WJC Profile | William Slade

Last week we were introduced to James Slade, a twin on the World Junior Championships team who will play alongside his brother William.

Unsurprisingly, William’s career closely mirrors that of James with their training and tournaments following each other around Sydney, NSW, Australia… and now, the world.

Having put so much effort in over the years to become one of the elite juniors in the country, William is proud to have earned selection for Houston and to achieve the rare feat of doing it alongside his brother.

“It means a lot,” he said. “It shows that my hard work is paying off. 

“It’s really exciting, not everyone gets to have their sibling playing for Australia.

“It's always been one of my dream goals to have him next to me playing for our country.”

Like his brother, Williams got into squash around aged 10 and has been hooked ever since and also trains under Aaron Frankcomb at Elanora Squash & Fitness Centre on Sydney’s northern beaches.

By age 12, William had dropped other sports and dedicated himself to squash, becoming a fan of the international game while remaining inspired by some of the best in other sports.

“Right now my favourite player on the tour would be Mostafa Asal because of how explosive he is on the court,” he said. 

“My favourite sportsperson would have to be Roger Federer because of how calm and collected he is on and off the court and that's who I aspire to be.”

William says that his main goal leading into Houston is to be “physically and mentally ready because there will be no easy games”, knowing that the event is the pinnacle of his young career.

“My biggest achievement would have to be playing for Australia for the World Juniors,” he said.