Interview courtesy of PSA.
The Comcast Business U.S Open Championships begin this weekend with best players in the world descending on the Arlen Specter US Squash Center to compete for the Platinum event titles.
The home favorite in the men’s event is World No. 30 Timothy Brownell. The 27-year-old lives in Philadelphia and trains at the Specter Center, so is in the best possible position to make his home advantage count. Brownell won his first match of the season at the recent Silicon Valley Open and will be determined to build on that this week.
The Harvard graduate has expressed his excitement for the U.S. Open to get underway and can’t wait to be competing in front of many friends and family on home soil.
“I’m super excited to be playing in front of a home crowd in Philly,” Brownell said. “It doesn’t get any easier than waking up in your own bed and playing on the courts you practice on every day. It makes a huge difference playing in front of a home crowd. It’s easy to play up to a great crowd and feed off their energy. It’s always rowdy when Americans step on court at the U.S. Open so I can’t wait to play some mega rallies and enjoy the atmosphere.”
Brownell recorded his best finish in a major event at the end of last season where he reached the quarterfinals of the prestigious British Open. The American knows that every win on the PSA Squash Tour is treasured and not to be taken for granted but that run in particular was a massive confidence booster.
“It certainly was a boosted my confidence, as I’ve said before people don’t realize how tough it is to win on tour. Making steady improvements doesn’t always translate to immediate wins, so getting through a few rounds in a major event was a great way to show myself and the team around me that the system is working. I’ve been on the flip side of some losing streaks before and believe me, I’ll never take a win for granted!”
Brownell hit a career milestone last season, becoming the highest-ranked American man, a position that he has held ever since. The national champion isn’t placing too much importance on the accolade and admits that he has his eyes on bigger goals.
“The important thing for me is showing up everyday and putting in the work to get better and get closer to my potential. A big target for me this year is to perform well at the World Team Championships in December, and when those jerseys come on nobody will care who’s ranked what. I’m at my best when I can crack a smile and can play freely, and I don’t plan on changing that.”