Here’s a guide to the game:
General
Court
Playing equipment
Basic rules and gameplay
Referee
Type of shots played
Strategy and tactics
Interference and obstruction
Cultural, social, and health aspects
General
Squash is a racquet sport game played by two players (or four players for doubles) in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball. The game was formerly called squash racquets, a reference to the "squashable" soft ball used in the game.
The court size was codified in the 1920s at 9.75 m long and 6.4 m wide. The front wall has a "front wall line" 4.57 m above the floor, connected by a raking "front" line meeting the "out" line on the back wall at 2.13 m above the floor. The front wall also has a "service line" whose top is 1.83 m above the floor with the "tin" (made out of a special material, often metal, designed to make a distinctive sound when hit by a quickly moving ball) 48 cm high. The floor is marked with a transverse "half-court" line and further divided into two rear "quarter courts" and two "service boxes", as shown in the diagram above.
The traditional "American" court for the U.S. game, (now referred to as "hardball squash") is a similar size, but narrower at 5.64 m. The floor and wall markings differ slightly from the "International" court and the tin is lower, at 38 cm high. However, hardball squash was replaced by softball in America as the standard version of squash and has since almost completely died out.
A "Converted Court" is the result of converting racquetball courts to squash. Racquetball courts are 6.1 m wide and 12.2 m in length, so it is relatively easy to install a back wall, producing a squash court of 6.1 m wide by 9.75 m long.
Playing equipment
Standard rackets are governed by the rules of the game. Traditionally they were made of laminated timber (typically Ash), with a small strung area using natural gut strings. After a rule change in the mid-1980s, they are now almost always made of composite materials or metals (graphite, kevlar, titanium, boron) with synthetic strings. Modern rackets have maximum dimensions of 686 mm long and 215 mm wide, with a maximum strung area of 500 square centimetres, the permitted maximum weight is 255 grams, but most weigh between 110 and 200 grams.
Squash balls are 39.5 mm and 40.5 mm in diameter, and weigh between 23 and 25 grams. They are made with two pieces of rubber compound, glued together to form a hollow sphere and buffed to a matte finish. Different balls are provided for varying temperature and atmospheric conditions and standards of play: more experienced players use slow balls that are smaller and have less bounce than those used by less experienced players (slower balls tend to die in court corners, rather than standing up to allow easier shots). Depending on its specific rubber composition, a squash ball has the property that it bounces more at higher temperatures. Small coloured dots on the ball indicate its dynamic level (bounciness), and thus the standard of play for which it is suited. The recognised speed colours indicating the degree of dynamism are:
| Colour |
Speed |
Bounce |
| Double Yellow |
Extra Super Slow |
Very Low |
| Yellow |
Super Slow |
Low |
| Green or White |
Slow |
Average |
| Red |
Medium |
High |
| Blue |
Fast |
Very High |
Balls are manufactured to these standards by Prince, Dunlop, Pointfore, Wilson, Black Knight and others. The "double-yellow dot" ball, introduced in 2000, is currently the competition standard, replacing the earlier "yellow-dot" ball. There is also an "orange dot" ball, which is even less bouncy than the "double-yellow dot" ball, intended for use in areas of high altitude such as Mexico City, Calgary, Denver, and Johannesburg and parts of North America. The less dense air in these high altitude regions makes the ball bounce slightly higher, resulting in the need for such a ball.
Other balls available are:
• Dunlop "Max Blue" (aimed at beginners), which is 12% larger and has 40% longer "hang time" than a "double-yellow dot ball" and has "instant bounce"
• Dunlop "Max Progress" (red) (for players wishing to improve their technique), which is 6% larger with a 20% longer hang-time than a "double-yellow dot ball" and has instant bounce
Given the game's vigorousness, players wear comfortable sports clothing and robust indoor (non-marking) sports shoes. In competition, men usually wear shorts and a t-shirt or a polo shirt. Women normally wear a skirt and a t-shirt or a tank top, or a sports dress. Towelling wrist and head bands may also be required in humid climates. Polycarbonate lens goggles are recommended, as players might be struck with a fast-swinging racket or the ball that typically reaches speeds exceeding 200 km/h. Many squash venues mandate the use of eye protection and some association rules require that all juniors and doubles players must wear eye protection.
Basic rules and gameplay
The court
The squash court is a playing surface surrounded by four walls. The court surface contains a front line separating the front and back of the court and a half court line, separating the left and right hand sides of the back portion of the court, creating three 'boxes' - the front half, the back left quarter and the back right quarter. Both the back two boxes contain smaller services boxes. All of the floor-markings on a squash court are only relevant during serves.
