To say that Aashish Kamat ’88 made a smooth transition from playing squash in his native India to what he faced as a collegiate player at Franklin & Marshall College would be akin to saying every bounce of the squash ball is true.
Kamat, a 1988 graduate, faced obstacles that he overcame to play No. 1 on the Diplomats’ squad as a senior and went on to be named an All-American after his junior and senior seasons.
Before arriving at F&M, Kamat played squash under international rules, which included using a “soft’’ ball and a court that was two to three feet narrower than courts in the United States.
“Some players made that transition quickly and others struggled with it,’’ said Bill Marshall, F&M’s men’s squash coach from 1974-91. “But Aashish was one of the players who made a quick transition to the “hard’’ ball game.
Joining F&M’s team for the spring semester in ’86, Kamat won challenges matches to play his first match at No. 9 vs. Army and then at No. 8 at Penn.
As far as transitions go, there was another to be made.
Besides playing with a harder ball on narrower courts, squash in the United States was played on “cold’’ courts. When the Diplomats arrived at Penn. for their match, the windows near the courts were open, making the temperature somewhat chillier than Bombay in January.
“We drove to Penn in a blinding snowstorm and when we got there, it had to be 40 degrees in the courts,’’ Marshall said. “Poor Aashish was shivering. He had never experienced that kind of cold in his life. His teammates gave him some ribbing because he couldn’t stand the cold.’’
Kamat’s game, however, heated up. By the time nationals rolled around, he went 4-1 in the C Division and finished the season with a record of 8-3.
“As a competitor, Aashish was unflappable,’’ said Morris Clothier, a Kamat teammate. “He was always steady and never showed any emotion. He was very consistent in the way he competed.’’
As a junior, Kamat helped the Diplomats to one of the best seasons in the team’s history. His individual record was 16-3 and F&M went 15-1, with its lone loss coming against Harvard, who finished as the No. 1 team in the country. Along the way, the Diplomats defeated squash powerhouses Williams, Cornell, Penn., Princeton, and Yale and set a new standard of excellence for F&M men’s squash. They ended the season ranked No.2 in the nation.
Kamat advanced to the semifinals of the B Division Individual National Championships that season, surviving seven match points in the quarters to get there. He was named an All-American at season’s end.
“He gave his opponents very few unforced errors,’’ Clothier said. “He didn’t give free points away.’’
As a co-captain in his senior year, Kamat played at No. 1 for much of the season, going up against some of the best players in the country in every match. F&M was 14-3 during the regular season and Kamat was named All-America for a second straight season.
When reflecting on his college experience, Kamat recalls van rides with the team, the practices in Mayser and being selected as team captain as some of his favorite moments.
Kamat has continued to play squash and was the India 50-over National Champion in 2017. He was a quarterfinalist in World Masters Championship (ages 50-54) in 2018. He lives in Mumbai with Amrita Ooman, F&M Class ‘91, and their two children. He recently retired from UBS Investment Bank as the Country Head for India after serving in multiple senior position roles in the finance industry.
