SQUASH

(A) History

The sport of Squash was originally developed as a variant of Rackets.

Rackets were first created at the beginning of the 19th century in Fleet
prison London where prisoners played with a ball inside their cell with the
four walls. Squash is believed to have started at Harrow School around
1830 in England when some boys became tired of waiting for their chance
to use the rackets court and played impromptu games with a small rubber
ball on the court outside the wall. The sound of the ball’s impact on the
wall was different from that of Rackets, and they discovered that a
punctured rubber ball "squashed" on impact with the wall. In 1864 the
first four Squash courts were constructed at the Harrow School.

In its early days, international squash was controlled by the Squash

Rackets Association of England and the United States Squash Rackets
Association, while in 1968, the International Squash Rackets Federation
(ISRF) was formed. The ISRF continued to thrive and was amalgamated
with the Women's International Squash Federation in 1985. In 1992, the
name of the Federation was changed to the World Squash Federation
(WSF). The World Squash Federation now had 135 National Squash
Associations in its membership. It is recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and
maintains responsibility for the rules of the Game, Court and Equipment Specifications, Refereeing and
Coaching, maintains a World Calendar of events and organises and promotes World Championships for
Men, Women, Junior Men, Junior women and Master age groups in both singles and doubles Squash.

(B) History of Squash in Hong Kong

Hong Kong was introduced to squash by army services (British) in the early 20th Century. The first squash
court was built on the present Hong Kong Squash Centre site in the Army grounds of Victoria Barracks as
it was then, but Hong Kong Park as it is now. It is also where Hong Kong Squash is located. Hong Kong
Squash Rackets Association (HKSRA) was founded in 1961. Squash over the years in Hong Kong has
grown enormously in popularity and has proven a most suitable sport for her limited space not only in
competition but also as a recreation. To place direct emphasis on 'squash', the Association officially in the
year 1996 became Hong Kong Squash (HK Squash).

(C) The Singles Squash Court

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(D) Rackets

(E) Balls

(F) Eye Protection

The World Squash Federation recommends
that all Squash players should wear protective
eye guards over the eyes at all times during
play. From 1st January 1999 onwards, all
junior competitors (age 19 or below) have to wear protective eye guards at
competitions organized by Hong Kong Squash. Eye guards for players wearing
or not wearing glasses are available.

(F) Clothing

Players should put on a pale colours polo shirt with a collar and a short/skirt to avoid affecting
their opponent seeing the ball. Squash calls for lots of sudden acceleration and rapid changes in
direction, so well-fitting cotton socks are important. Another essential is that players should wear
white or non-remarkable soled indoor shoes with good arch support to prevent sore feet.

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(G) The Single Games
Serve
• To start the match, the right to serve is decided by the
spin of the racket.
• The server can choose the service box on either side of
the court.
• The server must stand with one foot in the service box.
• He/She drops the ball or throws it in the air and hits it
before it touches the floor/walls directly to the front wall
between the service line and the out-of-court line, so that
it lands in the back half of the opposite court on its
return from the front wall.
• Only one serve is allowed.
• The server must alternate the serve from each side of the
court if he/she continues to score a point. He/She
continues to serve until he/she loses the rally. Then the
opponent becomes the server and he/she has the right to
serve from either side of the court.

Rally
After a correct serve, players alternate hitting the ball until the rally ends when one of the players makes a
mistake:
 Not up: the ball is not struck correctly by the server or striker; OR when the ball bounces more than
once upon the floor before being struck by the striker; OR the ball hits the floor before it reaches the
front wall; OR when the ball touches the striker or anything he wears or carries other than his racket.
 Down: the ball hits the board line or the tin.
 Out: the ball hit the out of court line or the wall above the line.

The ball can strike the back or side walls in any combination in its flight towards or away from the front
wall.

Scoring (Point-a-rally to 11, PAR11)

A standard match is played as the best of five games. Each game is played to 11 points. Either player may
score a point in a rally. The player who scores 11 points wins the game except that if the score reaches
10-all, the game continues until one player leads by two points. The server, on winning a rally, scores a
point and retains the service; the receiver, on winning a rally, scores a point and becomes the server. The
winner of the previous game serves first in the next game.

