SHEDDING ITS UPPER-CRUSTINESS

NOT QUITE YET A GAME OF THE PEOPLE, SQUASH IS MAKING INROADS BEYOND THE WEALTHY ELITE By Adam Bloch Walk over to the squash center on the seventh floor of The Sports Club/LA's East 61st Street location, and you might think you dropped into a sanctum for the stereotypical sport of the wealthy elite. There are five impeccably maintained, glass-backed courts, all surrounding a pair of lushly carpeted couches. But in case you think this is just another fancy club, there's Eddie Kapur to tell you differently. Kapur, the head pro, is nothing if not a zealous, indefatigable promoter of squash."It's always been an upper-class sport," he acknowledged, which remains "a bit of an obstacle. But we're trying to make it much more accessible now." To that end, Kapur mentioned a weekly clinic he runs on Saturday mornings that are limited to female participants as an effort to increase gender diversity among players. Then he described two citywide projects to get disadvantaged kids involved in the game. Unlikely as it may seem, such programs are having an effect. CitySquash has a team of about 90 youngsters every year playing at Fordham University in The Bronx. Over its six-year history, it has helped 21 alumni receive squash scholarships to private schools. StreetSquash, a similar program, opened a center in Harlem at 115th Street this summer. It contains eight courts and will offer athletic, academic, community service and mentoring activities to 1,000 kids annually. The movement is spreading: there are similar organizations in Boston and Philadelphia. "We don't just want it to be an Ivy League sport," Kapur said, "a ticket to just Harvard or Princeton-that's a tiny demographic." So it's not just the absence of the old American hardball version of the game or the smattering of foreign accents at The Sports Club/LA that tell you the squash scene in the city is changing. The sport is, after all, one of contrasts. Squash is not popular enough to be considered anything but a niche activity, but participation is startlingly international, with the top pros coming from countries like the United Kingdom, Egypt, Pakistan and Malaysia. Unversed spectators might consider it a game of power because the small rubber ball is often hit at speeds greater than 120 mph; but finesse, touch and tactics are actually far more important than muscle. Any sport limited to the confines of a box might seem simple, but strategy is paramount among the best players. "It's very tactical and very physical," Kapur said. "It's a thinking man's sport." And, with the advent of programs like CitySquash and StreetSquash, the game is no longer limited to musty private clubs. In other words, it's a bright time for the sport, with Kapur estimating a 30 percent increase in participation over the past five years. Kenny Scher, the executive director of the Metropolitan Squash Racquets Association (MSRA), needed only two words to summarize the state of the game: "Extreme growth." "I've been here 15 years," he added. "It's more popular and on the rise than at any time since I've been around. Membership is at the highest it's ever been." The MSRA, which organizes leagues and tournaments in the city and surrounding areas, now has around 2,000 members. Kapur counts 175 regular players at his club. "We've seen squash grow substantially," he said. There's activity at high schools and colleges. It's not uncommon to be in the subway with your racquet and hear somebody say, 'Oh, you're playing squash' instead of 'Where do you play tennis?'" The MSRA has a league featuring five men's divisions and one division for women. Kapur runs five tournaments-which comprise his "Millennium Series"-at The Sports Club/LA each year. This spring, he hosted the 40th edition of the Hyder Tournament, the oldest competition on the East Coast. The club also provides the home courts for the teams from The Chapin School and The Browning School, which Kapur coaches. All this hustle and bustle makes New York the country's undisputed squash capital. But despite the breadth of activity, there's a surprising intimacy among the sport's scattered participants. Throw the name of a player at Kapur, and he'll tell you about his strengths, weaknesses and recent accomplishments. "It's a tight community," he said. Kapur, who grew up in the United Arab Emirates and speaks with a lilting English accent acquired from a British school there, helps keep people involved. He goes to a local pub with his players every few weeks for a "pint night" and also runs the occasional beat-the-pro competition, where members get to take on Kapur for prizes. "It's a nice camaraderie," Henry Gordon, a Sports Club/LA member, said. "It's an exciting sport and it's on the upswing." There are some limitations, though. Beyond the courts at StreetSquash's new center, Columbia University and New York University, the MSRA lists 16 locations for squash in Manhattan. Of these, many are private clubs, and the others often charge hefty fees. The most reasonable rates can likely be found at New York Sports Clubs locations at 62nd Street and Broadway and 86th Street between Lexington and Third avenues. Squash may not be just for the upper crust these days, but it's not quite a sport of the people either. The good news is that there are plenty of opportunities to take in the action. At the professional level, squash is a thrilling spectator sport of almost mind-boggling athleticism, and New York is host to several high-level tournaments every year. The biggest is easily the Tournament of Champions, hosted every January in Grand Central. It offers over $80,000 in prize money, enough to attract the very top competitors from around the world. Other major tournaments include the Village Open, the U.S. Open and the Carol Weymuller Open, a major stop on the women's tour held in Brooklyn in November. You don't have to be the best, in other words, to watch the best.