This post is aimed at players who are already playing a decent level of squash but are looking to improve and jump up to the next grade.
Here are five top tips that will help you to improve your game significantly. Each tip is backed up by an accompanying video over at SquashSkills.
Improve Your Fitness
Squash is hard; the fitter, faster, and more powerful you are, the longer you’ll keep going and the more balls you’ll get back. Boosting fitness is in many ways the easiest and quickest route to raising your level, all you need to do is put the hours in following a good programme. You can check out some online programmes here.
Improve Your Strength and Stability
This links back to the point above, but with a particular focus on an oft-neglected area. Squash requires you to get in to deep lunges and taxing body positions – if you lack the strength to hold these positions and remain stable at the point of impact, you’re opening yourself up to inconsistencies and a drop in shot quality. Develop a stronger lunge and a more stable base to hit from, and you’ll be amazed at how your shot quality improves.
Learn to Use the Strings and Put More Cut on the Ball
In order to make the court big for your opponent, you need to leave the ball as close to the front wall as possible. This can be done by putting ‘cut’ and ‘spin’ on the ball so that it grips when it hits the walls and the floor. You need to have control of the racket face and be comfortable working the strings around the ball in order to make this happen.
Master Your Weight of Shot in the Back Corners
As you become a better player you want to pay more attention to what the ball does off of the back wall. Simply hitting a ball that bounces off the back wall isn’t enough to put pressure on your opponent. Try to focus on making the ball dip after it hits the back wall, rather than hitting it on the rise so that it’s sits up. This will force your opponent to hit up underneath the ball, giving you more opportunities to attack.
Volley more!
The more you can volley, the more pressure you can apply. Volleying can be tough, but it allows you to remain close to the T and take time away from your opponent. It also helps you speed the game up, and allows you to dictate play from the middle. Make sure your accuracy and ball control is good enough to allow you to up the pace, whilst making sure it’s your opponent who is doing all the work.
If you’re looking for help with you game, why not check out SquashSkills.com. Will over 3000 coaching videos from the world’s best players there’s no better place to improve your squash.
