Squash is a popular sport in England. There is a long history of the sport in the country, and as of 2018 there are many highly ranked English players, both in men's and women's squash.

History of squash in England

England is where squash was invented. Students at

Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (sc ...

in London created the sport in 1830 when they discovered the potential that a small, punctured rubber ball had for yielding a game where a variety of shots were possible. Originally played in alleys and courtyards, the first purpose-built squash court was erected in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the Un ...

in 1883.

Professional competitions

Many professional squash competitions take place in England each year.

PSA World Tour

The

PSA World Tour Sports competitions that are a recurring series of events or races, but do not constitute a sports league. Series Sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ab ...

calendar includes many professional tournaments held in England every year. The most prestigious of these are the

British Open Squash Championships The British Open Squash Championships is the oldest tournament in the game of squash. It is widely considered to be one of the two most prestigious tournaments in the game, alongside the World Squash Championships (prior to the establishment ...

(PSA150) and the Canary Wharf Squash Classic (PSA70).

Premier Squash League

The Premier Squash League runs every year from October to April. Teams consist of 4 men and 1 woman. There are 2 geographical divions (North and South, formerly known as A and B) and towards the end of the season the top 2 clubs from each division progress to the semi-finals.

Top players

English squash players have been known to dominate the world rankings.

World number ones

England has produced several world number ones: * Men: **

Lee Beachill Lee Beachill (born 28 November 1977 in Huddersfield, United Kingdom) is a former World No. 1 squash player from England. Beachill reached the World No. 1 ranking in October 2004. He also finished runner-up at the World Open that year. Beach ...

Nick Matthew Nicholas Matthew (born 25 July 1980 in Sheffield) is a former English professional squash player who has won the two most prestigious tournaments in the professional game, the British Open and the World Open, three times each. He reached a ...

James Willstrop James Willstrop (born 15 August 1983) is an English professional squash player living in Yorkshire, England. He was born in North Walsham, Norfolk, England. Career Willstrop has a large build for a squash player, being and . He trains at ...

* Women: ** Lisa Opie ** Cassie Jackman ** Laura Massaro

Highest ranked players

As of April 2018, the highest ranked English squash players were: * Men: **

(12) **

(14) **

Daryl Selby Daryl Selby (born 3 November 1982 in Harlow) is a former professional squash player who represented England. He reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 9 in April 2010. His sister is professional squash player Lauren Selby. He attend ...

(19) **

Declan James Declan James (born 19 April 1993 in Nottingham) is a professional squash player who represented England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. ...

(25) ** Tom Richards (33) * Women: ** Laura Massaro (7) **

Sarah-Jane Perry Sarah-Jane Perry (born 15 May 1990 in Birmingham) is a professional squash player who represents England and Great Britain. She reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 5 in July 2020. Education Perry was educated at Kenilworth Schoo ...

(8) **

Alison Waters Alison Waters (born 19 March 1984 in London) is a former professional squash player from England. Career As a junior player, Waters won her first major squash tournament – the British Under-12 title – at the age of nine-and-a-half. She r ...

(10) **

Victoria Lust Victoria Lust (born 2 May 1989 in Luton) is an English former professional squash player. She reached a career-high world ranking of World No. 12 in June 2019. Career In 2016, she was part of the English team that won the silver medal at the ...

(15) **

Emily Whitlock Emily Whitlock, (born 15 February 1994 in Macclesfield, England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Ce ...

(19)

National teams

England has national men's and

women's A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as " women's rights" to denote female humans rega ...

teams, that represent the country in international competitions.

Commonwealth Games

England players compete in the squash events of the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 British Empire Game ...

, which are held every 4 years. Most recently, in the 2018 games, English players

and

won gold in the men's singles event and silver in the women's singles event respectively.

Governance

Squash in England is governed by

England Squash England Squash is recognised by Sport England as the English national governing body of the racket sports of squash and squash 57. Based at the National Squash Centre in Manchester, it aims to increase participation in both sports. History Th ...

Amateur level

At amateur level, each county in England has its own league with multiple divisions, where clubs affiliated to the county enter one or more teams.

Sport England Sport England is a non-departmental public body under the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. Its role is to build the foundations of a community sport system by working with national governing bodies of sport, and other funded par ...

statistics showed that 500,000 people regularly play squash in England, with 900 affiliated clubs and 4,500 squash courts across the country. Th
National Schools Championships
was established in 1972 and has about 100 schools participating.

References

{{Squash by country