to the top behaving a certain way and then you’re told to completely change. It wasn’t about squash or tactics any more but getting people to see me as a really good man, not as a bad boy of the sport.”

Willstrop’s success with Asal was born out of his desire not to totally stamp out his enthusiasm and emotion, but just to better control it.

In this way, the Egyptian could better express himself and help the squash public to understand him.

“I learned that whether I lose or win, I just have to play with respect. So the people that are saying negative things can now see that you’re just different and also deserve their respect.”

READ THE FULL OLYMPICS ARTICLE