Squash

I briefly started playing squash when we were given a bit of freedom to do what we liked in PE lessons in my late teens (this is back in the 90s). We were allowed to go off site to local sports clubs etc and use their facliities. There were only 3 of us that went to play squash and I was by far the worst. One guy in particular would regularly thrash me and I was convinced I must be utterly terrible. I'd occasionally have the odd close game witht he other guy but mostly I just got beaten easily. Put me off for life.

Just so happens the guy that regularly thrashed me was Nick Matthew.
 
blitzwing85 said:
Not sure what's going on with my Squash lately. I failed to get promoted last month after a catastrophic 3-0 loss to someone who has never even come close to beating me before.

First game this month and cruise to a 2-0 lead in 10 minutes then I just lost the plot again and he came back 2-2. I seem to just go through phases where I give up mentally or lose all focus - and suddenly look like I can't even play.

I sorted my head out and crushed him the following 3 games but it's really annoying me!!

When I get into a rally I can compete with all of the top club players yet my focus problem means I get stuck halfway down the leagues.

Suppose there are not really many tips to be had for that part of the game. My technique and shot selection has come on a lot since coaching but my mental focus is holding me back hugely.

maybe it's just as simple as putting pressure on myself to get promoted because I know these players currently are not at the same level as me and I want to get higher up. I'll relax next game and just play the % game let them run around after the ball.
I've beaten people from work who are Top league in better clubs than the one I play at and I'm down in league 7 at the min...lol Makes no sense.
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I find the more wound up I get (or more pressure I put on myself) the worse I play. My advice chill out, play the % game. To start with go for long rallies with drives down the wall to get into it before going for the kill.

If you lose a few points in a row then try something different.
 
Yeah that's the best thing to do like - I'll try to just relax and play my own game this month.
Sometimes I also find it's a case of poorer players not giving you enough rallies and you end up playing at their pace rather than your own.

That's why when I play better players than myself I do little more than go for good length and play it simple so they have to work for it.
If I apply the same tactics against lower level players it'll work out fine - force them to run and force them to try the killer shots.

You're right though you beat yourself more often than not.
I'm putting together a proper training regime to build my fitness up too. I'm the right build for Squash but 25 hours of week of gaming plus full time job plus studying a degree part-time but in only 3 years doesn't tend to keep you mega fit...lol

I love the game and while I only started seriously at 28 I really want to get as good as possible because the better I get the more fun it becomes.
 
The problem with squash is that if a player is just slightly better than another, they tend to dominate in squash.

I find that most beginners to squash try and kill the ball too early, they try to score far too early on, and if you don't score then you're straight onto the back foot.
 
Agree on both points.
I w. Getting back into it a bit more after 10-15 years not really playing. Definitely agree with the killing too early thing. Should be aiming to play a shot that puts your opponent underprepared forcing a weak shot so you can play the ball into the open court. Cycling is pretty good for squash fitness doing HIIT.
 
Stretching after games, do people do it?

I think I'm the only player at our club that spends 10-15 mins stretching after a tough session. Don't want hamstring/back problems if I can avoid it!
 
Sunbed said:
Stretching after games, do people do it?

I think I'm the only player at our club that spends 10-15 mins stretching after a tough session. Don't want hamstring/back problems if I can avoid it!
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Very few seem to do proper warm-ups and cool downs. Both very important for any work out but especially something so stop/start in quick bursts like Squash.

I follow fitnessblender vids on YT and always do something before and after a game. I'm only 5 mins from the centre so I just nip home and do my cool-down as I'm starting to do extra work out time after a game anyway.

I didn't do a warm up yesterday and was huffing and puffing after knocking the ball around for 5 mins. :rolleyes:
Once the game got going I was fine though but always best to do them.



Kept it simple last couple of games and have got out of my slump. Played a top player last night and lost 3-1 but two games were 14-14 so could have went 3-1 to me just as easily. 12 months ago I struggled to even get a point against him.

Took note of my game and deff need to work on my forehand accuracy. My backhand is winning almost all of my points as I get it really tight to the wall almost every time. Forehand is very loose - maybe just hitting it too hard and often trying cross courts at the wrong time (when it's too close to the wall to get width on it).

Felt a lot better this week though so if I keep to what I'm doing but tighten up my forehand I think I'll jump up towards the top of the club by the end of the winter.
 
Yeh I feel like my forehand is getting worse. Footwork is probably my problem, meaning I'm not ending up facing the wall and they are coming back loose. I often feel off balance so I'm definitely doing something wrong.

We did a few footwork drills at the club last night. Might work on those to get me to set off on the correct foot and set me up for the shot better.
 
Sunbed said:
Yeh I feel like my forehand is getting worse. Footwork is probably my problem, meaning I'm not ending up facing the wall and they are coming back loose. I often feel off balance so I'm definitely doing something wrong.

We did a few footwork drills at the club last night. Might work on those to get me to set off on the correct foot and set me up for the shot better.
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Funny you should say that as since my last post I took notice of my footwork and body positioning during shots and I get square to the wall every time on my backhand but rarely on my forehand.

