Category Archives: Squash Tips

Overcoming Mental Hurdles

Posted on February 20, 2012 by mike

As I’ve mentioned in my previous blogs, the mental side of squash is an important and intriguing part of the game that separates great players from good players at many levels. One of the most difficult parts of the mental game to master is believing in yourself to beat slightly better/higher ranked players in important matches. This is something you must come to grips with if you desire to climb the rankings; be it worldwide, nationally or even locally. Improvements made through practice are only tangible when translated into a competitive setting.

I have spent unhealthy lengths of time trying to teach myself to believe I can win, so most of this advice comes from personal experience. There is a big difference between thinking you can win, knowing you can win, and truly believing you will win. When playing someone I usually beat, I have an internal calmness that is not shaken by lucky bounces, bad calls or even lost games. I am fully confident that I will ultimately take control and win the match. 95% of the time this is exactly what happens, and this total belief plays a big role in navigating my way through tricky scenarios. However, when I play someone who I desperately want to beat but haven’t, the exact opposite happens. Every tin and bad shot is heartbreaking. My body is tense, my movement is awkward, and I can’t find a rhythm. I feel the need to play perfect squash, but the result of my desperation is usually far from that. I firmly believe that this inability to find a comfort zone is due to a lack of confidence in my abilities. I do not think that playing within my own means will be enough to beat a superior opponent, so any small mistake is magnified tenfold in my mind. I think this a fairly common theme among competitive players.

The above notwithstanding, a more fundamental question perhaps holds the real key to taking down stronger opposition. Why do we have these ideas about being better than some opponents and worse than others? Where does this mental pecking order come from? Indeed, merit does need to be given to previous results and rankings. But these classifications do not matter when a match begins. Regardless of what happened the previous hundred times, you still need to get on court and play squash if you want to win. Reputations alone don’t win matches. You have go on court and use your skills and knowledge to win. There is no sense worrying about what tournaments someone has won or who they have beaten.  These are all external to the actual task of winning the match. As with many things, the less you think about it the simpler it becomes. Don’t talk yourself out of winning a match. Play the way you know how and get it done.

Of course, this is all easy to say from ‘behind the glass’. The current world #2, James Willstrop, has lost about 20 consecutive times to #1 Nick Matthew. Matthew had no business winning some of those encounters, but his total belief coupled with James’ possible self-doubts have allowed him to snatch a few of those victories from the jaws of defeat.

Anyone who knows me well will find these preachings ironic to say the least. But when put into practice, they are very effective. Next time you are playing that dreaded opponent, try to block out absolutely every notion of how the match is supposed to unfold. If you can, the result may be pleasantly surprising.

 

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Squash – The cost of a bagel

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Jeff

Thursday night is league night for me in our regional league.  I play B level and myself had a pretty straight forward match.  Our #1 though was in very tough playing the top player in our league, one of the top under 19 players in Canada. The junior used to play at our club until he went to University so these two have played countless time before.  The match ended with the expected player winning but not without some interesting twists and turns along the way.

The pace of play for the outset was really fast and hard.  Both players are extremely fit and their movement is astounding.  The ability to retrieve balls that look like they are not returnable is quite amazing.  The first game was tight the whole way through with rarely more than a couple of points between them.  Our #1 was able to close it out in extra points though I believe 15-13.

Games 2 and 3 went to the junior but were tightly contested.

Game 4 is where it got really interesting.  The junior got off to a quick lead and kept adding points and our #1 was having no success getting on the board. At around 5-0 there were murmurs in the crowd of a possible bagel.  The junior was digging in and our #1 looked like he could not figure how to win a rally.  Even when he was really extending the junior the ball kept coming back.  This is where the really interesting turn came.  The lead eventually got to 7-0 and there was a clear focus from the kid on getting the bagel.  He definitely knew it was possible and wanted it.  Our #1 knew it too but for the last few points had worked the kid all over the court and even though he had lost the rallies it was clear who was doing way more work.  At 7-0 a very hard and low unexpected boast ended the run and the hopes of the bagel to bring the score to 7-1.  That 1 point was huge of course but the work that our #1 made the kid do was even more important.  The game completely turned around and the score kept getting closer.  The change in the match was not only physical it was also mental.  There seemed to be a definite focus on getting the bagel and when that was lost there was a mental let down as well. The game eventually got to 10-9 for the junior.  Remarkably close considering the score had been 7-1. The kid did manage to close the game out and thus the match but it definitely looked in question.

