England’s squash legacy: From past champions to today’s stars including Mohamed ElShorbagy
As the birthplace of squash, we take a closer look at how England and its players have impacted the sport over the years, ahead of the Olympic debut of the sport at LA2028.
Squash
The game of squash was invented more than a century and a half ago in England by some trailblazing schoolboys.
In 1830, pupils from Harrow School in London punctured a rackets ball, realising that because it now ‘squashed’ on impact with the wall, a wider range of shots could be played making for a more dynamic sport.
Three years later, the first purpose-built squash court was erected by old Harrovian Vernon Harcourt at his home in Oxford. The official rules were officially agreed upon in 1886 and the sport spread throughout the United Kingdom with schools, private members’ clubs, and sporting institutions like Lord’s Cricket Ground building squash courts.
The first professional squash tournament was held in 1920 in England, when Charles Read of the Queen’s Club beat C. Bannister of the RAC Club, and won it again in 1928.
Subsequently, Read was appointed the inaugural champion when the British Open began in 1929. The event was known as 'the Wimbledon of squash' and was considered the unofficial world championships for decades until the men's and women’s World Championships were first held in London and Brisbane respectively in 1976.
Still going strong today, it is the sport’s longest-running tournament and is one of just two ‘Diamond’ level events in the 2024-25 PSA World Tour.
President of the Squash Rackets Association, Jonah Barrington, in action during the 1976 British Open contest.
England's female squash players dominate early days
The women's championships commenced in 1922 as an amateur event with Joyce Cave defeating her sister Nancy in the final. The title stayed in England until 1960 with Susan Noel - daughter of 1908 rackets Olympic gold medallist Evan Baillie Noel - securing three victories in the ‘30s.
This preceded Janet Shardlow’s legendary reign of ten consecutive British Open titles which began in 1950.
In 1979 Great Britain won the first Women’s World Team Championship, held in Birmingham, with a team headed up by three-time British Open runner-up Sue Cogswell, and women’s squash pioneer Angela Smith, who became the first female professional squash player in 1978.
British players dominated squash’s Commonwealth Games debut in 1998 in Kuala Lumpur. England landed two gold, one silver, and three bronze medals, headed up by Cassie Jackman’s doubles victory alongside Sue Wright. Jackman was a star of that decade, winning six world championship medals including gold in 1999.
Cassie Jackman of England in action during the British Open Squash in Aberdeen, Scotland.
Elsewhere at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Peter Nicol, fresh from victory in the British Open, won men’s singles gold and men’s doubles bronze for Scotland.
A year later Nicol would win the world championships before switching allegiances to England in 2001, for whom he would land another three Commonwealth Games titles and two world championships bronze medals.
Nick Matthew turns fortunes for England
In 2006, the Nick Matthew era began. That year, the Sheffield-born star ended an unwanted record by becoming the first Englishman for over 60 years to win the British Open.
Using that momentum, he helped his nation to a historic gold, silver and bronze in men’s singles at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Delhi before securing a double with victory in the men’s doubles with Adrian Grant.
Matthew went on to win the World Championships men’s singles title in 2010, 2011, and 2013, before landing another Commonwealth Games singles title in 2014.
His resume also boasts three World Team Championships titles from 2005, 2007, and 2013, secured alongside James Willstrop, a six-time men’s singles world championships medallist, fellow former World No.1, and the 2018 Commonwealth Games champion.
In 2013, Laura Massaro became the first Englishwoman to hold the British Open and world titles in the same year, before helping England to the World Team title a year later.
This brings us to the current crop of English talent in the sport, headed up by another legendary name, Mohamed Elshorbagy.
The Egyptian-born star won the 2017 World Championships for his birth nation, before switching allegiances to England in 2022.
He qualified on residency grounds, having moved to Britain to attend Millfield School in Somerset aged 14.
To date, El Shorbagy has 10 world championship medals (the most recent being a bronze in 2023), three British Open crowns, and in 2022 became the youngest man ever to reach 500 PSA wins at the age of 31 years and 10 months.
In 2023, his brother Marwan also switched allegiances to England, having lived there since the age of 14.
Both men are currently ranked in the top 10 male players and will hope to make Team GB's squad when squash makes its debut at the LA 2028 Olympic Games.