There are four walls to a squash court. The front wall, on which three parallel lines are marked, has the largest playing surface, whilst the back wall, which typically contains the entrance to the court, has the smallest. The out line runs along the top of the front wall, descending along the side walls to the back wall. There are no other markings on the side or back walls. Shots struck above the out line, on any wall, are out. The bottom line of the front wall marks the top of the 'tin', a half meter-high metal area which if struck means that the ball is out. The middle line of the front wall is the service line and is only relevant during serves.
Service
The players usually spin a racket to decide who commences serving at the start of the match. This player starts the first rally by electing to serve from either the left or right service box. For a legal serve, part of one of the server's foot must be in contact with the floor within the service box while not touching any part of the service box lines (the rest of that foot can reside over the line so long as it is not touching the ground) while striking the ball; after being struck by the racket, the ball must strike the front wall above the service line and below the out line and land in the opposite quarter court. The receiving player can choose to volley a serve after it has hit the front wall. If a server wins a point, the two players switch sides for the following point.
Play
After the serve, the players take turns hitting the ball against the front wall, above the tin and below the out line. The ball may strike the side or back walls at any time, as long as it hits below the out line. It must not hit the floor after hitting the racket and before hitting the front wall. A ball landing on either the out line or the line above the tin is considered to be out. After the ball hits the front wall, it is allowed to bounce once on the floor (and any number of times against the side or back walls) before a player must return it. Players may move anywhere around the court but accidental or deliberate obstruction of the other player's movements is forbidden. Players typically return to the centre of the court after making a shot.
English scoring system
The scoring system is based on a “serving” system, in which one must gain the serve to obtain a point. Having the serve is sometimes considered to be on “offense”. The opponent (who does not have the serve) is considered to be on the defensive and must score to win the serve and then score again to gain a point.
Points are awarded if, during the course of play:
• The receiver fails to strike the ball before it has bounced twice
• The receiver hits the ball out (either on or above the out line, or on the tin)
• The receiver fails to hit the front wall with the ball before the ball has bounced
• Stroke: where the receiver obstructs the server during the point (see “Interference and Obstruction”)
Where the server does any of these things, or fails to hit the serve in, then the players change roles and the receiver will serve the next point, but no points are awarded.
Games are usually played to 9 points (alternatively, the receiver may opt to call "set two" and play to 10 when the score first reaches 8-8). Competition matches are usually played to "best-of-five" (i.e., the player to win the most out of 5 games).
American scoring system
Alternatively, in the point-a-rally scoring system (PARS), points are scored by the winner of each rally, whether or not he or she served. Traditionally, PARS scoring was up to 15 points (or the receiver calls 15 or 17 when the game reaches 14-14). However, in 2004, the PARS scoring was reduced to 11 for the professional game (if the game reaches 10-10, a player must win by two clear points). PARS is now used on the men's Professional Tour, and the tin height has been lowered by two inches for the men's professional tournaments (these changes have been made in a hope to shorten the length of the rallies and therefore the match). The women's Professional Tour uses the original tin height, but started using the PARS to 11 scoring system as of July 2008. In the International game, club, doubles and recreational matches are usually played using the traditional British scoring system, but the European Squash Federation (ESF), World Squash Federation (WSF) and several national federations are now using PARS to 11 on a trial or permanent basis. Scoring systems and rules can be adapted subtly to accommodate shorter game time or multiple players.
Referee
The referee is usually a certified position issued by the club or assigned squash league. The referee has dominant power over the squash players playing. Any conflict or interference is dealt with by the referee. The referee may also issue to take away points or games due to improper etiquette regarding conduct or rules. Refer to “Interference and Obstruction” for more detail.
Type of shots played
There are many types of shots played that leads to interesting games and strategy.
• Boast: Shots that are first played off the side or back walls
• Volley: Shots that are played without having the ball touch the ground.
• Drop Shot: Shots that are “tapped” lightly against the front wall to allow a silent and dead shot on the ground.
• Lob: Shots that are struck softly, high on the front wall, with a high arc, the object being the placement of the ball into the back corners of the court.
• Rail or Drive: Shots that are projected straight from the front wall towards the back wall. Usually these shots allow the ball to roll or “rail” against the sides of the side wall.
• Cross Court: Shots that allow the ball to travel from one side of the court to the other side.
• Kill: Shots that are hit firmly and travel no further than half court.
• Trickle boast: an attacking shot hit from the front of the court which is hit lightly so that the ball hits the side wall before the front wall and then the ground.