It was a very entertaining match to watch.  The 4th game was definitely an incredible affair with a couple of lessons to be learned.  If you are the player that is struggling to win even a point against a tough opponent don’t give up hope.  Mental toughness is imperative.  If you are in the rallies and really making him work focus on that.  Don’t let the negative aspect of the score deter you.  See the positive in how you are extending your opponent and realize the work you are making him do will pay dividends later.  Look for a let down in focus. If you are the player way out in front remember the goal is to win the match not bagel your opponent.  Certainly you do not want to give up any cheap points but keep focused on the match and its outcome not on winning a personal battle, getting the bagel, and in the process risk losing the war.

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The Fascinating Game of Squash

Posted on February 15, 2012 by mike

Few activities (healthy ones, at least) are as captivating as squash. People who have never seen it played in their lives suddenly become fascinated by the sport and play every day. It has endless new challenges and skills to master, and there is always someone better than you. In this post, I am going to detail some of the reasons I personally find squash such an amazing game. Ultimately, I think these observations can help simplify the game and make you a better player.

Perhaps the coolest thing about squash is its approximate, indefinite nature. Even the best players in the world rarely play perfect shots or points. This is why there are so many different successful styles and approaches. There is no single way to win at squash. Unlike “closed skill” sports such as swimming and running, where the same task is executed ad nauseum, there are literally thousands of decisions and actions being made every second that determine the outcome of a point. Closed skill sports tend to follow a simple equation: talent + hard work = success. However, “open skill” games like squash have no guaranteed formula for success. There are infinite combinations of movements and angles that can’t all be mastered. We all know someone who is annoyingly talented and hits the ball straight and clean despite playing once a week. Likewise, there are players who train excessively hard for minimal gains. Talented players seem to have an innate understanding of the angles and how to put the ball in the most difficult place. Without athleticism and coordination superior to their opponent, they manage to make people run laps just to stay in the rally! Jonathon Power is a classic example of a player who understands the game. I think this is why he can still challenge the best in the world despite being retired for six years and not training.

Another cool facet of the game is the psychology of winning. Mental toughness and determination are big reasons why less talented people often end up beating the naturals mentioned above. I can’t count the number of times I have seen a seemingly inferior player frustrate their opponent by running down every ball and forcing error upon error. Eventually, the talented player runs out of ideas and folds.

Both of these approaches are completely valid strategies for winning at squash. As the saying goes, people ask “How Many, not How”. How you win matches isn’t what counts when the dust has settled…how many matches you won does. So don’t obsess yourself with learning a certain style or playing perfect squash. In fact, the term perfect squash is really an oxymoron. Find a style you are comfortable with, and play each match on your own terms. Having a clear plan and sticking to your strengths is one thing I always do when I am playing well. Part of the beauty of the game is the ability to express yourself through your playing style. It is always surprising how much easier it all seems when you rid yourself of preconceived ideas about how it should be played, and do what feels natural.

 

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How the Pros Train

Posted on February 9, 2012 by mike

Some of the most frequent questions people ask about life as a squash player (other than “How much money do you make?”) have to do with day-to-day training routines. After all, the main reason top pros are so good is the years of dedicated, methodical training they have done.  Most squash fans know that the average pro is doing two or three sessions a day five days a week, so without discussing the obvious I will try to give some insight into what myself and my training partners do in a given week.

Since the National Squash Academy opened last year, training for players based in Toronto has become centralized. Obviously this is a big step forward for Canadian squash. Any day of the week, you can find 6-10 of the best players in Canada and the odd international guest on court at the NSA. There are two sessions per day most days. One of them is either match play (three times a week) or drills involving lots of movement and options. The other one is usually a “closed” session, with the purpose of improving technique, accuracy and consistency. The more intense sessions are a great time to implement new skills being perfected in the closed sessions. Total time on court each day is usually around four hours, and there is always work to be done in the gym afterwards. Due to each player having different tournament schedules, it is rare to have everyone on the exact same program for a day. The core values of each session remain the same, and it is up to the players to tailor their training around tournaments as they see fit. This is a whole science of its own and often takes years to master.

