Ayaan Vaziralli: New Squash Sensation From Mumbai On The National Scene

Ayaan Vazirali is one of the most upcoming talents on the Indian junior squash scene and his stocks have risen after he clinched the under-19 title at the Junior Nationals in Kolkata recently.

The 18-year-old Ayaan was elated after his victory at the National Junior and Sub-Junior Squash Championships in Kolkata.

"Winning the U-19 squash title at the Nationals is a special feeling as it is one of the most prestigious titles in the country for squash as a junior. It's a feeling of relief and a feeling of joy after many years of work,'' he added.

Ayaan revealed that his preparation for the tournament was meticulous.

"My preparation for the tournament was really intense. I just started training with my new coach Rob Owen six weeks before the event. So I feel it was really beneficial. Lot of work done on technique and tactics of the game and physical fitness. Obviously, being in the right mindspace as well."

Having a good coaching staff is a key element in the success of a player and Ayaan is fortunate to have that in place.

"My current coach is Rob Owen, who is based in Birmingham. I'm really enjoying working with him and he is made a lot of improvement to his game. It keeps going this way. However for the past five years, I've been working with Ian Thomas, the coach at Mayfield School, who is one of the best coaches around for sure. He has had a big impact on me at the Bombay Gymkhana, where I originally grew up playing. And started playing the game at 9-10 years and whenever I used to come back to Mumbai, Manish Chavan and Avinash Bhavnani helped me out. So they've played a big role for me as well," he added.

Ayaan is aware of his strengths and also certain aspects in his game that he needs to work on.

" I feel the strength of my game is my shot-making and my deception around the court and my accuracy. The errors I need to work on definitely are my movement and my physical fitness as well as my mental side of things. So hopefully it keeps improving."

The young lad, who finished his schooling from Millfield School in the UK, felt the competition at the event was pretty strong.

"The competition at the tournament was really strong. Obviously, its the Nationals. I was happy doing the tackle without dropping a set in the whole tournament. It was just relief to win the tournament considering the stern competition."

The 18-year-old stated he was now focused on the PSA events.

"I am just focusing on the PSA events from now. So I have a few events lined up and I am looking to build on my world ranking which is my highest ranking of 309 which I can keep pushing and getting upto 100. The PSA events also have the most prestigious junior event coming up in the form of British Junior Open."

Ayaan is also keen to pursue squash professionally.

" As far as my future plans are concerned, I definitely want to take up squash professionally at the highest level and represent my country. And see how far I can go in the game."

The promising player also felt his family had a big role to play in his development as a player.

"My family has been very supportive of my career. My mom and my dad have made a lot of sacrifices for me to play squash and yeah my brother and grandparents have been cheering me on. It really encourages me to keep pushing and move forward in the game."

The National U-19 champion looks upto Belgian football star Eden Hazard and squash icon Ramy Ashour for inspiration when it comes to sport.