Unbeaten Ali Farag Leads Men's Squash

Playing in just his second match for the Harvard men’s squash team, sophomore transfer student Ali Farag was pitted against the reigning CSA Individual Champion and top-ranked player in the nation, Princeton junior Todd Harrity.

And despite picking up the first game, 11-7, Ali dropped the next two, putting himself in a do-or-die situation heading into the fourth. But although Harrity got off to a strong start in the pivotal fourth game, winning the first four points, the sophomore was able to turn the tide.

"At 2-1 and 4-0 down, I said to myself, ‘There’s no way you’re going to lose this match; do whatever you can,’" Ali remembered. "I started doing nothing but hitting the ball hard and running."

The tactic paid off, as Ali went on to take the match in five games, becoming the first player to beat Harrity since Harvard’s Colin West ’10 took down the then-freshman at the end of the 2009-2010 campaign.

But there’s more to this story than meets the eye.

Rewind about five years over in Cairo, Egypt, and Ali—discouraged with recent losses to players who had abandoned their studies to focus solely on squash—is on the verge of giving up the sport for good. That is, until his brother Wael steps in.

"He told me, ‘no, please give me a chance, I’m going to work with you, and you’re going to be good,’" Ali said.

Ali and Wael share more than just a last name, or even an aptitude for squash: The two brothers have also both worked toward the goal of being crowned Junior World Champion. But in 2008, Wael’s last shot at the world junior title ended in the round of 32—at the hands of none other than Harrity. The Farag brothers were devastated by the loss.

"I didn’t want to quit squash, but I sort of lost interest in squash [after that]," Ali explained. "I didn’t want to be down like my brother, and he’s the biggest figure in my life.... He told me, ‘No, I’m going to help you and maybe one day you’re going to beat him.’"

The day came sooner than expected—on Jan. 15 of this year, to be exact.

"It’s a small world," Ali said.

Training under his brother since age 15, Ali’s squash game drastically improved.

And after coming in second to rival and fellow Egyptian Amr Khaled Khalifa at the World Junior Championships in August 2010, Ali entered the British Open—a championship that Ali noted is "like a second world championship," with all of the world’s best players typically in attendance—the following January.

This time, Ali came out on top, earning the Junior World Championship as well as retribution against Khalifa with a three-game victory in the finals.

Ali is quick to credit his brother Wael for his success on the global stage.

"[Winning] is not only about squash technicalities," he said. "It has more to do with somebody who loves you, gives you support. All of the coaches, yes, they wanted to win, but for themselves, not for you. When I felt this feeling for my brother, I really improved a lot."

With a win at the British Open, Ali earned the status of the top junior player in the world, a title he still holds.

But although high-profile squash honors made it onto Ali’s radar at a young age, the sophomore never really dreamt of Harvard.

In fact, when asked repeatedly by his parents and family friends if he would consider playing squash for the Crimson, Ali’s answer was simple—no.

"I refused," he said. "And I know that Harvard is a great school. I knew that since I was 15 or something, but I didn’t want to leave Egypt."

But less than a month after his victory at the British Open, something happened in Egypt that helped change his mind: revolution.

"After the revolution, my parents took a different perspective talking to me about the issue of coming here," Ali explained. "They told me to go there and learn something because there are not many Egyptians that come [to Harvard]. Then, come back...and try to do something for Egypt."

Ali was convinced, and, after taking the SAT in May and applying, he found out in June that he had been accepted as a transfer student from American University in Cairo.

"I heard by phone, and I was screaming," Ali said. "[At first], I didn’t want to come at all, and then when I heard that I’m coming, I was screaming on the phone and my parents were crying. That’s how it all went."

And so far, Farag’s time at Harvard has gone over just as well. In his first four matches—Ali was forced to sit out the beginning of the season as the NCAA checked his eligibility—the sophomore has dropped just three games on the way to a perfect 4-0 mark so far.

"I’m really enjoying it here [at Harvard]," Ali said. "At the beginning, it was a bit overwhelming, and I was homesick, but I came here on the squash team and I knew 20 people all of a sudden.... I still miss [my family and friends], but I have another community here. I’m surrounded by so many friends, so I don’t feel homesick anymore."

Despite his dominant debut, Ali admits to getting more nervous before matches at Harvard than any he has played previously.

"[Playing in college] is a totally different experience," he said. "I’ve been playing world-class tournaments all over the world. I’ve traveled to 20 different countries for squash. [None of that] was as stressful as it has been here, playing college squash...because here I’m not only playing for myself, I’m playing for the whole team."

His team—which finished last season ranked fifth in the nation and looks to be a contender for the Potter Cup for the first time in at least a decade this year—is decidedly happy to have him around.

"He’s significantly better than everyone else on the team," co-captain Will Ahmed said. "Being able to learn from him and getting to watch him play and prepare is something that’s great for the team."

Coming off of a 7-2 victory over Rochester, Harvard hopes to continue its winning ways in the next few weeks, culminating in the CSA Team and Individual Championships.

"We have a very good chance [at winning nationals] if we play like we did [against Rochester], but only if we have this spirit," Ali said. "It’s all about spirit, not only about talent...and I believe that if there is a will, there is a way."

—Staff writer Catherine E. Coppinger can be reached at ccoppinger@college.harvard.edu.