Racquet & Tennis Club – April 17-19, 2026
On Friday April 17th, [23] players from [4] clubs arrived in Midtown Manhattan to compete for the prestigious Etchebaster Trophy which has been contested annually since 1964. Representatives from the clubs in Boston, Newport, St. Andrews and of course New York were all present with trophies and some of the most sought-after gold paint on their minds.
The round of thirty-two kicked off on Friday morning with both East and West courts hosting some entertaining competition. There were several unseeded players making themselves known early in the event from Will Eide and Mac McHugh advancing without dropping a game. Top seeds made their presence known on both sides of the draw with dominant wins from Stathi Kyriakides, Adham Madi, Charlie Isen, and Rob Parker.
Two underdogs had other plans about being included in the Sunday Semifinals. Mac McHugh continued to impress advancing to the semi-finals taking out both four and six seeds securing his semifinal ticket on Sunday. Alan Huo punched his way into the top semifinal taking out the top seed 6/4 6/4 in a great display of shot making and the best looking backhand in the event.
In the top semi, yet another Etchebaster squash vs racquets battle ensued with Adham Madi of New York (squash) defeating Alan Huo of New York (racquets) in a well fought 6-2, 6-4 affair. Alan is one of New York’s newest and brightest additions having a great racquets and lawn tennis background from Harrow and Queens. Adham Madi can hardly be considered a “novice”, with his squash background playing in the Kellner Cup this same weekend safe to say he’s familiar with a racket. Be on the lookout for both these players in the future.
The bottom semi proved to be one of the best matches of the weekend with Rob Parker (New York) winning 6-3 6-5 over Boston’s Mac McHugh. Both competitors came out swinging. Rob’s squash background and retrieving was able to hold up against McHugh’s driving the ball. The gallery was in awe of their athleticism and tenacity, and this should be the first of many times we see both Rob and Mac competing at a high level.
The final saw Rob Parker battle Adham Madi making an all squash background final. As one would expect, the match featured superb retrieving from both young men. Perhaps what was unexpected was the tact, court awareness, and strategery that was on display. Rob started off as sharp as could be taking away any opening Madi could find and finished points with efficiency. Parker was able to defend against Madi’s late surge of forcing cementing his courtside gold paint, and will be bringing the hardware back to New York.
A major thank you to the New York Racquet & Tennis Club pro shop (James, Barney, AJ, Pete, and Josh) and event staff for putting on yet another outstanding weekend. The future of Tennis in the states is bright!
