AN INTERVIEW WITH MEN'S SQUASH CAPTAIN CHARLIE SAUNDERS

Charlie Saunders is a senior captain of Trinity's men's team. He recently talked with Bill Lane about the 1998-99 college season.

Bill: Trinity should do very well this year, with some people even predicting that your team will go through the season undefeated. Does that increase the pressure?

Charlie: As our coach (Paul Assaiante) always tells us before we practice, Trinity is the team everyone wants to beat this year. We will be the hunted, not the hunter. But we have good players throughout the order and we get along well, so we expect to have fun.

Bill: Is there such a thing as a typical Trinity practice?

Charlie: The way we practice depends upon where we are in our season. If we are building towards a specific match we will prepare with that team in mind. Right now we are trying to put together the ladder, so that means we are playing challenges. Even so, if Paul doesn't like something he sees he may stop every match and insist that we practice a particular skill. For example, he wasn't happy with the width of our crosscourts, so we suspended the challenges and worked on that aspect of the game.

Bill: I can see how you must have enjoyed practicing crosscourts, Charlie, since hitting straight and tight was never your thing. (Laughs.)

Charlie: Hey Bill, I'm better than you remember...I can do more than hit nicks now! One way we practice is to play conditioned games. I'll play a teammate and I won't be permitted to hit more than one crosscourt per rally or I won't be allowed to drop or I can drop but not boast. It helps to develop your skills and heightens your awareness of what shots really work for you.

Bill: Trinity has a number of fine international players. You also have some very good U.S. players like Preston Quick, Duncan Pearson, Joe Pentland, and Noah Wimmer (a freshman who played last summer for the U.S. in the World Junior Men's Team Championships). What are the major differences between the American and the international styles of play?

Charlie: Our twins from Bombay (Rohan and Gaurav Juneja) are good examples of the international approach. They play excellent length and excellent width, so you just don't see many easy balls out in the center of the court when you play them. Plus, they'll run forever and they won't hit the tin when the game is on the line. So they absorb your shots and make the point go on and on. The younger American player responds to that kind of consistency with the feeling that they have to hit more shots, because they aren't getting anywhere against these guys by just rallying the ball. That's exactly the wrong response.

Bill: How about Marcus Cowie, who has won the individual title the past two years and should be right up there with the best college players when he returns to school from his semester in Africa?

Charlie: I know his game pretty well and of course I've watched him play many times. You hit a tight ball to good length and start to think that the rally is starting to tilt in your favor and he rips the ball down the line even tighter. He gets out of trouble so easily, whether with a full swing or a flick of the wrist.

Bill: How would a professional approach a match against someone like Marcus?

Charlie: Wear him down, I suppose. We are students much more than we are squash players. We have two hours a day to devote to the sport and then we address our other priorities. From what I can tell, a guy who is earning a living as a squash player will spend hours a day putting himself into tremendous physical condition. So he is going to move Marcus or any other college player whenever he can. You have videotapes of Jansher versus Peter Nicol, Bill. No college player can compete with that combination of fitness and ball control.

Bill: When Cowie was a kid in England, I'll bet he really trained.

Charlie: He made it to the finals of the World Juniors four years ago. Now he writes for the Trinity newspaper and he has a lot going on that has nothing to do with squash, so he isn't so narrow in his pursuits.

Bill: Marcus will have his hands full with your newcomers Lefike Ragontse and Akhil Behl. What makes those guys so competitive?

Charlie: Lefike is thin and light on his feet. He pushes himself very hard. I've seen him play everyone else on the team in succession and go all out, winning every game. He is serious! Plus, Lefike can play more than one style. When he plays me he volleys and attacks and keeps me moving faster than I'm used to. I'm 6'3" and he knows how to exploit my size by making me hurry. But against someone like Akhil, who is by far the fastest player I've ever played, Lefike plays a more defensive game.

Bill: What about the good players on your team who won't be able to crack the top nine?

Charlie: To begin with, everybody on our team will play at least eight dual matches. Paul is determined to have every player see action. And we are deep enough that we can do that. As for prospective college students, I'd simply ask them whether they want to play for what may be the best squash school -- and a good school academically, I might add -- or can they be happy somewhere else. Personally, I am really excited about being part of a team that may win the national title. I can't feel cynical or ambivalent about that: I'd love to look back and remember having won it all.

Bill: You played in high school and played junior tournaments. How is it different in college?

Charlie: At Trinity squash is an important sport. People come to watch our matches. So I feel more pressure to win in college than I did as a junior player. And in college you are definitely playing for the team, not for yourself.

Bill: Is this the start of a squash dynasty at Trinity?

Charlie: I'm sure Paul Assaiante will continue to recruit. And maybe success in squash will lift the school's profile and enhance its image. But I'm not in a position to say what will happen down the road. At a place like Princeton someone in the administration decided that the school will do well in men's basketball and lacrosse. Penn pulled themselves out of the basement in football a few years back. Yale had a fine ice hockey team last year. My point is that major success in a college sport is not accidental. It's the result of purposeful support from the school's administration and athletic department. I'm glad that Trinity has decided to put faith in its squash programs and I hope the college continues to do so. And I think Paul will stay at Trinity. He does a lot of work in the Development Office...he isn't just a squash coach. I've liked Paul very much and I've been grateful to him for all that he has done for me. It's rewarding to be a member of a team that improves from season to season.

Bill: Who are some of the tough opponents you have played against in college squash?

Charlie: When I was a freshman I played Joel Kirsch (former Harvard standout). He was very hard to read. Great racquet skills! A very, very talented player. He held the ball so well. I played Amir Giv'eon (Princeton captain) a little while ago in a tournament. He plays a controlled game and lets you know in no uncertain terms that he is out there to beat you, not walk off the court as friends. He is a hard-nosed competitor and very accurate.

Bill: Which teams look like the main competition this year?

Charlie: Yale, Princeton, and Harvard should be our biggest tests. We start with Yale after the Christmas break. It's eerie how much alike their players are from number one through the entire roster. Their number ten is competitive with their number one, which is unusual. We play Harvard at their new gym and although our fans will make the trip, we're still going to be in their house and there's a home-court advantage in squash just as there is in most sports.

Bill: Who is flat out the most talented player on your team?

Charlie: This might shock you, considering the other players I've talked about, but I'd have to say Preston Quick has as much talent as anyone. If he stays with it and tries to improve his game even after college, I think he could be the top American and really make some waves. At the tournament where I lost to Amir, Preston beat him the day after Preston had beaten Tim Wyant in five. Preston didn't have anything left for Peter Yik in the final, but he showed that he can play with the big boys.

Bill: Any other differences you can think of between the international player and the Americans?

Charlie: If you grew up in England or India you have seen the game played properly from an early age. You developed a patient rallying mentality, not the hardball mentality I grew up with. You've had a relatively high level of competition to test yourself against in some of these countries. It will take some time before the Americans catch up.

Bill: What are you going to do after this year, Charlie?

Charlie: I just had an interview with a company I worked for over the summer. They are in sports marketing and promotion. Ideally I'd like to work on the West Coast. My brother works in California and I've liked it out there. San Francisco is a beautiful city and the climate is a pleasant change from what I've been used to on the East Coast.

Bill: You've had the same girlfriend for a while now, haven't you?

Charlie: Three years. She's an All-American field hockey and lacrosse player. There's some debate about who's the better athlete! (Laughs.) We graduate together next spring.

Bill: Good luck, Charlie.

Charlie: Thanks, Bill.