Pakistan, which once stood world squash champion for more than nearly two decades, is now no longer a force to reckon with. The country dominated international squash for an unprecedented period of 16 years thanks to legendaries Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan before the golden era ended in 1998.

Squash-playing families have unquestionably made invaluable contribution to the game in Pakistan, but the generation that followed the two mighty Khans failed miserably to keep up the good work. Despite the fact that Pakistan Squash Federation extended all possible help to them in terms of coaching and training as well as funding tours, we do not have a single Pakistani among top ten players in world ranking, which is dominated by the Egyptians.

Given the disappointing performance of our leading players, the time has come for the PSF to play a more positive role to ensure that its 13 affiliated units are active in their respective jurisdication. The affiliated bodies are four provincial squash associations of NWFP, Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan, Pakistan Air Force, Pakistan Army, Pakistan Navy, PIA, Pakistan Railways, Pakistan Wapda, Higher Education Commission (HEC), Pakistan Ordinance Factory, Wah, and CAA.

The Pakistan Sports Federation (PSF) has so far heavily relied on the squash-playing families to generate talent and bring victories. As a result, the game was not institutionalised and the affiliated units could not play an affective role in promoting and developing the game in their respective jurisdiction. The game remained confined to half a dozen squash centres that include Peshawar, Lahore, Karachi, Quetta, Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman, the Chief of Air Staff, who was elected as the new president of the PSF this month has a huge responsibility to institutionalise the game. It should be taken to educational institutions in a planned way for which the PSF should collaborate with the concerned authorities. What we need to do is work out a plan for promoting squash in schools, colleges and universities by providing facilities and incentives to players. The PSF needs to organise national squash championships in schools, colleges and universities in order to give a boost to the game in our educational institutions. The general belief is that the Ministry of Federal Education and the Higher Education Commission would support programmes that promote squash in educational institutions. This should work out since they have the funds to implement the plan, and the educational sector has the talented youth.

As far as the affiliated units are concerned, they need to be committed to their work in their respective jurisdiction. They should be held accountable and the PSF should ensure that these organisations are playing a positive role in developing the game.