Seven years ago in a Lagos neighbourhood, Quadri Yusuf was still a fascinated 10-year-old when two close friends arrived at his home carrying a squash racket and nothing else. The moment he picked it up, he was hooked—turning it over, studying it, and refusing to hand it back.
Joshua and Elijah Daniel, both childhood friends, laughed at his excitement and invited him to join them. What began as a casual invitation has since grown into a path that now leads Yusuf to one of the most prestigious platforms in junior squash.
On July 20, the 17-year-old will take to the courts in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada, representing Nigeria at the 2026 World Junior Squash Championships. Around 20 nations are expected to compete for one of the sport’s most prized titles, and for Yusuf, the event carries far more weight than another stop on the calendar.
It represents the payoff for years of discipline, hard work, and belief that never wavered. It is also an opportunity to prove that Nigerian players can stand shoulder to shoulder with the world’s best and seriously threaten the long-standing dominance of squash’s traditional powerhouses.
The challenge awaiting him is considerable. Defending champion Mohamad Zakaria of Egypt will headline a strong Egyptian group, while England, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Canada, and Australia are also expected to bring talented young competitors.
Many of Yusuf’s opponents will arrive with experience built from regular international competition, giving them repeated exposure to the sport’s highest level. Still, those who have tracked Yusuf’s rise believe his edge is something that doesn’t show up in numbers: composure when the pressure rises, relentless determination, and a conviction that he belongs on the biggest courts.
That confidence has been strengthened by his recent form. Only weeks before his departure for Canada, Yusuf successfully defended both the Under-19 and Senior Men’s crowns at the Prime Atlantic Squash Tournament. In two demanding five-set finals, he overcame Shuaib Giwa to complete a rare double.
It was the second straight year he managed the same feat, underlining not only his technical quality but also the stamina and mental toughness required to win through tight matches.
Before trophies and national recognition, though, there was only a borrowed racket and a young boy’s curiosity. Yusuf has said his introduction to squash came through childhood friends Joshua Giwa and Daniel Giwa, who shared their neighbourhood with him. One day they brought a racket to their house, and Yusuf—along with his elder brother, Ayomide Yusuf—became captivated by it. They didn’t want to return it.
Eventually, the brothers were welcomed onto the squash court, and what they encountered surprised them. Yusuf described how, for the first time, everything looked unfamiliar; he had never seen squash before and didn’t even know it was played inside an enclosed court. They stood watching, trying to make sense of the game, until the fascination turned into something deeper.
“From that very first day, we fell in love with the game,” he said. With the boys’ growing commitment, their parents quickly embraced the new passion—encouraging afternoon trips to the court and gradually purchasing the gear they needed as finances allowed.
Even now, Yusuf points to a childhood memory that still makes him smile. His brother received squash shoes before he did, and Yusuf admitted he cried because he wanted his own immediately. In time, his parents bought him a pair, and the happiness that followed stayed with him.
Looking back, Yusuf believes those ordinary moments became the foundation for a dream that carried him far beyond his neighbourhood. As his ability developed, so did the support of people who recognised what he could become.
One of the key figures he credits is Idowu Enimakure, whose encouragement and guidance helped shape Yusuf during the early stage of his career. Now, with the biggest tournament of his young life approaching, Yusuf has intensified his preparation with renewed focus.
He said the Prime Atlantic tournament showed him he has the stamina needed to compete at a high level. Yusuf added that he and Shuaib Giwa train together almost every day, pushing each other because strong training competition is essential if he is to perform internationally.
Fitness, he explained, has become the priority in the build-up. “At the moment, everything is about fitness. In the next few weeks, we’ll move fully into ball work,” Yusuf said.
He also feels his previous matches against international opponents have prepared him for the demands in Canada. Yusuf noted that he has played against overseas players, including Europeans, and believes he knows how to stay composed, manage the tempo of a match, and carry out his game plan when it matters.
While he respects every opponent, he refuses to be intimidated. “I respect every opponent, but I don’t think anyone is unbeatable,” he said. “The key is consistency and believing in yourself.”
Canada, he knows, will test him like no other stage. Matches at the World Junior Championships are often decided by the smallest margins, requiring technical sharpness, tactical discipline, physical endurance, and strong mental strength throughout.
Yusuf is clear about what he wants to achieve. “My goal is to make Nigeria proud,” he said. “I want to compete with confidence, give my very best in every match and show the world that Nigerian players can stand alongside the best. I’ve worked hard to get to this point, and I’m ready for the challenge.”
There is a striking symmetry to his journey. The friends who first introduced him to squash—Joshua and Elijah Daniel—are now among the players he faces in the national circuit, while the enclosed court that once felt strange has become a second home.
The child who cried because his elder brother, Ayomide Yusuf, got squash shoes first is preparing to wear Nigeria’s colours on one of junior squash’s biggest stages.
That same reflection returns when Enimakure’s role is revisited. As Yusuf’s game matured, attention grew from those who could recognise exceptional talent. Enimakure said he first spotted Yusuf when the youngster was only about 12 or 13, already troubling senior players with an attitude that suggested he was unbothered by reputations.
“We first met Quadri when he was about 12 or 13 years old, and even then he was troubling the senior players,” Enimakure recalled. “We could see he had something special.”
Believing the teenager needed a structured environment to develop, coaches at the John Hett Sports Foundation brought him into their programme around three years ago, describing it as a turning point. Not long after joining, Yusuf travelled with the team on a month-long training tour to Egypt, a nation widely viewed as a global squash powerhouse.
That trip, Enimakure and Yusuf say, exposed him to a higher level of competition and helped reshape both his outlook and his approach to the game. “When we came back from Egypt, everything changed,” Enimakure said. “He won his first national title at a Police tournament, and that was when everyone started noticing him. From that point, he has never looked back.”
For the coach, the experience mattered in more ways than one. Beyond watching Yusuf grow, Enimakure returned with new ideas that strengthened the foundation’s development programme, and the progress has become increasingly visible.
Today, Yusuf is known for attacking flair, but just as much for the physical endurance that has become one of his defining strengths. That ability to outlast opponents was on display again at the recent Prime Atlantic Squash Tournament, where he survived two gruelling five-set finals to retain both the Under-19 and Senior Men’s titles.