• Squeeze boast: A more difficult shot which is hit from the front of the court when the ball is very tight. Has the same effect as the trickle boast but is more deceptive because of its difficulty.
• Skid boast: Shot hit high with a lot of power so that the ball strikes the side wall before traveling cross court to the opposite corner.
• Nick shot: a more advanced shot that is a variation of the kill shot. Hit as a volley or off a bounce with power so that the ball travels into the nick between the side wall and floor in a way that forces the ball to have little or no bounce.
Strategy and tactics
A common strategy is to hit the ball straight up the side walls to the back corners referred to as a "rail," straight drive, wall, or "length", then move to the centre of the court near the "T" to be well placed to retrieve the opponent's return. Attacking with soft or "short" shots to the front corners (referred to as "drop shots") causes the opponent to cover more of the court and may result in an outright winner. "Angle" shots are used for deception and again to cause the opponent to cover more of the court.
A key strategy in squash is known as "dominating the T" (the intersection of the red lines near the centre of the court where the player is in the best position to retrieve the opponent's next shot). Skilled players will return a shot, and then move back toward the "T" before playing the next shot. From this position, the player can quickly access any part of the court to retrieve the opponent's next shot with a minimum of movement.
Rallies between experienced players may involve 30 or more shots and therefore a very high premium is placed on fitness, both aerobic and anaerobic. As players become more skilled and, in particular, better able to retrieve shots, points often become a war of attrition. At higher levels of the game, the fitter player has a major advantage.
Ability to change the direction of ball at the last instant is also important to off-balance the opponent. Expert players can anticipate the opponent's shot a few tenths of a second before the average player, giving them a chance to react sooner.
Interference and obstruction
Interference and obstruction are an inevitable aspect of this sport, since two players are confined within a shared space. Generally, the rules entitle players to a clear view of the ball after it has struck the front wall, reasonable access to the ball, a reasonable swing and an unobstructed shot to any part of the front wall. When interference occurs, a player may appeal for a "let" and the referee (or the players themselves if there is no official) then interprets the extent of the interference. The referee may elect to allow a let and the players then replay the point, or award a "stroke" (either a point or the right to serve) to the appealing player, depending on the degree of interference, whether the interfering player made an adequate effort to avoid interfering, and whether the player interfered with was likely to have hit a winning shot had the interference not occurred. An exception to all of this occurs when the interfering player is directly in the path of the other player's swing, effectively preventing the swing, in which case a stroke is always awarded.
When it is deemed that there has been little or no interference, the rules provide that no let is to be allowed, in the interests of continuity of play and the discouraging of spurious appeals for lets. Because of the subjectivity in interpreting the nature and magnitude of interference, the awarding (or withholding) of lets and strokes is often controversial.
When a player's shot hits their opponent prior to hitting the front wall, interference has occurred. If the ball was travelling towards the side wall when it hit the opponent, it is usually a let. However, it is a stroke to the player who hit the ball if the ball was travelling straight to the front wall when the ball hit the opponent. An exception to all of this occurs when the the player hitting the ball has "turned", i.e., let the ball pass him on one side, but then hit it on the other side as it came off the back wall. In these cases, the stroke goes to the player who was hit by the ball.
Cultural, social, and health aspects
There are several variations of squash played across the world. In the U.S. hardball singles and doubles are played with a much harder ball and different size courts (as noted above). Hardball singles has lost much of its popularity in North America (in favour of the International version), but the hardball doubles game is still active. There is also a doubles version of squash played with the standard ball, sometimes on a wider court, and a more tennis-like variation known as squash tennis.
The relatively small court and low-bouncing ball makes scoring points harder than in its American cousin, racquetball, as the ball may be played to all four corners of the court. Since every ball must strike the front wall above the tin (unlike racquetball), the ball cannot be easily "killed". As a result, rallies tend to be longer than in racquetball.
Most squash players prefer partners who are compatible physically, mentally, and technically, as a small difference in ability may result in one player overwhelmingly dominating the match.[citation needed] Currently there is no international standard method (other than for professional players) for evaluating skill levels for players.
Squash provides an excellent cardiovascular workout. In one hour of squash, a player may expend approximately 600 to 1000 calories (3,000 to 4,000 kJ),[4] which is significantly more than most other sports and over 70% more than either general tennis or racquetball. The sport also provides a good upper and lower body workout by utilising both the legs to run around the court and the arms and torso to swing the racquet. In 2003, Forbes rated squash as the number one healthiest sport to play.[5] However, some studies have implicated squash as a cause of possible fatal cardiac arrhythmia and argued that squash is an inappropriate form of exercise for older men with heart disease.
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