Would you change Squash if you could?

Published: 02 Feb 2006 - 07:38 by rippa rit

Updated: 24 Mar 2006 - 10:19

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There has always been questions in player's minds like:-

Is the "tin" too low
Should the "tin" be taken away altogether
Can the rules be changed to make the game more TV friendly
Tactics seem to have taken a twist since professionalism and high tech equipment came about, so does that make the game a bit boring to watch, except maybe at the very top..
Pro players are wearing out earlier, is that a good thing

What do you think?

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From rippa rit - 24 Mar 2006 - 10:19

aprice - this is a bit like "turning". It is better to show the players how to avoid turning, eg by standing away from the side wall to receive serve, than try to change the rules.
Once these double-handed players play comp and get tougher competition they will see their limitations.
Besides, in Rule 12 it covers "excessive swing" which has been of more concern to me than double-handedness.
Aprice - boast to the front, then bring the player into the back corner. Get the double-handed player going from front to back, and use the boast and nice high soft lob, it works.
Here is an article I have just written about double-handed players to look at a wider approach to the swing.

From aprice1985 - 24 Mar 2006 - 04:05

I would agree with rita that "coaching teh shot out" is maybe the best way to go about it and that it tends to be the tennis player who likes to think they are a squash pro who plays it a lot, so maybe it is just my aversion to the tennis player on a squash court syndrome! I think mradloff and i will have to agree to disagree, i personally wonder how much this one rules change would affect membership cause i see loads of people playing where i am and i don't think too many of the ones i know would stop just because of this. I know where you come from about limiting all different types of strokes but it is just this one that is so much more tennis than squash and has a higher element of risk that i so dislike, the other types you list to me are a part of squash.

From rippa rit - 23 Mar 2006 - 21:16

Just my 20 cents worth.
When I started playing there was not a lot of coaching happening. Players would walk off the tennis court on a wet day, and some got hooked. My first hit I got my first and only injury, a split eyebrow from a tennis swing.
So, I liked this game of squash, and the court owner's wife would do the coaching (she could not play) and would sit upstairs and look down and read a book written by a NSW top Player/Coach Vin Napier (dec). When our shots would go wrong she would quote "the book says......" and honestly she nurtured many a player along by giving useful hints from the book.
So let us go back to the good old days and learn a bit about helping our players.
Put some coaching hints on the board, send out some photos of top players in the Newsletter.
Soon the double-handed players would realise they cannot retrieve out of the back corners with two hands successfully, as it will probably end up a carry shot anyway.

Take the soft approach as we want the players to come back, practice and get better.

From mradloff - 23 Mar 2006 - 18:52

I have to disagree again (a habit I know).

It's not only double handed players that can be dangerous, especially when in comes to a cross court. Many single handed players are just as bad. There is a rule in squash to fix this, it's called the conduct rule. If the opponent is playing in a way that puts the other player in danger, such as not calling a let, turning, or nearly hitting them with a shot, then the referee has the right to call conduct and award the match if necessary.

I respect your opinion, but can not agree with you in the slightest. As a centre operator I'm encouraging players from all walks of life because without this diversity our game suffers with numbers. I've seen it first hand. It's not the double handed players that are the problem, it's every player that acts in a reckless way on the court endangering the opponent that needs to be re-educated in such a way they are no longer a menace.

From lowrider - 23 Mar 2006 - 18:38

i would like to change it so that i always win

From aprice1985 - 23 Mar 2006 - 18:28

As JJ said many of these shots are wildly fired cross court and may be a risk to the opponent, we limit things like turning so why not the two handed shot? All games have limits somewhere on what you can and can't do, be they rule, convention or common sense and this is just one area of the game i personally dislike as a player as i feel it doesn't help the sport grow as it gives less incentive for people to improve their stroke play. It isn't about being orthadox it is about helping the game overall to improve and people will gain the better one handed shot, personally i doubt this would put too many people off playing except former tennis players who shoudln't play anyway to keep the rest of the world safe

. It is my personal opinion of a shot i don't like as i feel it doesn't really help the game and holds a lot of people back as they stick with the two handed shot when with a little practise they could improve a lot.

From mradloff - 23 Mar 2006 - 12:44

To make a double backhand illegal is ludicrous. And what would taking ugly shots away from the game do? Fact is the double backhand is used by tens of thousands of lower graded players, and the occasional better player. Are we going to tell them they have to change their technique or stop playing altogether? Get real. Why would you turn people away from the game?

If you wanted to continue down your line of thinking we'd have to also ban hard flat serves, they are not as effective as a tight lob serve and don't look nice so lets get rid of them.

Why not also get rid of the players who are skilled enough to use both hands when playing, therefore having strength on both sides, might as well as they don't look orthodox either.

Shots between the legs, might as well do that too while we are at it. Just because your reactions are fast doesn't mean you can hit an ugly shot.

And playing off either foot can't be right. The purists will say you must use your left foot forward on the right of the court and vice versa. Better tell that to every world ranking player that they are suddenly going to have to change or stop playing.

And that reverse boast, how ugly, get rid of it.

Corkscrew serves and skid boasts, they are just showing off so ban them too.

