Siddharth Muralidaran, a junior at NWA, plays squash at the Multnomah Athletic Club. He started in 6th grade and began playing the sport due to an accidental meeting with a squash coach.
“I started playing squash in 6th grade and it wasn’t a sport that was very well-known,” said Muralidaran. “In fact I stumbled upon it by chance when a squash coach randomly approached me. If that one moment had not happened I don’t know if [I] ever would have started playing squash.”
Squash is a racket sport in which two players play within a closed room using a rubber ball. Muralidaran mostly plays it for pure enjoyment.
“Most people just play their sports for fun and I can’t say that I am very different,” said Muralidaran. “I love the squash community but a big part of the sport to me is also just winning games and training to win even more. Since squash is not a very well represented sport, especially on the West Coast, a big part of me believes that it is important to play the sport and make sure that the interest in the sport stays alive.”
The fact that squash is underrepresented in the US but especially in the West Coast, is repeatedly brought up by Muralidaran. This leads to a stronger connection between the small community of squash players that he became a part of. Muralidaran also said that squash players have a higher appreciation for their sport than other sports because of its underrepresentation.
“I think that especially in Portland what makes squash so unique is that the people who have been playing it for a while understand the value of keeping the sport alive due to the fact that it is not commonly played,” said Muralidaran.
Another problem with the underrepresentation of squash is the extensive search to play competitively.
“Since squash isn’t extremely popular in Portland we tend to need to travel out of state for tournaments,” said Muralidaran. “Finding competition is far more difficult than playing the actual sport.”
Muralidaran states that squash does not place a physical strain on his body but only yields fitness benefits. He has also developed a strong mental resolve that is brought into challenging instances.
“I’ve learned yet another skill that’s present in most sports which is learning how to work through tough situations,” said Muralidaran. “In matches it’s not uncommon for the opponent to have an upper hand, sometimes so significantly that you may not feel that it’s possible to win but it’s over the course of being in these moments hundreds of times that I learned to keep on working and fighting back even when the probability of winning seemed bleak. The fighting spirit that I’ve developed through playing squash always helps me climb out and drive through tough situations.”
In the future, Muralidaran plans to play squash for fun and treat it as a hobby rather than follow a sports career.
“I plan to play during college, not as a fully committed college athlete but rather for fun so I can keep enjoying the sport,” said Muralidaran. “This isn’t due to anything squash related, only that I want to focus more on academics. Even if I don’t play competitively as an adult I doubt that as long as I’m physically capable I will ever stop playing squash. Regardless of what I do in life I will always want squash to be accessible.”
