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So, what have you been up to since you were
back?
Beng Hee : Um, not much. Just the same old stuff; chill out,
hanging out with friends, catching up with normal life…like all squash
players would know, training’s two sessions a day…we don’t do much
besides that.
Well, I heard you were in Bermuda.
Congratulations for your win! What was Bermuda like?
Beng Hee : Thank you. Bermuda was a very nice place, nice
people…a lot of Brits, Americans and a lot of very, very rich people.
But the weather was bad; it was raining the whole week we were there.
I think they only had six squash courts in the country. The Bermuda
Open was more like a fun, promotional tournament for PSA. It was held
after the Tournament of Champions in New York, so it was more
relaxing. We were given a scooter, and I think I almost killed myself
6 times! You know me, I’ve never been on a scooter.
Yes, I sat in your car before; I remembered
how ‘fine’ your driving skills were. It’s something unforgettable.
Anyway, what happened to the Qatar Open?
Beng Hee : It’s been postponed to May because of the war. That
will be my next tournament…hopefully! Still depends…if the war hasn’t
settled by then, the tournament will be off. It’s the biggest event of
the year; a lot of points to earn, so that’s one where I want to do
well in.
Did it effect your preparation for it?
Beng Hee : Nope, but it effected my ranking more than it did for
the other players. Most of them had extra tournaments to cover.
Because I lack one, it’ll mess mine more. I’m not sure how bad, I’ll
know by next month when the ranking comes out.
Hey, there was a phase where the press was
negative about your performance. Did that bother you mentally to train
or to compete?
Beng Hee : No, I think there are bad and good days on court. When
you don’t play well, obviously people want to criticize you, but I
don’t think they were very negative, negative would be the wrong word.
They were just very straightforward, you know, like…Beng Hee hasn’t
won, Beng Hee lost in the second round, again. I simply got used to
that.
How did you overcome that?
Beng Hee : Just don’t read the newspapers!
Haha!
Oh…good one! But what would be the ideal way
you would prefer the press to report?
Beng Hee : I think it would be nice if they find out the strengths
and weaknesses of the opponents before I play them, you know. Just to
know about the top 10, or the top 20 squash players instead of being
black and white before hand. Like if I’m ranked 9, I shouldn’t be
losing to someone who’s 10th, 11th or 12th,
which I think, is unfair because we do have our bad and good days. You
as a squash player, you’d know the pressure of being top seed in a
Scottish Junior and not wanting to lose to the no. 2 obviously…so, if
you were to lose, then they’d say, ‘Ah, it’s a bad result,’ but there
are two players on court. So, the chances of winning are always 50/50
both ways.
What would your advice be for juniors if they
have to handle this?
Beng Hee : I think the first thing they should do is…to enjoy the
game. I think as a junior, it’s quite difficult to be mentally down. I
don’t think they should even go through it! I think the pressure is
coming from people, coaches and outside influences. But if they are,
it’s possible that there’s something wrong with their training,
they’re over training, or their life is too hectic, you know…extra
classes, school, and then training. So, that probably puts them down.
As I quit school when I was 16, it was a lot easier for me as all I
wanted to do was to play squash. When I was mentally down, I actually
didn’t give a thought about it. I’d probably have a bad day, and will
forget about it the next day.
What if they were tired physically, you know,
during their down cycle of training?
Beng Hee : Well, I think they should look at it very positively,
the positive side. It’s difficult; I mean I myself still go through
it, in fact…all of us do coz we’re on court, everyday. I would say, if
you’ve done a good month’s training, and you’re not playing very well,
feeling very tired…you should look at the positive side. You’ve done a
lot of training but as soon as you stop training, you’re going to play
well again. You should know that. I think different players have
different ways in dealing with it. For me, I won’t put myself very
down knowing I’ve worked hard for the whole month.
That’s great. Being top 10…have people been
reacting differently while being around you?
Beng Hee : I think some of them have. Some tend to be a lot
friendlier, and for some reason, some tend to be afraid of me. They
think I’m going to eat them up or something! So, different people have
reacted differently.
Haha…has popularity changed you? What am I
saying?! It’s obvious that it hasn’t!
Beng Hee : Well, yeah…it hasn’t. The only thing that has changed
me is probably being away from home. I’ve learnt to be more
independent…that’s it. I think as soon as you start living on your
own, managing your own life…you start doing things by yourself and you
become stronger. The Malaysian way, I think, if we’re living with our
parents, sometimes we take that for granted. Parents are always there
doing things for us. They cook, clean up the bedroom…well, that’s what
my parents do for me when I’m here. But when I first got to England, I
started doing those things myself and learnt a lot while traveling,
meeting friends, meeting new people…
Now, what motivates you to train hard
everyday?
Beng Hee : The thing that motivates me the most is to be up
there at the top...to be one of the top 4 and hopefully, the no.1.
That’s my main objective, my main target that I want to be at in the
future. It’s the only thing that keeps me going, and drives me to
train hard and wanting to do well. Besides that…nothing else.
Wow…that’s excellent! Off squash, I heard
you have a web site coming up. Don’t mind telling a little about it?
Beng Hee : The web site? After looking at Azlan’s, I was
impressed! It was his influence, saying it’s more convenient in the
future for the press to find out our whereabouts and conditions
through a frequently updated site rather than them calling us every
single day. So, I think it’s a good idea.
I heard there’d be a ‘Beng Hee boy’ section. Is
that for real?!
Beng Hee : Nope! Sounds a bit queer right? It’s going to be a
casual web site but different from Azlan’s. Hopefully, it can be more
creative. There will be 10 news articles updated weekly…articles since
1988.
Oh my goodness. It’s a museum then!
Beng Hee : Almost there! Yah…and it’s possible for people to
trace back. Also, it’s good publicity for my sponsors…the banners and
logos will be in there…so, I think they’ll be quite please with it.
Hey, I’ve got to pick up my mom now.
Sure. That was my last one as well. Thanks, Beng
Hee and all the best!
Beng Hee : Thanks. See you.
And Beng Hee boy’s off to conquer the world!!
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