Tag Archives: squash tips

Swing Like a Pro

Posted on February 24, 2012 by mike

The swing is one of the most important and scrutinized aspects of every player’s overall game. Good technique allows a few important things to develop in your game: consistency in ball striking, ability to hit the ball from compromised positions, and deception.  It is something that cannot be swept under the carpet; you will struggle to pass a ‘C’ level of play if you have major technical deficiencies. Most errors ultimately come from some sort of technical miscue.

One of the best ways to improve your technique is by watching top players and analyzing theirs. Be wary of trying to copy the aesthetics of your favourite pro’s swing though. Ramy Ashour, for example, has a swing that no one would ever teach a beginner. He has superhuman wrist strength and racquet head speed, and takes almost no backswing. Nick Matthew is another example of someone with a slightly unorthodox swing. However, there are some key points you can take from almost any top player. I think anyone can incorporate the following five tips into their swing while maintaining some individual flair:

1)      Keep your space from the ball. Most people get far too close to the ball. This not only decreases your potential power (the arm is strongest when fully extended), but also brings your body further from the ‘T’ and deeper into the corners. Spread yourself out as much as possible, let the ball come to you, hit quickly and take a short lunge back to the ‘T’.

2)      Hit the ball with a flat racquet face. Of course, everyone is taught to hit the ball with an open face to ensure consistency. But hitting the ball flat (or even slightly topspin) will increase the heaviness of your shot, and keep the ball lower as it travels through the court. Particularly useful when hitting from a position of advantage. Jonathon Power was a master of this.

3)      Use less arm when digging out a tight ball. When the ball is buried in the back corner or glued to the wall, taking a full swing will often lead to an error (and broken racquet). You can subtly control your racquet using only wrist and hand. You might have to hit a defensive shot, but it’s better than the other option. The tighter the ball is, the shorter the swing should be.

4)      Take a longer follow through. Following through will noticeably improve your power, but it will also help keep the ball straighter. If you can limit your backswing and instead rely on your follow through for power, you will minimize the inconsistencies that cause errors.

5)      Get in position to hit early. This is also a movement tip, but even when your opponent has played a soft drive or weak boast, get your feet and racquet set early. You will feel like you have tons of time to the hit the ball, and it affords you the chance to incorporate some deception. Without any crazy fakes or flicks, simply standing with your racquet up will freeze your opponent or lead them to guess.

Try to make use of one of these tips every time you practice. A match isn’t a great opportunity to bring in a new technical element for the first time. Good luck!

 

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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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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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Tough Week on court? Time to focus.

Posted on November 26, 2011 by Jeff

It was a tough week on the court this past week.  I seemed to have lost focus on what works well for me. Thankfully this was a week off from league but still definitely was disappointed in my play.  I am sure this has happened to all of us.  I think what is important to figure out what went wrong and work to improve.

So what went wrong for me this week?  Focus.  I was playing squash but not with any purpose.  I went on court without any clear sense of what I was trying to work on or accomplish.  I hit shots without any clear objective.  I was not trying to get my length shots to die in the back I was just hitting them.  I wasn’t going short with the intent to work my opponent hard.  I was just hitting balls.  My movement was also without focus.  I play best when I am hunting the ball and trying to volley as much as possible. I was not returning to the ‘T’ quick enough to be able to do that.

I am playing today and am determined to play with focus.  The serve will be hit with variety and with an objective.  It will hit the side wall when I am aiming to.  There will be a few serves at the body to try and keep my opponent off guard.  Length shots will be hit with purpose.  They are going to get past my opponent in to the back corner and my opponent is going to have to really dig them out.  When I go short it will be with the intent to really stretch my opponent out.  They may well get the ball back but they will have to work very hard to do so.  The focus is not on winning it is on hitting the best shot I can – every time I strike the ball.  I will hunt the ball and volley as much as possible to exert pressure on my opponent.

I will focus.

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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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