Hashim Khan – Squash’s Pathan-Mensch, Warrior-Sage & Satchmo!
by Ferez S. Nallaseth August 25, 2014 -
Hashim Khan came from that part of the World known as the ‘Cradle of
the World’s Greatest Religions’! It gave us the likes of the Gautama
Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (Frontier Gandhi) and
Dalai Lama. As well as those like the Pathans, who while fiercely
resisting armies since those of Alexander the Great, nourished some of
the deepest traditions of refinement, culture, hospitality, respect and
loyalty. This is the crucible from which he was distilled and from
whence he conquered while at the same time endearing himself to the
World of Squash. In his many ways, and in many positions, ill-suited to
the magnitude of his contributions and the many barriers that he faced
Hashim invariably found the ‘third way’ of another leader – the Dalai
Lama. All the while living for his artistry and yet retaining the
warmth and very Human dimensions of another artist of similar outlook,
who also rose above the hand that life dealt him to go on to captivate
the World’s affection – Louis Armstrong or Satchmo.
To appreciate the
impact that Hashim had on all of us, our game and our societies first
requires sketching him out as the Person, the Champion/Coach and the
Statesman/Elder. We pay our respects to one who brought our game to the
fore by compiling our personal experiences with Hashim. I came from the
same part of the world, was Coached and first heard of Hashim from his
on-court contemporary - my Coach Umar Khan who was also from Nawakile.
I met Hashim from both sides of the competitive coin (when I played his
son Gulmast) – and he was the same Hashim! But we will save that part
for the section that follows when all of us join this sketch with
personal experiences.
We start by making a
correction and a case for Hashim’s inclusion among the greatest
Athletes of all time, included are the press reports that were part of
the outpouring when news broke of his passing on the 18th of August
2014:
Why should Hashim be
included among the Titans of sport and the likes of Jesse Owens,
Michael Jordon, Pelé (Edison Arantes do Nascimento), Roger Federer, and
Muhammad Ali?
Rankopedia shows that
he did not have the greatest record in Squash let alone sport! That
belonged to his successor Jahangir Khan for whom he paved the path
along with 50 years of Pakistan’s dominance of Global Squash! It is
posted in the Guinness Book of World Records and shows that no
Professional Athlete dominated his sport as completely as Jahangir did,
in the 5 years and 8 months and 555 consecutive matches in which he
remained unbeaten in any Professional Tournament! But there are other
more compelling reasons why Hashim went far beyond to transcend Squash
and claim this position straddling sport at large!
All the other
Titans came from sports that had significantly higher visibility and
exposure (spectators, Olympics, World Cups, TV coverage, etc…) and so
had the advantage of being better known – no small advantage when the
Press is selecting the mantle of the ‘Greatest’!
Yet Squash remained
physically, mentally, technically and strategically along with multiple
indicators/yardsticks more demanding than most if not all other sports
(see links for results of multiple qualitative and quantitative tests)!
Hashim was dominant in a physically demanding sport at a late stage in
life when he had passed his prime!!
And yes the rule of
thumb that numbers and depth in a sport are a hallmark of its
competitive level is true – with exceptions! Fifty years of Khans
dominating the British Open and the rest of the World by winning 41% of
73 British Opens (up to 2009) proves the exceptions! They are now
followed by the British and the Egyptians.
And the ones at the
very top would be as good as any today! For example John McEnroe points
out that Bjorn Borg would be as good as any in the top 4 in Tennis
today. Some feel that Squash is a faster but less physical sport today
than in Hashim’s time as the Rackets used then, were heavier, generated
less power and the old Silver Town balls were more spongy and slower
than those used in today’s hyperkinetic version of the sport. But by
the same token those fewer things that could be done with those old
wooden rackets, still had to be done much better e.g. full swing and
full body movement in the stroke. Along these lines, Ken Rosewall, one
of the longest lasting Grand Slam winners (1963) in Tennis, was quoted
(in the’80s or ‘90s) as stating that the advent of
Thermoplastic/Fiberglass racquets extended his playing days by 5 years.
This was presumably because the basics had been better established with
the old Rackets!
By these 4 measures
alone Hashim was right up there with all Sports figures of all time!
Now add the additional contributions and accomplishments and he begins
to look even more deserving of the mantle of one of the ‘Greatest of
All Time and in All Sports’!! Unlike the other
Titans, Hashim did not have a Coach, a tradition, a school or a camp,
(the equivalent of Track Meets, Tennis Academies, Soccer
Camps/Clubs/Teams/Leagues, Boxing Rings/Schools, Basketball
Teams/Leagues, etc… ) from which he could learn, train and launch his
competitive career! This is an absolutely indispensable pre-requisite
for anyone who plans to be at the top of anything and in any endeavor!
And as Neuroscientists would tell us, even more so when complex
Motor/Sensory/Spatial processes as in Racket Sports are being worked
out at the limits of Human capacities (e.g. at Neurophysiological
extremes and in fractions of a second) as in tournaments. Another way
of saying it - History teaches us that you simply cannot have an
Alexander without an Aristotle! All Hashim had in his beginnings was
poverty, a deep hunger for the game, a refusal to be defeated - and
‘Hashim versus Hashim’!
This meant that he
would only be able to launch his international career, at the late age
of (at least) 37 – with his physical if not mental capacities
diminished and a period when, with rare exceptions e.g. Ice Hockey’s
Bobby Orr, other sports figures have retired! So all the other Greats
in the other Sports who started competitively between ages 14 – 16 had
at least 20 more years of exposure and record building over Hashim in
which to garner the title of ‘Great(-est)’ bestowed by the Press!
Hashim began his
conquests first at our courts, at the Cricket Club of India, in Bombay
(before partition) against the then de facto World Number 2, Abdul Bari
in the finals of the Western India Championships - and won! He went
onto win the British Open, the de facto World Championship or Wimbledon
of Squash, against Mahmoud Karim of Egypt on his first appearance and 6
more times again, till he was 44. Then he came to the US and within a
point of winning the North American Open against Henri Salaun on his
first outing but then went onto to win it 3 times (the last one at age
49) along with a host of other Championships and well into his 60s! He
was still playing into his 90s and still the relentless competitor! No
other Athlete can claim a longer career!
Furthermore he had
gained respect and affection even while conquering and united two
estranged and diametrically opposed versions of the same game separated
by more than a 100 years. The extent of his diplomatic touch,
contrasted with the lack of it in the influx of young Turks from the
International Game, who followed the Khans, Geoff Hunt and Heather
McKay into the Hardball game in the 1980s and the 1990s.
The New York Times,
the Atlantic Monthly, Sports Illustrated and a host of other newspapers
and the International Press reveled in covering Hashim, sometimes on
their front pages - this when Squash could barely make the sporting
news!
Thus speaking to his
impact on the game as well as on Socio Politics! At least part of the
reason was his unlikely emergence from the depths of poverty in a
developing nation to attain the pinnacle of a sport thought to be
elitist! Hashim did this with his unpretentious, warm, communicative,
humorous, passionate, intuitive and inclusive approaches to people –
whether Captains of Industry in Detroit or the destitute of Nawakile!
He straddled East and West, province and city, effortlessly putting the
rich and poor, men and women, old and young at ease, while enjoying
himself and tasting their joy in the moment! The only requirement that
he had – was reciprocation of his passion for Squash!
Overcoming these
remaining 5 barriers in addition to the previous 4, to accomplish
and contribute as much as he did and for as long as he did, seals
Hashim Khan’s place in sports with the likes of Jesse Owens, Michael
Jordon, Pele, Roger Federer, and Muhammad Ali.