Training full-time is a huge mental battle and there are ups and downs within each month, week and day. On the one hand, you have to put 100% effort mentally and physically into every session in order to see results. On the other, showing up to the courts every morning with weary legs and doing boast-drive for the thousandth time can leave anyone struggling for motivation. In my few months of being dedicate full-time I have started to understand two major points: 1) you absolutely cannot get caught-up in micro-frustrations. On a given day you might be a bit tired, a bit slow, or a bit inaccurate. This obviously happens to everyone, but letting bad days undermine your confidence and limit your enjoyment will only turn squash into a chore rather than a passion. 2) you can’t train with an insane intensity every day without burning out at some point. It can be tempting to exhaust yourself to satisfaction on a Monday or Tuesday, but the rest of the week will be compromised. Five days at 85% are better than one day all out. I’m always looking to derive new lessons from my training experiences. Hopefully they will pay off some day!

 

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Control the ‘T’ Sports is pleased to introduce Mike McCue

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Jeff

We are very excited to announce that Mike McCue, an up and coming PSA Tour player will be blogging for Control the ‘T’ Sports.  Mike has been playing squash since the age of 10 and is currently 18-years old.  He finished his junior career as the #2 ranked player in Canada.  His current ranking on the PSA Tour is #234.  Mike trains under Jamie Hickox and Jamie Nichols at the National Squash Academy in Toronto.

Mike’s posts will focus on squash from the perspective of someone that is turning professional and trying to make it on the PSA Tour.  You can expect posts from Mike focusing on his training, training tips for other players, life as an up and comer on the PSA Tour, coverage of tournaments he plays in and other topics related to squash.  We hope you enjoy his posts!

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Jonathon Power – The master of deception

Posted on December 27, 2011 by Jeff

I am watching a match between Jonathon Power and Peter Nicol on www.psasquashtv.com and am inspired by Jonathon’s play.  He uses all 4 corners of the court beautifully to stretch his opponent out.  What I find truly incredible to watch though is his use of deception in the front corners.  Even watching the match on the computer it is difficult to figure out what shot he is going to play.  There are really three things I believe that made him so hard to read at the front court.  His body position, racquet preparation and how good he was at hitting the various shots.

Your body position in the front corners is critical as it gives you the ability to hit the drop, the straight length or the cross court.  In particular leaving yourself the straight shot is critical and what Jonathon did so well.  It is a hard shot to play and most players don’t even leave themselves the option with their approach to the ball in the front corner.  Jonathon on both the forehand and backhand would setup the same for a drop, a straight drive or the cross court drive.

Racquet preparation is equally critical to your body position.  Jonathon’s racquet preparation when he was in the front corner looked the same for the drop or either drive.  It is very important to have your racquet in a position that will allow you to drive or drop. Many players when they are going to drop have already extended their racquet out in such a manner that prevents them from driving the ball.  Likewise they will only have their racquet back when they go in to the front corner when they are going to drive.  Focus on being able to hit a drop, or the straight or cross court drive every time you go in to the front corners.  Work on making your racquet preparation look the same for every choice.

The ability to hit a quality drop, a quality straight drive or a quality cross court drive front corners is the key.  Jonathon Power was great at all three shots.  He had an amazing drop.  He could kill it in to the nick given the angle or if the angle did not present itself he would keep it hugging the side wall.  His cross court drive had the width to get by his opponent at the ‘T’.  The straight drive from Jonathon was lethal.  It is a very tough shot as your can’t pull it at all, you can’t catch the side wall it has to be very straight.  Jonathon hit the straight drive from the front corner beautifully.

Jonathon Power was terrific in the front corners and his opponents rarely knew what shot was coming.  His body position, racquet preparation and the fact that he could play any shot with such quality from the front corners left his opponents guessing as to what shot he was going to play.

