JONATHAN KEMP believes that the International Padel Federation’s decision to hold back-to-back World Cups in Qatar is a common-sense call.
Kemp, the archetypal Englishman abroad, who is the Head Squash Coach at the iconic Aspire Academy based in Doha, has seen padel’s meteoric growth first hand in Qatar, where it is played around the clock and is now the second most popular sport in the Middle Eastern nation behind football.
While some have questioned the logic of hosting successive World Cups at Qatar’s Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, Kemp asserts that the quality of the venue and its success in hosting the tournament in 2021 make it the obvious choice and one that avoids a time consuming and challenging search for a facility of similar quality.
That’s an issue that afflicted squash when there was no World Championship held in 2000 or 2001 when a young Kemp was building a burgeoning career on the PSA World Tour that would eventually see him reach a career high of world No.20 in 2010.
It is a decision that is not without precedent with FIP having held successive World Cups in Cancun, Mexico, in 2010 and 2012 in a nod to the sport’s birth in the North American nation and a resolution which for Kemp is a no brainer: “The Khalifa is an amazing facility and it’s the same venue where they have the Qatar Open Exxon Mobil Open tennis competition every year.
“And they know how to look after the players and how to run the event, and of course they also host the Qatar Classic squash while the 2019 World Squash Championships were also at the Khalifa.”
He continued: “If you speak to any of the pro squash players they will tell you that Qatar is the place that looks after them the best and that side of things is probably why they are holding the Padel World Cup at the Khalifa again. They know it will be a great World Cup and everyone will be looked after really well.
“So, a fantastic job is guaranteed and there is no worry about finding another venue elsewhere. Believe me, Qatar are not afraid to step up for the big events. Again, turning back to squash, they have struggled rehabbing the world championships and placing it every year. To find a new venue of top quality can be a real struggle and in many ways it makes more sense to find a facility and enter a two- or three-year deal with it.
“They will be guaranteed a few thousand spectators most days for the padel tournament as well and with the buzz and interest that is here in Qatar you will get tennis and squash fans coming to the Khalifa this time around for the World Cup and that will all help with the attendances.
“So for two years FIP don’t need to chase their tails and worry about the quality, so for me it really makes sense to go back to the Khalifa again for 2022.”
Kemp was once dubbed ‘the English Shabana’ in deference to the legendary left-handed Egyptian Amr Shabana, who was world champion four times and was in the vanguard of the huge push that now makes Egypt the most dominant squash nation in history.
Turning his attention to the meteoric growth of padel in the desert state, he revealed: “It’s hard to describe how popular padel is here. There are so many courts now and they are building new centres all the time, also private courts, and it wouldn’t surprise me if there are 500 to 600 courts in Qatar right now.
“You can be driving along the street and you go: ‘Oh, there is a new padel court up there now!’ They are building new centres and the Qataris are building them in their homes and in schools, in golf clubs, everywhere!
“Everyone is building padel courts but in the evening it is still hard to get courts because they are so busy – and that is right up to 3am.
“Padel In, who are the main court builders out here, do a fantastic job with the way they set things up and there is probably 80% to 90% court usage and that is with courts open 24hours a day. The last bookings are 3am and four or five in the morning is the only time when people don’t play padel in Qatar right now.
“Squash has always been a small sport in terms of positioning but with a lot of people playing at a casual level and with a fair amount of courts in compounds etc but it is not a sport that the Qataris have particularly taken up.
“There are not thousands of Qatari kids clambering to play squash but with padel they have taken that on big time and after football now it must be their second most popular sport.
“Although it is still quite a small sport, Qatar is a few years ahead of many other countries and their national team, which is quite good, have had some success so the nation has taken padel to its heart as a sport they love.
“Also, a lot of people who wouldn’t be exercising are now playing padel and that is a great thing, whereas squash is a very hard sport with the old adage: ‘You get fit to play squash not play squash to get fit’, ringing true. Whereas, with padel, anyone can play and enjoy some fun.”
Himself a recent and enthusiastic convert to padel during his short time away from the Aspire Academy, Kemp admits that the transition to padel does favour a former tennis ace over the ex-squash player.
He said: “It is a completely different sport in a lot of ways to squash and it is not an easy transition from the former to the latter while the transition from tennis to padel is a million times easier.
“I’ve seen some very good tennis players who have come over here to start work as padel coaches, and for sure there is a lot of money to be made in Qatar as a padel coach.
“For them to switch and become very good padel players, well their improvement and progress in that respect is very fast. The volleying and the smash are very similar and of course the ball is almost the same. You maybe have an issue with taking the ball f the glass or going in behind if you are a tennis player but they can pick that stuff up relatively easy.
“So, there is no contest over which is easier to transition from, but if you have not played racket sports before then you will be way worse off transitioning than if you were coming from a squash background.
“Now I have that bit of experience with playing padel I would have to say there is no doubt that the transition from squash to padel compared with tennis to padel does take longer and is a harder thing to do.
“If you are at the end of your career as a squash pro and thinking of transitioning to padel then it is too late and that is because the level of play has improved so much. The top guys in the world are miles away from guys ranked 30 to 40. In terms of getting to the top there is no chance.
“Maybe for players who want to compete in the lower ranked tournaments with FIP or whatever then an ex-pro squash player who puts in the time could probably get to that level.
“But there are so many people playing padel that the opportunity of switching and making it to a good level is maybe gone now.”
Word has reached The Padel Paper that ‘the English Shabana’ had championed squash’s honour in a challenge match with GB International padel player Sam Jones, but the modest Kemp was quick to admit he was the one who had been taught a lesson.
He said: “Sam taught me quite a few lessons but it was a very enjoyable experience. I felt like we had some good rallies and I got a few balls past him and his partner but it was like a professional squash player playing a good club player.
“I felt I did better than I thought I would do, but there was definitely a gap in standard. But it was just a great experience to get on court with that level of player and you learn so much about your game.
“You become aware of what shots you can and can’t hit and if you play the wrong shot the ball is gone.”
