Martin Bronstein was in Maastricht to watch the international comeback of Jansher Khan. Jansher’s presence dominated the event but questions remain: Can he really come back? Will he come back?

JANSHER RETIRES (OFFICIALLY) - March 2001
When I asked Jonah Barrington whether a 29 year old squash player could make a comeback after over a year out with injury, he pointed to Peter Marshall, who reached the semi-final of the World Open after a longer absence because of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. When the player in question is Jansher Khan the answer becomes even more elusive.

Since 1987 when he burst on the squash scene by beating the nigh-unbeatable Jahangir Khan eight times in a row, Jansher Khan has been not just the man to beat, but clearly head and shoulders above the rest. Eight world titles and six British Open titles flowed from his racket.

He was first admired for his fitness, then his movement and, in the three years before knee problems forced him to rest in 1998, for his wonderful racket skills and incisive finishing. Would that skill, that razor sharpness, that uncanny anticipation evaporate in twelve months?

"I cannot accept that he has lost the ability to think the game and to hit the ball where he wants to hit it; the question is whether he has actually won back a level of physical performance that will allow him to do that," commented Barrington.

In 1998 after Peter Nicol beat him in the British Open, Jansher underwent surgery on both knees. A nagging groin tear kept him on the sidelines for another five months.

Jansher had no doubts about his ability to not only to handle Jonathon Power but also get back his number one spot. In a breathless interview for a Pakistani paper he gave a typical Jansher display of bravado concerning his meeting with the reigning world champion.

"I am not scared of him. I am still a much better player than him - I give myself a 60 per cent chance of beating him. I think I can go on to win the tournament," Jansher boasted.

The man who has been close to Jansher for nine years is Satinder Bajwa. As coach-cum-manager Baj knows Jansher as well as anyone. He thought the gap in tournament play might simply have been too long.

"Twelve months out for Jansher is a like a three year recession. It’s as if Power, Nicol and Barada are three years ahead of him. I would not count him out - I would give him a fifty-fifty chance," was Baj’s forecast.

No one dismissed Jansher’s return as daydreaming. On the other hand there was strong opinion that the game has changed in the time he has been away.

Jansher arrived in Maastricht after months of very hard training. The trouble with assessing Jansher is that he displays none of the usual signs of fatigue, so it has always been difficult to assess his tiredness.

He started confidently against a nervous Power to take the first game hitting effortless winners. He took the third game as Power lost concentration but in the three games that Power won, the world champion seemed to be cruising: confident, in control and untroubled by the still legendary skills that made Jansher one of the greatest players of all time.

"I was very happy with the way I played. I wanted a tough match and so that was why I was happy to play Jonathon. I mis-hit some shots because this is the first time I have played on a glass court for almost two years and it affected my timing. My knees are OK and my groin is OK - I just need to play more matches," Jansher said at the press conference, promising to play in Hong Kong, Cairo and Qatar.

"It was more of a mental battle than anything," Power commented. "It’s hard to play Jansher, there’s a lot of things going on in my head. I’ve always had a hard time against him. He came out playing well and I was playing tactically very poorly, so I was in a hole from the beginning. I had a mental lapse in the third - I was hitting the ball decently but I didn’t compete as hard as I normally do. But even at 2/1 down I knew I could win if I put in two good games."

Of Jansher’s performance he observed: "I think he was hitting the ball well and controlling the middle of the court, but was definitely not as explosive as he normally is. It was harder for him to run his way out of trouble which he used to do quite comfortably. But his sense of the game and control of the centre of the court will certainly beat any player on the circuit."

Was the big question answered? I don’t think so. That will have to wait until after Hong Kong in August and the World Championships in Cairo in September. We’ll let Jonah have the last word.

"I think in the short term he might well do quite well, pain free, but I still feel the recovery will be short term. Remember, too, that two years ago all the other players were in awe of him; now they will be itching to have a go at him".

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JANSHER RETIRES - OFFICIAL  29-May
Pakistan's former world number one said he intended to formalise his position on June 15, his 33rd birthday. He had completed only one match, a first round defeat against Jonathon Power in Maastricht, since losing in the final of the 1998 British Open to Peter Nicol in Birmingham. Jansher has not been a member of the PSA for some time and his announcement came as a surprise only because most people thought he had already retired.

Jansher told the Reuters news agency from his home in Peshawar: "I have made up my mind to call it a day. It has been a difficult decision but considering a two-year lay-off because of injuries, I think it is better to forget about staging one last comeback."

His fall from the top slot, now fought over by Nicol and Power, was accelerated by knee and groin injuries. He had a series of operations but failed to find the same agility, rhythm and court coverage which made him the heir to compatriot Jahangir Khan, who won a record ten consecutive British Open titles and six World Opens. Jahangir is now a vice president of the World Squash Federation and is spearheading the game's bid for Olympic recognition. 

Jansher was always more of a rival than a friend of Jahangir's, but in retirement he reveals his admiration for the man who ruled the game so totally until Jansher came on the scene promising to end his domination. Jansher said: "Of all the highlights of my career, more than anything I would remember my duels with Jahangir, who has not only been a role model for me but for squash enthusiasts the world over."

It remains to be seen if a role in squash can be found for Jansher. Certainly his experience and expertise would be welcomed by the Pakistan SRA, which finds itself in something of a competitive vacuum following almost five decades of global squash dominance. Their failure to compete on the international scene is regarded as an acute embarrassment by the Pakistani squash hierarchy, although Jansher has given no intimation of any desire to take up coaching.

He was never one of the game's great communicators, preferring instead to let his racket do the talking for him in such eloquent and dazzling style. To return to the game at his age, and compete at the top level with super-fit athletes like the current world champion, Nicol, would have required a superhuman effort. Jansher has opted not to go through the pain barrier for one final swansong, as romantic a notion as it may have seemed.