5 Questions For US #1 Julian Illingworth
from DailySquashReport.com
June 28, 2011
DSR: The Australian Open draw has been released, six weeks ahead of the August event. Do you try to avoid finding out who you are playing, or is that impossible?
JI: I always look at the draw, so I know that I am playing (Switzerland's Nicolas) Mueller first round in Australia. Seeing the draw just removes the question from your mind; if you know the draw is out, you are going to be wondering about it, so you might as well just look.
DSR: On the other hand, is there an advantage to learning this far in advance who your first-round opponent is?
JI: It's not a huge deal that you know who you are playing far in advance. My job is to work on my own game and be prepared to play at the highest level possible regardless of my opponent in a particular tournament.
Australia is a bit unique in that it is the first tournament after a long summer break, so coming in to the tournament "match sharp" is quite tough. I think a lot of lower ranked guys see it as an opportunity to get a big result, as some guys might not be in the full swing of things in the first tournament of the season.
DSR: When will you travel to Australia and how many days will you have there before your match?
JI: I am playing a small 10k event in Salt Lake City (the PSA Challenger 10 Salt Lake City Open) at the very end of July and then heading straight from there to Australia. I think it should work to my advantage to have one tournament under my belt. Hopefully I can find a good rhythm and head into Australia with a little confidence.
DSR: How will you prepare once in Australia?
JI: I think I arrive in Australia about 5 days before my first round match. At that point it will just be getting on the local time zone, getting a few light hits in and perhaps 1 or 2 days with a few games to get the body going.
DSR: When and how will you begin phasing out your off-court training?
JI: I think I am going to train straight until I leave for Salt Lake. I have already transitioned a little bit away from longer workouts into more interval and circuit based training. I am going to move into even more squash-specific work in a week or two, getting in a few ghosting sessions, and a lot more court work and games.
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