Trinity College's squash team may have a nine-year-long winning streak on the court, but it's had to fight a harder battle off of it.
The Bantams, who defeated Penn in the second round of this year's Team Championships, have faced a backlash from those indirectly involved in the squash community. Bloggers and fans alike have accused the team of skirting rules regarding player eligibility.
Lately, these allegations have centered on 20-year-old Pakistani freshman Basit Ashfaq. His past professional history and sponsorship from the Pakistan Squash Federation and the Civil Aviation Authority in Pakistan have caused a stir in the close-knit squash world.
Bantams coach Paul Assaiante shrugged off the suggestion of impropriety, saying "this isn't the first time these questions have come up about a special player."
Special indeed. Ashfaq has become the No. 1 player on the nation's best team, and he has also earned a top-100 rank in the Professional Squash Association rankings.
Men's squash is currently not an NCAA sport; instead, it's governed by the College Squash Association, and CSA Executive President John Power maintains that some of its rules are stricter than the NCAAs. The CSA also mandates that programs operate under their schools' respective NCAA regulations. This had led to a lack of uniformity across the sport, since Divisions I and III have different rules.
D-III regulations, which Trinity follows, do not prohibit an athlete from pro competition before matriculating. An athlete can accept money "from the sponsor of an open athletics event . or the appropriate national governing body."
The Pakistan Times reported in 2004 that Ashfaq received a gift of 500,000 Rupees (8,244 USD) from the PSF and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf for his performance in the World Junior Squash Championships that year. However, the PSF is the appropriate governing body for squash in Pakistan.
Even if Ashfaq's competition in pro tournaments and acceptance of prize money comply with NCAA rules (and it appears they do), doubters still find cause for complaint. The Pakistan Daily Times reported in 2003 that Ashfaq entered into a sponsorship deal with the Civil Aviation Authority. In addition, his biography on the PSA's Web site indicates that he was sponsored by the CAA and PSF as recently as 2006. Assaiante would not say whether or not Ashfaq is still sponsored.
NCAA rules prohibit sponsors from covering a student-athlete's expenses. But the press release concerning Ashfaq's sponsorship deal stated that "the players will participate in the annual national championships under the flag of their relevant departments," and that the PSF struck a deal with Pakistan International Airlines to provide flights for athletes competing internationally.
Ashfaq's tournament page on the PSA's Web site says that he participated in tournaments in Malaysia and India in 2005-06. Also, Ashfaq participated in the U.S. Squash Open in November 2006 while enrolled at Trinity.
Power, who is also Dartmouth's head coach, said the investigation "raises some interesting questions."
Assaiante said it would be "inappropriate" for Ashfaq to comment on the issue. He also declined to say whether Ashfaq's sponsors covered those trips, and maintained that Trinity broke no rules in recruiting Ashfaq.
"All of these schools . have to abide by NCAA regulations," Assaiante said. "We went through the process of deciding his eligibility with the NCAA and it deemed that Basit was eligible."
