Ryan looks forward to home court challenge

Ordinarily when Derek Ryan comes home to Dublin it's an opportunity for the squash professional to meet up with old friends and see a little of his native city's night life, but not this week.

"No, I'm being a good boy, watching telly and reading lots of books - in fact, I have books coming out my ears," he said, speaking from his Killiney home yesterday.

The bookworm, though, is not complaining because this evening he will play in the first world ranking squash event ever to take place in Ireland when he takes on world number four Simon Parke in the first round of the Millennium Irish Open at Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club.

Nine of the world's top 10 players will take part in today's opening round, including Scotland's Peter Nicol, the world number one, and his closest rival, Jonathan Power of Canada, widely regarded as the sport's most talented (and most tempestuous) player.

"It's brilliant for everyone involved in squash in Ireland, but especially for myself," said Ryan. "The organisers have done a fantastic job getting all the top players to Dublin and I'm really, really excited about it. Unfortunately, though, I have to blank it all out and treat it like just another tournament abroad.

"My job is to pick up ranking points so that's the way I have to approach it, like I'm playing a regular tournament, anywhere else, otherwise I'd lose my head.

"I am playing on home soil, I will have the crowd behind me and I'm just going to go on as relaxed as I possibly can and not try and get overawed by the occasion, but I want to enjoy it because the more I enjoy it the better I play."

Ryan will play Parke, one of his training partners at his Nottingham base, on the "Thunderdrome" squash court, made up of four glass walls and brought over from England for the event.

The court is "television friendly", thus attracting TV3's interest - they will show a 30-minute highlights programme from the tournament next Monday evening, as well as providing updates on their nightly sports magazine.

England's Del Harris and Australia's Paul Price will get today's first round under way at noon with Nicol opening the evening session, which features the world's top four as well as Ryan, against John White of Scotland at 6.30.

Tickets for the tournament can be booked at Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club (01-6603988).

The Programme

Irish Open (at Fitzwilliam) - First round (afternoon session, starting 12.0, world rankings in brackets): (9) D Harris v (10) P Price, (11) D Palmer v (19) J Kneipp, (6) A Hill v (22) A Gough, (7) P Johnson v (12) T Lincou; First round (evening session, starting 6.30): (1) P Nicol v (8) J White, (15) D Ryan v (4) S Parke, (3) A Barada v (18) M Chaloner, (2) J Power v (14) G Ryding.