06 October 2011

THE MAN WHO LIKES TO GO THE WRONG WAY: MIGUEL ANGEL RODRIGUEZ

Finally I have found some footage about one of my favorites from outside the top20 on the PSA tour; Miguel Angel Rodriguez, probably the quickest person on earth on 5 or 10 meters, by the way a lovely squash player with a particular type of deception in his shots and a funny Gaultier- or crab-like lateral movement. Well, as we said, he's got definitely the quickest feet on the tour (yes, quicker than Gregory Gaultier or Aamir Atlas Khan) and he is also a clean striker. So why is he stuck outside the top20? Probably because back in his home country Colombia he lacks serious training partners. For me, this guy should come to the UK, and under the guidance of the likes of Peter Genever for example he could easily become top10 if not top5. So which are his weak points? Definitely his reading of the game. He often goes the wrong way, even though he almost seems to like to go the wrong way to exploit his hilarious speed. He is the only player on the tour to make on a constant basis 360 degree turns (like in the current video at 0:48 and like I've had the luck to observe in the flesh at the 2010 London Open; once there he was even doing it on the volley, and fellow PSA player Joe Lee who sat next to me said that this would have been the greatest shot ever if it hadn't hit the tin...) Once we said, that what distinguishes Amr Shabana from the other dive-kings on the tour (John White, David Palmer) is his ability to get up after a dive. Well, have a look at Rodriguez' get up at 0:22, and you will probably agree that Shabana is only number two in this respect.