The start of another new year has begun but we’re only half way through the season. The World Series Finals are currently on but my last event was in India last month and my next event is in Vancouver on the 12th of Jan. Never been to Vancouver but I must admit I love Canada. Pretty laid back place and I know a few Aussies who have made the trek over there for the snow season and haven’t come back (not dead, just loved the place!).
I’ve been lucky enough to spend the last 3 weeks back home in Yamba, Australia and the weather has been awesome. I say it every year but spending time at home is so refreshing. A total recharge of the batteries is exactly what the body needs and it’s when I’m back home, close to the family that I get jealous of the Europeans and Poms that can live and train in their native land.
Most of Christmas day is spent at the beach and there’s never a dull moment. Our ‘funky trunks’ (see twitter @campilley) were a standout on the beach and although we did it for a laugh, my brother Morgan has now started using them regularly! It’s been great to catch up with family and friends that I haven’t seen in a year but obviously training is still a priority. Luckily for me Yamba is full of hills so I’ve done my fair share of hill sprint training whilst here.
Vancouver is next stop for me, followed by New York, Detroit and then back to Holland for a bit. Might sneak some shopping in whist in NYC and max out that 23kg of baggage allowance!
The past month has been pretty busy with tournaments and I’ve racked up a serious amount of frequent flyer points. I’m gonna be racking up a few more by the end of the year with a flight to India then onto Australia. Come on Gold status with Star Alliance!!
I’ve been giving my results via twitter but if you’re not on twitter, then you should be. Kidding. Results have been average, nothing great, nothing too shit. Instead of getting into my matches I thought I’d give you an insight into what actually happens day to day as a professional squash player.
Going off the last tournament, only one thing was really happening. Backgammon. There’s those who can play (Copps), those who think they can play but just seem to get unlucky rolls all the time and their opponent always gets the lucky rolls and all the luck (Robbie), and those who are just learning but are now addicted (Ryder). I find the way a player plays backgammon reflects the way they play squash, which was ringing true until I played Kempy. Extemely attacking squash player yet very defensive backgammoner (if that’s a word). But Kempy did go away and do some research after getting flogged by myself and Copps and came back with some game!
The picture above I took in Macau. It’s a massive casino which I kindly donated a few Benjamins to purely because it looked as though they needed some money. 3 years ago the building was just getting started, now it is finished and looks spectacular. There’s another casino behind that one which is even bigger and better!
Hong Kong is a great place for a tournament and it was great to hang out there for a week playing squash and eating a LOT of rice and noodles. I seriously don’t know how many dishes of bbq pork I ate but we’re talking double digits.
With India the last tournament of the year in 2 weeks, I’m just training and preparing for 1 last push before an Aussie summer.
AUSSIE Cameron Pilley has the fastest serve in squash – he was clocked last month serving at 280km/h. That world record speed was captured at the US Open.
That world record speed was captured at the US Open.
But that hit was nothing compared with the shot he landed on the back of his younger brother, Morgan, at training a few weeks ago.
Cameron Pilley holds the world record for the fastest squash ball at 175 mph. His younger brother now holds the world record for taking a 175 mph squash ball to the back.
India’s Saurav Ghosal waged a grim battle before losing in straight games against Australian Cameron Pilley in the first round of the $147,000 Qatar Classic Squash Open in Doha.
Ghosal, world ranked 26th, lost 6-11, 10-12, 7-11 to Pilley, ranked 17th in the PSA charts, in 54 minutes at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex on Monday.
Ok so you may have seen the latest squash clip doing the rounds on the web of me and my brother having a bit of a ‘laugh’. And if you haven’t, just YouTube: Taking a squash ball hit at 175mph. I recently clocked up 175mph on the speed gun at the US Open last week, which is the fastest hit ever recorded. For some reason this struck a chord with my brother.
There’s over 160,000 hits on YouTube and there are some amazing comments from viewers to go with it. It’s amazing how many people think that video is fake! Obviously they’ve never played squash before. Some say Morgan put a sticker on his back immediately after the hit, some say it hit his arm, some say the clip was edited and make-up was put in place. We had a good old laugh at these. Maybe people don’t realise that it actually happens in a game of squash. I don’t think a tennis ball would do as much damage as a squash ball. Well for starters, the clip would go for about 16 minutes to allow for drink breaks, towel breaks, bathroom breaks, etc.
The clip came about quite spontaneously actually. We were off to do some training together when my brother suggested the idea (he didn’t lose a bet, crash my car or steal my stuff). Off we went to the club. Needless to say, it only took one take! I kept asking him if he was sure he wanted to do this, he keep saying make sure you hit me in the middle of the back. Consider it done.
Obviously it was all done in good fun and we found it pretty hilarious ourselves. Some people are saying, oh what if you hit him in the neck or kidneys, you might have killed him! I hit squash balls for a living, I’m not going to miss his back from 2 metres away.
Now my brother tweeted the other day something about ‘looking forward to making the sequel”. I’m not sure what he has in that crazy head of his – apart from rocks – but he’s definitely not riding over me on his bike!
The 4th Annual World of Squash Golf Day once again took place over the challenging Surrey National Golf Course near Caterham earlier this month. Eventis Sports Marketing brought together golfers from all walks of squash, including players, sponsors, administrators, media and fans of the sport from across the globe, even as far as New Zealand
The hilly course was sculptured out of the Happy Valley landscape and presents many varied and challenging holes. Unlike last year it was a stunning September’s day that welcomed the eager golfers. As always preparation was varied ranging from hitting plenty of balls on the range, fine tuning the putting stroke to a pint of beer and a bacon sandwich!
Last day in Philly for Pilley tomorrow. Unfortunately I had an early exit from the tournament, losing to Mossad first round, but it happens. So I jumped back up on the horse and had a few practice games with some other pro’s who lost early. Tomorrow I’ll be heading off to do the Rocky stairs – I mean, it would be an insult to everything Rocky if I didn’t. I might have a little wander around the streets of Philly and see what’s going on. From what I’ve seen so far I really like the city and could definitely come back more often.
I think the tournament itself was a standout from most of the other World Series events on Tour. Funny, everything I said in a previous post about making tournaments, ‘events’, was here at the US Open. It had games for the kids, speed gun, inflatable squash court, food areas, social areas, massive TV screens all over the place and a bar. Seeing as though this was the first year it has been run and held at Drexel, from a players point of view it was a success. I’ll be back next year for sure, and hopefully to make it past the first bloody round!
Last day in Philly for Pilley tomorrow. Unfortunately I had an early exit from the tournament, losing to Mossad first round, but it happens. So I jumped back up on the horse and had a few practice games with some other pros who lost early. Tomorrow I’ll be heading off to do the Rocky stairs – I mean, it would be an insult to everything Rocky if I didn’t! I might have a little wander around the streets of Philly and see what’s going on. From what I’ve seen so far I really like the city and could definitely come back more often.
Cameron Pilley is ranked 18 in the world and is the Australian number 2. With 25 Tour final appearances and 13 victories, Cameron has firmly established himself in the PSA World Top 20… More
January 5th, 2012
November 6th, 2011
Cameron Pilley is ranked 18 in the world and is the Australian number 2. With 25 Tour final appearances and 13 victories, Cameron has firmly established himself in the PSA World Top 20…