Lets put the racquet development back 20 years and start using small heads made from cane. Lets face it, that’s how they were originally made and intended for squash..

What I'm getting at is that you can't tell someone how to play this game just because their technique doesn't come from a text book. The thing that makes this game great is it's diversity in people and techniques.

If we all played the same, how boring would squash become.....

From rippa rit - 23 Mar 2006 - 07:41 - Updated: 23 Mar 2006 - 07:46

I don't think we can pick at how people hit the ball as I find a few other styles are a bit "off" too from my eyes looking out. So long as a double handed player is legal, eg double hits, clears the ball, not dangerous, intimidating the opponent, etc it is ok.
Looking at it from another way, where would you stop if you picked on double-handedness?

It would be good to experiment to make the game more appealing to the public in terms of the excitement and viewing on TV - our survival as a sport is greatly dependent on TV coverage and public appeal.

There was talk of taking the tin away, but that fissled out as far as I know.

Yes, I think the ball does make heaps of difference to the game too, so maybe that would be worth experimenting with as well. I am sure the ball never flew around like this once, and then they blamed the new rackets? There is a standard for ball specs so surely the latest balls would comply?

Our sport is definitely scared of change.

From JJSOOTY - 23 Mar 2006 - 03:34

I've played someone with a two-handed backhand and I found that they often swung across themselves, making most of their shots cross court. This did make it easy to play them, but when they were hitting out of the back corners I felt a bit flinchy as the ball would usually come flying out in my general direction!

From aprice1985 - 23 Mar 2006 - 02:44

I am saying i would stop it being legal as it feel it is an ugly shot which takes away from the game, generally it is easy to beat someone who is playing the shot so it is poor technique, why not get rid of it and try to make the game look better in essence. The stroke is not effective as it is not a good shot as it is normally weak and merely keeps the ball in play from a position where someone who has practised can hit a one handed shot. Maintaining the legality of the stroke encourages others to play it and not learn a better technique as soon. Off the serve the 2 hander is easy but once in a rally it is hard and people still try to play it as it is legal and they have less incentive to learn how to play one handed i feel. I beat the peerson who played this shot by making him play it a lot as it is an area of weak technique i feel could be eliminated.

From mradloff - 23 Mar 2006 - 02:06

The only way to introduce value for shots Rita would be to change the current ball, to an extent that it doesn't bounce as much, especially in the Australian heat. Only then will all nicks stick, and good length will be rewarded. Bouncy balls are great for learning players, or the run freaks out there, but terrible for shot makers.

Also to aprice - why would you want to penalise a player for a legal technique that is effective. If it is their double handed backhand that gives them the edge, shouldn't your game be fluent enough to change and adapt to beat them? Isn't that the premis of squash, to outwit and outplay your opponent?That’s like saying a great lob serve is unfair to anyone who can't volley.

Tip - to beat a double handed player volley their return, as nine times out of ten their technique is putting them off balance and most volleyed drop shots will be irretrievable.

From aprice1985 - 23 Mar 2006 - 01:49

I remembered this post from a while ago and thought i would just say that i would ban two handed shots totally. I played someone who hit them in the back backhand corner off my good length and ok it gives rallies but i feel it is not really in the way the game is meant to be played.

From rippa rit - 05 Feb 2006 - 18:42 - Updated: 05 Feb 2006 - 18:48

I have often felt players should be rewarded for going for shots. This would cut down the "run your opponent into the dirt" type play and encourage more skills. That is turn should make the games more exciting.
For example, a dead nick does deserve some recognition.
Clean winners, I think should be rewarded, and this in turn would encourage players to explore the game more - instead of relying on their opponent's mistakes to get points.

Yes, "hawk eye" would be good too.

If the Referee's jack up, as per the Squash News item, top players might take a greater interest in becoming qualified Referees, and that would only better the game too.

From Viper - 05 Feb 2006 - 08:48

"The tin must not be taken away, forget it. But to eliminte the quarreling with ref, some electronic device taken into consideration would make a job. I have heard already some initial experiments done on that topic. Sound and ligh appears when the ball hits the tin area."

They had exactly this in operation during the recent tournaments in Melbourne with mixed results it seemed, the light and sound worked ok but players still disputed the accuracy of the device.

What is the tin for BTW ?

From drop-shot - 05 Feb 2006 - 07:19 - Updated: 05 Feb 2006 - 18:27

Just few pennies from me. Lowering the tin made the game faster and more exciting, at least from what I've seen on the recent PSA tournaments. The tin must not be taken away, forget it. But to eliminte the quarreling with ref, some electronic device taken into consideration would make a job. I have heard already some initial experiments done on that topic. Sound and ligh appears when the ball hits the tin area. The rules were already adjusted to meet the TV spectators enjoyment... Slowly but surely squash becomes more and more exciting experience. We play to 11, PARS system, less breaks is allowed due to updated "no let" rules regarding minimal interference... I am too much blinded with my cult for squash, but all in all it's a beautifull game worth being an olympic game. More than bowling or karate, for god's sake... By the way, have you heard all about the 08 Liverpool Open 2006????? check out http://www.psalive.tv/?men=PAGE39 for more details, we have another squash feast coming soon

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Would you change Squash if you could?

Would you change Squash if you could?

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