Brent M. Hale
Last winter, Dewey tried the new approach—and liked it. He posted a 12-3 record and helped Deerfield earn a bronze medal at the New England tournament. Another member of “Sam’s Club” is Tripp Kaelin ’14, Deerfield’s other cocaptain. Last year’s third seed posted a 13-3 record, a fourth-place finish in the New Englands and enjoyed Khalifa’s presence on the team due to the trickle-down effect it had. “With Sam playing the number-one seed, the rest of us were able to move down one slot, and that has allowed us to be much more competitive and much more successful. If it hadn’t been for Sam, I may have been the second seed last year, and I doubt I would have enjoyed the success I was able to have as the third seed.” Deerfield welcomes back five of its top six seeds this winter in hopes of improving on a 15-3 regular-season showing. Other key returnees include Connor Henderson ’15, Jamie Kjorlien ’15, and Tad Huffard ’15, as well as newcomers Rob Dewey ’16 and Dan Finnegan ’17. Another rookie, Jack Greenwood ’16, one of Canada’s premier players, could be the second seed. If you think his teammates are happy to have Khalifa around, they’re not half as happy as he is to be at Deerfield. That’s because “I really feel lucky to be here,” said Khalifa, who needed three trips to the Cairo airport this past fall before being able to finally fly to the United States and escape the political crisis that has engulfed his homeland. “We were forced to turn back the first two times by protesters . . . the second time by a group brandishing guns who forced us out of our car and then drove off with it. “It’s a terrible situation . . . people are being killed daily,” said Khalifa, who put his own life at risk a number of times, just to be able to practice squash.
“About two weeks before the world championships began in July, the protesting and violence reached a very dangerous level,” said Khalifa, “so they imposed a curfew . . . which began at 2 pm but got even earlier as time went on. “We normally practiced at a gym, which was about a five-minute drive from our house, but with the curfew, we were forced to remain at home. We’d spend hours whacking balls off our bedroom walls . . . until the walls either had holes in them or were covered by black smudges. “We’d get our exercise by jogging throughout the house, but there’s only so much preparation you can do inside your home,” added Khalifa, so he and his brother began sneaking out to the gym. “We’d go early in the morning, while it was still dark and while our parents were asleep . . . they’d never have let us go if they’d known. We couldn’t drive there, so we walked, and when we’d get there, we’d often find the gym in total darkness because the electricity had been turned off. In fact, on what proved to be our final trip to the gym, we discovered all its treadmills had been stolen. “But, look at the bright side,” quipped Khalifa, “if you can learn to hit a squash ball in the dark, just imagine how easy it’s going to be to hit one when the lights come on.” Well, the lights came on when Khalifa got to Wroclaw, Poland, in July, and he stepped right into the spotlight by capturing his age bracket at the European Junior Squash Championships. They will be shining on him this winter, too, as he takes aim at a second straight New England prep school title—and squishes more squash courts along the way. ••
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“He has an uncanny ability to anticipate an opponent’s shot, and he always seems to be in perfect position . . . he never seems to be more than a stride or two away from being able to make a perfect return shot.” Those perfect returns are no accident, either. Not after chalking up a perfect season for the Big Green last year by going 18-0 during the regular season, then tagging on a 3-0 march through the tournament. Khalifa will be the first to admit, however, that the key to success entails more than just talent. “I try to add some deception to my game,” said Khalifa, who hails from Cairo, Egypt. “What I like to try to do is to delay my shot . . . to hold up for a split second as I prepare to hit the ball. And in doing that, it throws off my opponent just a bit . . . it makes it much more difficult to anticipate where the shot will be going and to prepare for it.” “He always plays a tight shot . . . he always plays his returns tight to the wall,” said Silipo, adding to Khalifa’s arsenal of weapons, “which makes them extremely tough to hit without fear of whacking your racquet against the wall.” Khalifa also credits the coaching he received as a kid as a huge factor in his success—and he'd better. “My brother, Amr, was my coach when I was growing up,” acknowledged Khalifa. And, Amr knows the business end of a squash racquet, too. Last year, as a freshman at St. Lawrence University, he captured the College Squash Association’s individual national title. “It’s been a great experience having Sam as a teammate,” said Big Green co-captain Cam Dewey ’14, the team’s fourth seed last year. “He’s not only been our leader on the court, but he’s also served as a player-coach. He’s helped introduce us to a different playing style . . . the European style . . . a style that entails much more deception than we’re accustomed to.”
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