Terms
• Boast: A shot played so that the ball hits the side wall before hitting the front wall.
• Lob: A shot played so that the ball hangs high in the air and falls almost vertically to die in the
back corners.
• Drop Shot: The drop shot is a delicately placed stroke that lands close to the front wall.
• Volley: A ball hit before it bounces, either on the forehand or backhand side.
• Tight, length & width: In squash, the players will try to hit the ball close to either walls (tight) or
to the back of the court (length). They will also hit the ball away from their opponent (width) to
avoid them volleying.
• Nick: It is the junction between two walls or between the wall and the floor where the ball dies
immediately.
• T-position: It is the area at the junction of the short line and the half-court line.

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Warm up
At the start of a match, the players go on the court together to warm up the ball for a maximum of 4
minutes. After 2 minutes, the players must change sides unless they have already done so. The players
must have equal opportunities to strike the ball (2-3
times).

(H) Technique
Grip
Racket face perpendicular to the floor:
1. The ‘V’ formed by the thumb and index finger is
placed over the shaft inside the edge.
2. Thumb touches the middle finger.
3. End of the palm rests on the top of the handle.
4. Keep the wrist up for good ball control.
5. Middle finger, 4th finger and last finger spread
out.
6. Index finger and middle finger are separated a
finger width.
7. To reduce arm muscle fatigue, hold the racket
tight just when you hit the ball.

Wrong：dropped wrist
Correct grip size

Short Grip: Mid Grip: Long Grip:

More control but Good control and Less control but
less power. power more power

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Forehand and Backhand Drives

Target Areas
Targets for different shots are shown below:
Area 1 - Straight/Crosscourt Dying Length Drives
Area 2 - Straight Full Length Drives
Area 3 - Crosscourt Full Length Drives, Services and
Lobs rebound area and landing in Area 4
Area 5 - Straight/Crosscourt Kills
Area6 - Straight/Crosscourt Drops
Area 7 - Fading Boasts

Footwork
 Ready at the “T” and watch the ball all the time.
 Don’t run to the ball. Walk in an arc.
 Move up and down the middle of the court to a place at
the side of the ball.
 Try to keep outside the “sidelines”(dotted straight lines).
 Keep the ball between yourself and the wall.
 Keep the leading foot one racket length away from the
ball.
 Return to the “T” after hitting.

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(I) Tactics
Basics
1. Avoid unforced errors which will benefit your opponent.
2. Recover to the “T” (the area around the centre of the court) as quickly as possible after
striking the ball to shorten the distance to cover for the next shot.
3. Keep your opponent running by hitting the ball away from them and making them tired.
4. Hit the ball mainly to the back of the court to force your opponent to make a short and weak
return for your attack.
5. Pressurize your opponent by volleying their loose shots which will give them less time to
react to the next shot.
6. Vary your returns, timing, height and hardness of your hitting (pace control) to limit your
opponent’s anticipation.
7. Hit the ball tight for good length and wide for crosscourt to avoid opponent volleying
8. Hit the ball high and soft when under pressure to gain recovery time.

Shots Selection (Note: Aiming at hitting the ball away from the opponent. Refer to attached illustrations.)
The most appropriate way to return your opponent's shots:
:

a. Boast --------------------------------------------------------------- Drop

b. Loose Straight Drive --------------------------------------------- Volley Boast

c. Loose Crosscourt Drive ----------------------------------------- Volley Drop

d. Short Straight Drive --------------------------------------------- Boast

e. Serve & slow to reach “T”----------------------------------- Volley Straight Drive

f. Loose Drop ------------------------------------------------------- Crosscourt Drive

g. Loose Angle (front court boast)-------------------------------- Straight Drive

h. Anticipated Drop ------------------------------------------------- Crosscourt Lob

(J) Interference
The player whose turn it is to play the ball is entitled to freedom from interference by the opponent. To
avoid interference, the opponent must make every effort to provide the player with:

1. Unobstructed direct access to the ball;

2. A fair view of the ball on its rebound from the front wall;

3. Freedom to hit the ball with a reasonable swing;

4. Freedom to play the ball directly to any part of the front wall.

Interference occurs if the opponent fails to fulfil any of the above requirements. When one player is
obstructed by his/her opponent, he/she can call out loud 'let please'. The appeal for interference will be
decided by the Referee with either “Yes Let”, “No Let”, or “Stroke”. The Referee, when making his
decision, shall go through the following line of reasoning:

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 Question Decision
1. Did interference occur？
Yes No No Let

2. Could obstructed player have reached the ball and made a good return, and was that player making
every effort to do so？
Yes No No Let

3. Did obstructing player make every effort to move clear？
Yes No Stroke to obstructed player

4. Was the obstructed player in a position to play a winner？
Yes  Stroke to obstructed player
No (The player could only make a good return)  Yes Let

(K) Video Review (May be used where the technology is available)

1. A player may request a review of an Interference

decision of Let, Stroke, or No Let only. Each
player has one review per game; if the original
decision is overruled, the player retains the
review.

