Q & A With Julian Illingworth On The US Men's Junior Team
from DailySquashReport.com
July 18, 2011
DSR: In the just-completed World Junior Men’s Individuals in Belgium, the #1 American junior Dylan Murray played very well and won two rounds, yet the other four US players lost in the first round. The team clearly competed hard, but the ultimate result has to be considered a disappointment. What are your thoughts on the direction the US junior team is headed?
JI: Our junior team is pretty talented and has some good players. I think right now the US boys are falling behind their counterparts because they only play junior events. The Egyptians and Europeans are playing men's events from 15-16 years old on, so when they are 18 and have been playing men's pro events for a few years, of course they are going to clean up on the juniors.
DSR: What about the juniors playing the US Nationals?
JI: It is frustrating that the top US Juniors don't play the US nationals. I played the SL Green when I was 16 for the first time, I believe, and after losing in the first round to top dog Damian Walker I battled through the consolations and finished 5th. But in doing so I had to play 5 or 6 matches against college guys and older pros.
DSR: What about the juniors playing pro events?
JI: It doesn't seem to be on the US Junior Boys' radar to play pro events, and it's just surprising to me that their coaches don't emphasize gaining that experience by playing harder competition. Take Amanda (Sobhy) and Olivia (Blatchford) for example - they have excelled by jumping in the deep end at a young age, and now at 18 they are 2 of the top junior women in the world (and doing well on the WISPA tour as well!).
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