Nash Cup is back — with biggest purse yet

The 14th Nash Cup, London’s international squash tournament, (Sept. 13-18), will welcome players from 18 different countries. A new men’s champ will be crowned, while England’s Beecroft hopes to defend her title.

Canadian Shawn Delierre (2011 Champion), left, and American Timothy Brownell do battle in a Nash Cup semi-final last year. (Photo: Rael Wienburg).

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For years, organizers tried to hush the crowd, keeping things quiet so competitors could focus. That’s the traditional squash approach, after all – watch, then applaud when the rally is done.

Not anymore. Nash Cup crowds are louder than most, and matches played in the glass-backed courts at the London Squash & Fitness Club can become rowdy affairs.

“The pros love it. They love the hum that comes from it, and they love hearing the crowd get excited,” said Jay Nash, tournament founder and committee chair. “They don’t get that elsewhere, and it’s a big reason we’re a favourite destination for many of the players.

“For the purists – those who like to watch quietly – we have a balcony,” Nash added with a laugh. “I have out of-town fans come in and I’ll give them a bit of a warning. I’ll say, ‘Okay, I may need to move you upstairs …’”

This week, the 14th annual Nash Cup gets started at the famed Old North club, attracting some of the world’s top players to what organizers describe as the most unique environment in the sport.

There’s no shortage of strong players in this year’s field.

Among the men’s draw, 13 of the 24 players are currently ranked among the world’s top 100, with Nathan Lake (England, No. 37) entering as the highest-ranked player. Henry Leung (Hong Kong, No. 58), Arturo Salazar (Mexico, No. 61), and David Baillargeon (Canada, No. 65), of Montreal, round out the top four seeds in the men’s draw.

On the women’s side, 17 of the 24 competitors are top 100 players, led by Ineta Mackevica (Latvia, No. 47). Lucy Beecroft (England, No. 55), last year’s Nash Cup champion, is back to defend her title, while Haley Mendez (United States, No. 57), and Georgia Adderley (Scotland, No. 60) round out the top four seeds in the women’s draw.

Besides Baillargeon, there are six other Canadians in the men’s field, including Montreal’s Shawn Delierre (No. 114), a former Nash Cup winner (2011). At 40, he is the elder statesman in the tournament. There are three Canadians on the women’s side, including Nikki Todd of Toronto, a returning Nash Cup competitor.

Lucy Beecroft (England) is back to defend her 2021 Nash Cup title. With two-time defending champ Auguste Dussourd (France) at another tournament this week, a new men’s champ is certain to be crowned. (Photo: Rael Wienburg).

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Players will compete for a record purse – $20,000 (USD) for both the men’s and women’s draws. That purse is the highest to date, and the largest equal purse of any pro tournament in Canada this year. (Calgary has a higher total purse, but its split is $30,000 on the women’s side and $12,000 on the men’s).

“We’ve slowly worked our way up, and we’re now in a different bracket with the PSA (Professional Squash Association),” said Nash, noting the tournament has now reached ‘Challenger 20’ status. “Now, the players not only get more money when they win the purse, but the number of points they get is higher, and that’s what helps attract stronger players.”

The single-elimination tournament starts with both a men’s and women’s field of 16 on day one (the top eight seeds receive a first-round bye). The women’s and men’s finals are set for 6:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Saturday, respectively).

It's a quick week for competitors, who began arriving in London over the weekend – many of the men from Louisville, Kentucky, and the women from Houston, Texas, the most recent stops on their tours. By next Sunday, they’ll all be off to their next event – St. Louis or Cleveland for the men; Connecticut or Egypt for the women.

“This tournament really brings something unique to the club and to the community,” Nash said. “It’s a passion that drives it and keeps it going, and I have an incredible all-volunteer committee – most of whom have been here since the beginning when we sat around a boardroom and thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to host (a pro tournament)?’ This is a squash-driven community success story.”

Canadian Nikki Todd (left) and Melissa Alves, the 2019 champion from France, square off in a previous Nash Cup event. (Photo: Rael Wienburg).

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The tourney has also been part of the success story of many pros, too. If you look at the current world rankings, four players are former Nash Cup competitors, although none brought home a Nash title: Mostafa Asal (Egypt, No. 3); Diego Elias (Peru, No. 4); Joel Makin (Wales, No. 7); and Olivia Fiechter (United States, No. 10)

The tournament has produced many unique moments – certainly memorable ones for competitors, fans, and organizers alike.

In 2018, the tournament took place during a heat wave. With temperatures around 35 degrees the entire week, the club had to open the doors to allow airflow into the building and turn off the HVAC because it was working so hard it started dripping on the courts.

“We had to wipe down the walls between games,” Nash remembers. “In the final, during the second game, we had a pro turn to the referee and ask for permission to leave the court because he was sweating so much that when he put down his foot, water was coming out the sides of his shoe. He had to replace his shoes in the middle of the match, which was a phenomenal thing to watch and explain to the crowd.”

In 2019, a player left the court for a different reason. With a playing style that included trying to gain any possible advantage, this player asked the referee for a break when things weren’t going his way. The official said no. He broke his glasses in his hands and his finger started bleeding. He got his break. Today, that player is ranked highly in world standings.

After crowd size restrictions last year (limited to 32 spectators), the Nash Cup returns to regular crowd sizes this year, which means about 100 for a main court match (140 when two courts are running simultaneously).

The tournament will also be broadcast live online. It’s a three-camera system, and this time it will include commentary. When the tournament tracked viewership a few years ago, it showed audiences from 13,000 unique IP addresses in 72 different countries.

Certainly, the Nash Cup is a global affair. Eighteen countries are represented this year (including Latvia for the first time), and players from 45 different countries have competed since the inaugural draw. To date, 164 men and 98 women have played in Nash Cups (the first women’s draw was held in 2013).

Twenty-one players are first-timers this year, and Nash hopes they all enjoy their experience – and the uniqueness of London’s tournament. A big part of that is the fans, of course, and the players will certainly feel the excitement from enthusiastic spectators – right from the beginning.

“We tend to have full crowds right from day one, which is very unique on the tour,” Nash said. “And that’s another reason London is viewed as an ideal destination for these players. They don’t want to be sent down to a court with no viewers in the opening rounds and have to fight their way to be on the show court.

“They love having people watch. They love the excitement.”