 

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Squash – Fluid movement back to the ‘T’

Posted on December 24, 2011 by Jeff

Many I am sure have seen this video from www.squashskills.com featuring the great Peter Nicol discussing moving back to the ‘T’.  Here is the video:

Squashskills.com is sponsored by Prince Sports

His discussion on not rushing back to the ‘T’ is critical and not something that I think you hear discussed that often. Most people are taught to get the back to the ‘T’ which is of course critical but with too much emphasis this can definitely lead to players rushing back to the ‘T’. This can cause a couple of problems. Getting stuck as Peter mentions and getting hit behind as well I would think is a risk too.

If you arrive back at the ‘T’ long before you opponent is going to play their shot it is very easy to get got caught flat-footed. If your opponent is very good at holding their shot as Peter Nicol noted Jonathon Power was then if you are at the ‘T’ too soon you have to wait, and wait for your opponent to hit the shot. They will definitely be trying to catch you flat-footed. Arriving back at the ‘T’ right when they actually are playing their shot will help prevent this from happening.

I think another point to this is that if you are to aggressive moving back to the ‘T’ you risk having your opponent hit the ball back to where you just left if they take the ball early. Your aggressive movement out of that corner will make it difficult to change direction and go back to where you came from.

Getting back to the ‘T’ is critical in squash but definitely take the great Peter Nicol’s advice and try not to charge back to it. Move fluidly and try and arrive when your opponent is going to play their shot so you don’t get stuck and caught flat-footed.

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Squash – Racquet Preparation

Posted on July 17, 2011 by Jeff

Squash is a very tough game and when playing it we are typically under a great deal of pressure from our opponent. They are working hard to take time away from us to limit the shots we can play.  Early racquet preparation is critical as it gives us time and options in selecting which shot to hit

Good racquet preparation should be the start of every shot hit in squash. What is good racquet preparation though? One of the best answers I have heard on this is from Mike Way in one of his videos with Jonathon Power and Graham Ryding. He said the first part of good racquet preparation is getting the racquet back. If you have time the racquet will probably go up as well but your first thought should be on getting it back. It is also critical that your start your racquet preparation before you get to the ball. It should start from when you leave the ‘T’ and be complete when you arrive at the position you are going to hit the ball from. At the club level you will often see a player get to the ball in decent time but not start to prepare the racquet until they get there robbing themselves of time.

Racquet preparation also gives us options as to what shot we want to hit. We need to generate racquet head speed to be able to drive the ball past our opponent. Having your racquet back is critical to this. It allows you to accelerate the racquet head through the ball to generate good pace. While having your racquet back is essential in being able to drive the ball effectively it also still allows you to play a drop, boast or lob as well.

Consistency in your racquet preparation is also very important. Not only does it give you options as to what shot you want to hit but if your racquet preparation looks the same on every shot it makes it nearly impossible for your opponent to read your choice of shot. This is probably the most key element in deception. If your racquet preparation looks the same for a drive, drop, lob or boast you not only have the option of hitting any of these shot but your opponent will not see which shot you are going to hit from the position your racquet is in your back swing.

Are there situations where we can’t get good racquet preparation? Of course if your opponent as put you under so much pressure that you are at a full stretch to just get to the ball you probably won’t have time to get give yourself options as to what shot you are going to hit. If you focus on getting your racquet back as part of your movement to the ball you will find yourself in less of these situations though and your level of play will improve dramatically.

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Squash – Patience on the ‘T’

Posted on June 25, 2011 by Jeff

One of the most difficult situations you can find yourself in when playing squash is recovering from a weak shot.  If you have hit a loose shot to the front, whether forced or unforced you are in a very compromising … Continue reading →

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Squash – Pace of play

Posted on May 27, 2011 by Jeff

In the last post we talked about deception.  In particular using a hold to add deception to your shot selection.  Another very important method to keep your opponent guessing and off balance is varying your pace of play. Varying your pace of play can be an effective method to keep or change momentum in a match when needed. Changing the pace of your shots is also effective at keeping your opponent guessing.  Squash is a very physical game as any squash player can attest to but it is also very mental. Varying your pace of play is a good strategical method to help control a match.

When should we play at a fast pace or at a slow pace?  One of the best times to vary the pace of play is when you need to change momentum in a game.  If your opponent is pressing hard and has gained the momentum trying to slow down the pace of play can often help.  You can do this playing slower paced length shots using height to get the ball past your opponent.  Lobs will work very well in this situation too.

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