Jahangir Khan, the player, reached legendary status. Now he is back in a new
role as Ambassador for Squash. Ian McKenzie catches up with the new WSF Vice-President and
discovers people still want to meet him and play him.
A strange thing happened in Stuttgart at the Womens
World Open. The top players were preparing to go on court, the compere made several
announcements and then pointed out that there was a guest in the auditorium - Jahangir
Khan. Jahangir was sitting at the side of the court in quiet conversation when spontaneous
applause and cheers built to a crescendo and stayed there for several minutes. A
spontaneous sound not orchestrated, not demanded. The spotlight had swung to him, slightly
embarrassed he waved and stood, people stood and clapped. It was a reception in excess of
anything the players received. The name was still magic. Jahangir Khan was back.
"I was surprised," having not been around you think
people may not recognise you. I was really surprised," he said later. "I was
pleased with the respect. People recognised what I have done in the past."
It is a while since Jahangir played. He won 10 British Open
titles in succession the last in 1991. He last played competitively at the World
Championships in Pakistan in 1993 while in semi-retirement. He reached the final and
helped Pakistan win the World Team title.
Now Jahangir works for the Pakistan national airline PIA and
has moved into the top level post of General Manager Sport which became vacant on the
tragic death of Hassan Musa. He has been elected a Vice President of the Pakistan Squash
Federation and in Stuttgart became a Vice President of The World Squash Federation.
In Karachi Jahangir lives in with his wife Rubina and 27
month old daughter Marium. They live as an extended family with his parents, his brother
Hasson, his wife and two children in one big household of 9 people in the Pakistani style.
His father Roshan, the British Open champion in 1957 is the head of the household.
Jahangir is a family man, Im not a nightlife
person, he says. He loves his daughter and enjoys being a father.
In Karachi he has connections, friends from his young days,
his name carries a lot of weight, and he likes the lifestyle there.
After squash Jahangir had a number of occupations. For 7
years he visited Brunei once a month, spending two weeks at home and two in Brunei,
coaching members of the Sultan of Bruneis royal family. It is a small country of
only 250,000 people but the lifestyle is luxurious. He liked the quiet, found the people
easy to be with and it was all no hassle.
In Karachi Jahangir used to have a chain of
Snoopy ice-cream shops part of a franchise operation. "It does well there
because of the weather," he says. There where 32 flavours, the plant was imported
from the US, the ice cream made in Pakistan.
He has also been involved in the property business and given
exhibitions in Europe, the US and Asia.
An illness in the family stopped Jahangir playing in the
World Doubles in Hong Kong and other than exhibitions it looks like his competitive days
are over. "I have nothing to prove he says," when asked whether he will play
Masters squash.
Still, he is very keen on sports; follows cricket and plays
it. He is both a batsman and bowler, used to play at school and was an opening bat. It
would come as no surprise to anyone who had watched him play squash to learn that he was a
fast bowler - will naturally Jahangir.
At PIA he is in charge of eleven sports including squash,
hockey, tennis and cricket.
"I have all the great player under me," he says.
These include Wasim Akran and the test player, hockey players and many of Pakistans
top sportsmen. PIA is a little bit like an Institute of Sport in many other countries
sponsoring sportsmen and helping them with travel, salaries and jobs. Jahangir himself has
been with PIA for 22 years having started with them as a 13 year old.
He plays cricket and tennis at various clubs and has tried
golf but hasnt enough time for it now. "I will start this later," he says.
He will practice on the driving range and shouldnt have much trouble grooving his
swing.
He is fit without an injury problems and still plays squash
most days. He plays friends and local juniors in Karachi and tries of help the juniors.
One of his ideas is to have an institute for squash.
Now Jahangir starts another career in squash. In Stuttgart he
was elected a Vice President of the WSF. Becoming an official may seen a strange use of
the talents of a player who was unbeaten or 5 1/2 years. Initially he was shy in public,
his smooth articulate coach Rahmat Khan made all the public appearance and statements for
him in the early years, and Jahangir is still quiet spoken but he has grown up since then.
He is passionate about promoting the sport - now it is not so much King Khan as Ambassador
Jahangir.
In his position as a Vice President of the
WSF he is at the sports disposal. He knows it will be a bit different from playing. He
jokes that he will have to sit more and listen - but when he speaks he is sure to be
listened to. The WSF he says will decide how best to use him but he expects to be involved
in coaching, working with juniors, visiting tournaments and new squash countries, making
speeches and public appearances, helping to promote the sport and trying to get squash
into schools.
He knows that people will want to see him and he will enjoy
visiting places he hasnt been. He will visit the junior championships, and hit with
juniors. It could be exhausting there are going to be thousands of juniors who would like
to hit with Jahangir Khan.
In Boston at the World Junior championships players young
players asked if they could hit with him. "It was nice they wanted to," he says
explained that the timing was right because in five or ten years his name may not carry
the came weight it still does. "If not now then maybe it is too late," he said.
It is a new roll for Ambassador Jahangir a roll he will
enjoy, a roll which will benefit the sport. "The sport has given me so much. I would
like to give something back," he says.