2. When the score reaches 10-all, each player will

reset to have 1 review available.

3. The Referee could ask the Video Referee for

help with a decision whenever necessary.

(L) Further attempts to hit the ball

If the striker strikes at the ball and misses, further attempts may be made to strike it.

(M) Turning

1. If the striker could have struck the ball without turning, but turned in order to create an
opportunity to request a let, no let is allowed.

2. If the striker had turned and the ball hit the non-striker, a stroke is awarded to the non-striker.

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(N) Injury

1. Self-inflicted Injury
The Referee allows a time interval of 3 minutes. If the injured player requests additional recovery
time after this, the Referee will require the player to concede 1 game and accept 90-second
intervals, and then resume play or concede the match.

2. Contributed Injury

The Referee allows 1 hour for the injured player to recover. The injured player must, by the end of
this period, resume play or concede the match.

3. Opponent-inflicted injury

(a) Accidental: The Referee shall apply a conduct penalty to the opponent. The injured player is
permitted 15 minutes to recover. If the player cannot resume play, the match is
awarded to the injured player.
(b) Deliberate or Dangerous Play: If the injured player requires any time for recovery, the match
is awarded to the injured player. If the injured player can
continue without delay, the Referee shall apply a conduct
penalty to the opponent.

(O) Illness

1. A player who suffers an illness that involves neither an injury nor bleeding must either continue
to play immediately or concede the game in progress and take the 90-second interval between
games to recover. This includes conditions such as a cramp, nausea, breathlessness, and asthma.
Only 1 game may be conceded. The player must then resume play, or concede the match.

2. If a player’s vomiting or other action causes the court to become unplayable, the match is
awarded to the opponent.

(P) Bleeding

1. Whenever bleeding occurs, play must stop and the player must leave the court and attend to the
bleeding promptly. Reasonable time for treatment is allowed. Play may resume only after the
bleeding has stopped and, where possible, the wound has been covered.

2. A player who is unable to stop the bleeding within the time permitted must either concede 1
game and take the 90-second interval and then continue play, or concede the match.

3. If the bleeding is the result of the opponent’s deliberate or dangerous play or action, the match
is awarded to the injured player.

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(Q) Ball Hitting A Player
Players shall avoid hitting their opponent with the ball at all times during a match.
On the condition that the return would have been good:

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 Shots Selection Illustrations:

“O” “R”
a. Boast – Drop b. Loose straight drive – Volley boast

c. Loose crosscourt – Volley drop d. Short straight drive – Boast

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Shots Selection Illustrations (cont'd):

e. Serve & slow to reach T – Volley straight f. Loose drop – Crosscourt drive
drive

g. Loose angle (front court boast) – h. Anticipated drop – Crosscourt lob

Straight drive

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References
1. Akyol, M. (2012). Squash for Beginners: Squash Basics. Kindle.
2. Albir G. S. (2017). Anatomy & 100 essential stretching exercises for tennis: And other racket
sports, including paddleball, squash, and badminton. Hauppage, NY: Barrons Educational
Series, Inc.
3. Beddington, J. (2015). Play Better Squash. G2 Entertainment Ltd.
4. Correa, J. (2015). Creating the Ultimate Squash Player. CreateSpace Independent Publishing
Platform.
5. Hirst, P. A. (2011). Squash: Skills Techniques Tactics. The Crowood Press Ltd.
6. Khan, S. (2019). Khan Squash Tips: Tips on How to Excel in the Game of Squash.
Independently published.
7. McKenzie, I. (2002). Ian McKenzie’s Squash skills. The Crowood Press Ltd.
8. Murray, S. (2016). The Science of Sport: Squash. The Crowood Press Ltd.
9. Willstrop, J. & Gilmour, R (2012). Shot and a Ghost: a year in the brutal world of
professional squash. CPI Group (UK) Ltd.
10. Yarrow, P. & Harrison, A. (2009). Squash: Steps to Success. (2nd Ed.) Human Kinetics
Publishers.

Websites (Retrieved on 17 June 2024)

1. Asian Squash Federation. Retrieved from [Link]
2. Hong Kong Squash. Retrieved from [Link]
3. World Squash Federation. Retrieved from [Link]
4. Learning Sports 101】Episode 1 – Squash. Retrieved from
[Link]

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