I then watched other players and this seems to be a quite common thing. Forehand feels more natural and comfortable for many so maybe we don't consciously position as well for it.

It's deff something I'm going to look at now as It looks like it's a big part of why that shot is lacking for me at times.
 
blitzwing85 said:
Funny you should say that as since my last post I took notice of my footwork and body positioning during shots and I get square to the wall every time on my backhand but rarely on my forehand.

I then watched other players and this seems to be a quite common thing. Forehand feels more natural and comfortable for many so maybe we don't consciously position as well for it.

It's deff something I'm going to look at now as It looks like it's a big part of why that shot is lacking for me at times.
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I can only speak for myself, but as I was learning when I was young it was drilled into me to have left foot forward, towards the front wall for a forehand shot (right handed) with body square to the wall. As I've just been having casual games when older I've started to get a bit lazy/improvisational and hitting forehand shots off my back foot, facing the front wall. I think this is OK providing you are in position early enough but it increases the possibility for error i.e. loose/weak shots on the forehand.

On Mon and Tues this week I did some ghosting with our coach. It turns out for back corner drives I've been setting off on the wrong foot the whole time! For a right side (forehand) drive he said I should step back first with my left foot?! :eek: Makes sense because you can get to corners in three fluid steps that way.
 
Sunbed said:
I can only speak for myself, but as I was learning when I was young it was drilled into me to have left foot forward, towards the front wall for a forehand shot (right handed) with body square to the wall. As I've just been having casual games when older I've started to get a bit lazy/improvisational and hitting forehand shots off my back foot, facing the front wall. I think this is OK providing you are in position early enough but it increases the possibility for error i.e. loose/weak shots on the forehand.

On Mon and Tues this week I did some ghosting with our coach. It turns out for back corner drives I've been setting off on the wrong foot the whole time! For a right side (forehand) drive he said I should step back first with my left foot?! :eek: Makes sense because you can get to corners in three fluid steps that way.
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I think it's an issue for most who didn't learn young then keep playing a lot. Almost every single person I watch seem to either go right foot forward (or left if a lefty) for forehand shots or at least a mix of both.

I do a mix of both as it just depends on how much time I have and how close to the back corner it is. If it's tight and to the back corner I naturally seem to position myself correctly but if it's loose I notice I step in right foot first and look to take the ball early.
Maybe that's not such a bad thing - I think I just need to get more control on the shot and force the correct stance more often to help accuracy. Taking it early is good but I deff do it too often.


Interesting point about setting off on a certain foot - I've never even thought about that before. Next time I'm down I'll take notice of that and see what I'm doing.

I know for sure I often go back on my heels which loses me a fraction of time to react. I'm really fast around the court when I'm focused and on my toes but it's just that lazyness kicking in at times or admiration of a good shot then you get beat from a boast because you relax your stance.

Deff going to try that though as I often feel It takes me a fraction too many strides to get across the court so my starting position clearly isn't optimal.
 
I need to go back to basics, I try and go for a kill straight away and it is killing my game.
Once in a rally I will normally win, but I get nervous that im not winning and put myself under pressure and just open myself up.

Driving me crazy.
 
I'm starting next weekend with a colleague. Both never played before but I have years of badminton behind me so shouldn't take long to adjust. Should be good fun, hoping to play once a week. Getting my racket (Wilson Hyperhammer 120 PH) this weekend. :)
 
I don't recognise the game you're all decsribing - I thought the aim of squash was to chase the ball all over the court and if you get close enough then try to knock the cover off it? Or am I doing it wrong? ;)
 
Well I entered a competition recently (handicap) and got out of the round robin stage comfortably. I ran out of time in 1 of my games though during a 1-1 tie (best of 3) and our game had to be finished the following evening.

problem is, the draw was made and both of us qualified no matter the result - it would only determine who we played in the knockout stage.
Winner played the best player there (county level...) and loser played my mate...lol

It was 20-20 and I had a loose forehand on a stretch and he hit it into the tin!!! I call foul play there like as he's a really good player.



So I had to turn up later that night to play someone in their 50s who still plays at county level.
So yeah, that didn't go too well for me.

His handicap was 23 shots worse than mine and he still won 21-17, 21-15.
Mind you, given his level I was happy with that result as it was a very good experience for me.

At that level, they take your time off the ball so much by taking everything early. It was almost impossible for me to take control of a rally because he could reset the rally with shots I could only ever manage 1/10 tries. Like I'd send him to the back corner with an almost inch perfect length and he'd throw in a very low drop from the back. At my level, nobody can ever do that so there was no way I could read it.

On the plus side, I've since played people in the league who had even games against typically and murdered them all so it's helped me a lot

Quite a few people were watching so I just played really standard and played for the rallies to make it interesting and to make it more of a learning experience for me.
I've been to see the Masters live and to think I had to play someone at that level...not often I'll get the chance so tried to make the most of it.
 
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