Today I went with my son Luc to see the finals of the Pro Squash Tour’s Philadelphia Open, which was happening at my home club, the Philadelphia Squash Club.
The final featured Adrian Leanza, a Brown alum and now a teaching pro at nearby Fairmount Athletic Club, versus Mohamed Arafa, who is visiting from Egypt and considering attending college in the States. Leanza won fairly easily in three games.
Leanza (with trophy) and Arafa with head pro Mike Jeffries
The atmosphere was fun. There was a crowd of maybe 30 that included local squash players, a crew of Brown University fans out to support alums Leanza and semifinalist Bradbury Thomson, and quite a few children, including my son. Music played between games. Joe McManus, the CEO of the Pro Squash Tour, did double duty as emcee and referee.
All in all, it was just a nice, low-key, family-friendly way to come out and watch some good squash. This is one of the PST’s smaller tournaments — it didn’t feature their marquee players, who include Thierry Lincou, David Palmer and Wael El Hindi. Still, it was a good time and I look forward to coming again next year.
Self-portrait with the crowd in the background:
Luc and me:
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