Legendary Australian squash star Geoff Hunt, who was at the forefront of world squash longer than any other man, has praised the sport's progress which has given two players a chance to better one of his most famous achievements at the World Open this week.
Hunt's record as the oldest male winner of the world title has lasted a remarkable 34 years, but modern sports science has now helped give two men, Nick Matthew of England and Amr Shabana of Egypt, a chance of superseding it.
Hunt, a leading player for a decade and a half, was 33 years and six months old when he won the last of his four World Open titles in 1980.
Matthew is 34 and Shabana 35, and their enduring excellence is an important attribute at a time when squash still has hopes of getting into the Olympics.
"The sports science behind squash has developed enormously," said Hunt, who retired as a coach in Qatar a year ago but has returned this week as a consultant coach during the World Open.
"The ability to be able to film people playing and watch them in slow motion to use as a coaching tool, and the progress in sports medicine and injury treatment have all developed," he said.
"The strength and conditioning staff can all create better programmes now so you get players that are stronger, fitter and faster and that avoid injuries better."
Hunt might well have remained at the top for a year or two longer had not a hip injury ended his career, and he suggests he inadvertently contributed to his own unwanted retirement.
"When I was young I didn't really know what I was doing," he admitted.
"As a consequence I had a few physical problems but players now have a much better chance of avoiding that."
He added: "At one point I played every single day for three years, even on Christmas day when my father got the courts opened up for me - and I couldn't get enough," he said.
"I was fanatical about the game and I realised later that it was about more than just hitting the ball."
No player today would deny his body the need to recover and rehabilitate, which is partly why Shabana has survived so long at a very high standard, and why Matthew has played his best squash after the age of 30.
These two men were due to play their World Open quarter-final on Wednesday with the winner likely to have a semi-final Thursday with Mohamed El Shorbagy, the 23-year-old world No.1 from Egypt who is seeking his first world title.
And Hunt will be there right till the end to see whether his record survives.
