Squash pro wants to play for Singapore

SINGAPORE — He took the bold step of turning professional last September so that he could spar with the world’s best and bring glory back to the Singapore squash scene.

Now, Waseem Gul is going one step further as he is applying for the Singapore citizenship that will enable him to represent the Republic in regional tournaments such as the South-east Asian (SEA) Games and Asian Games.

“I have been living in Singapore for the last nine years and I have witnessed the barren years of the squash scene here,” said Waseem, 29, who was born in Singapore and is a Permanent Resident (PR).

“I want to represent Singapore and make us prominent on the world squash scene like the yesteryears.

“All these years I have been coaching and helping the national team, but representing the country is a whole new feeling altogether.”

Woffles Wu, president of the Singapore Squash Rackets Association (SSRA), was delighted to hear about Waseem’s citizenship application.

“This is wonderful news. A talented player like Waseem who comes from a talented squash family will contribute highly to the squash scene as we try to reclaim our pedigree in both regional and international events,” said Wu. “We will do all we can to support his application.”

Waseem has squash pedigree. His father, Rahim, coached Singapore squash legends Peter Hill and Zainal Abidin when he was national coach back in the 1980s, when the Republic enjoyed a golden era in the sport, reaching as high as No 6 in the world rankings. His brother, Ibrahim, is the current coach of the Singapore national team.

“Squash is practically the bread and butter of my family,” he said. “Back in Pakistan, we have a squash court in our house and, in fact, my first toy was a squash ball and racquet.”

Waseem was the junior squash champion in Pakistan, winning the Under-14, Under-16 and Under-19 championship titles, before moving to Singapore to try his hand at coaching. He was the coach of the Singapore national men’s team for about a year in 2009, before deciding to introduce squash into schools in a bid to revive interest in the sport among local youngsters.

“I have been coaching the ­National Junior College (NJC) squash team for four years now,” said Waseem. “When I first took over, there was no proper system in place but, now, things are improving.”

Under his guidance, the NJC ‘A’ division girls team reached the final of the national schools tournament for the first time in 16 years, although they lost to defending champions Raffles Institution (RI).

But coaching has never quenched Waseem’s desire to play again. After speaking to Singapore’s professional squash player Vivian Rhamanan, he decided to enter the Professional Squash Association (PSA) Tour.

Ranked 366th in the world, his ­results on Tour have been a mixed bag so far. In November last year, he won the Mackay Open in Australia and made the second round of the Queensland Open.

“Turning professional was a step I took together with Vivian,” said Waseem. “We both had a chat and decided we need to set an example so that more aspiring squash players will follow suit.”