Cracking the squash code

From 2013 to 2016, through his early- and mid-twenties, New Zealand squash star Paul Coll floated between the world ranking of 100 and 25.

- Rutvick Mehta

It's a space India's current top pros find themselves in, hoping to kick on to the next level. Nicknamed "Superman" for his on-court athleticism, Coll soared to that level and continued to fly high.

Since 2017 when he broke into the top 10, Coll has been a constant among squash's elite. In that period, he became the world No. 1 in 2022, won four Worlds and two CWG medals, including the 2022 gold beating Saurav Ghosal in the semi-final. Now ranked 4th, the 33-year-old is chasing more glory at the ongoing Worlds in Chicago.

Indian squash hasn't yet seen a pro go from 25 to 5 in the rankings; the closest to that came Ghosal, Joshna Chinappa and Dipika Pallikal (all former world No. 10s). Coll did that by moving out of his comfort zone, in terms of coaching and training for modern squash that, according to him, is evolving "in a high-paced direction".