Dylan puts competitive spirit down to his family after claiming Rising Star award

Slough's Dylan Kalar has been presented with England Squash's Rising Star of the Year award and has put his dedication to the sport and competitive spirit down to his family.

The 14-year-old began playing the game when he was just four years old, and he's felt at home on a squash court ever since.

He's won four tournaments so far this season and has ambitions of moving into the top 50 of the PSA rankings after also bagging a junior national title.

“My dad (also Dylan’s coach), being the crazy guy that he is, built a squash court in the garden,” he said.

“And, come rain or shine, me and my sisters were always practising, even though it was slippery at times.”

His wins this season include the Warwick Silver in November, where he recovered from being 10-6 down in the final game to win 12-10, not allowing his opponent another point as he claimed the trophy.

“That was my best win because there was a massive audience and my dad was in the crowd,” he said. “Me winning brought a tear to his eye, which is why it was so special.”

“My Dad was a really avid squash player growing up and he made it one of his aims to make me and my sisters squash stars. My sisters inspire me because they have achieved a lot in their careers so far and playing on court with them is so beneficial.

“It gets very competitive and none of us like losing, but the competitive spirit is what makes it key to our success.”

Dylan’s older sisters Jasmin and Danni are also accomplished squash players with Jasmin now playing professionally. Dylan hopes to follow in her footsteps and believes this award will encourage him in that endeavour.

He said: “The specific thing I have been focusing on is my strength and conditioning training which has been the main goal.

“My dad plans out my training sessions and he has helped me improve so much over the past year – I couldn’t have done it without him.”

Despite all the pressures that come with being a young athlete, the dedication to training never gets in the way of Dylan’s and his family’s love of the fast-paced sport.

“What I love most about playing squash is competing,” he said. “It feels so good to compete in tournaments.

“It’s exhilarating and the competitive spirit really runs through my family. I hope to stay injury free and play my whole life as it is simply too good to give up.”