New Zealand won an impressive four medals in squash at the last Commonwealth Games.
They could do better in Birmingham.
Four medals will again likely be the target, but the colour of the gongs will have even higher expectations than at the Gold Coast in 2018.
Paul Coll and Joelle King will be favoured to win individual gold in the men’s and women’s singles respectively, as they enter the competition with the highest world rankings.
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Joelle King and Paul Coll will be chasing gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
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They’ll also combine their abilities in the mixed doubles and will want to surpass the bronze they collected in 2018 after a surprise semifinal defeat to India when the Kiwis were the event’s top seeds.
Since the Gold Coast Games, Coll has developed into a major star of the sport, instead of being known partly for his full-length ‘Superman’ dives to retrieve the ball as he made his way up the world rankings.
He became a regular title contender on the world circuit, was the first New Zealand man to win the British Open when he triumphed last year and reached No 1 in the world rankings earlier this year while also successfully defending his British Open crown.
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World No 2 Paul Coll, left, will contest the men’s singles and mixed doubles in Birmingham.
The 30-year-old was the runner-up in the World Tour Final in Cairo last month and while former Egyptian star Mohamed Elshorbagy recently transferred allegiances to England, he won’t be playing in Birmingham, meaning Coll’s biggest rival in the singles is likely to be Joel Makin of Wales, seventh in the world rankings, while defending champion James Willstrop of England remains a tough foe even at 38 in his fifth Games.
King won singles gold in 2018, beating former long-time conqueror Nicol David of Malaysia in four sets in their semifinal before winning a nailbiting five-set final versus Sarah-Jane Perry of England.
Perry is set to …….