Squash is a
racket
Racket may refer to:
* Racket (crime), a systematised element of organized crime
** Protection racket, a scheme whereby a group provides protection to businesses or other groups through violence outside the sanction of the law
* Racket (sports equ ...
-and-
ball sport
This is a list of ball games and ball sports that include a ball as a key element in the activity, usually for scoring points.
Ball games
Ball sports fall within many sport categories, some sports within multiple categories, including:
* Bat-a ...
played by two or four players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow, rubber ball. The players alternate in striking the ball with their rackets onto the playable surfaces of the four walls of the court. The objective of the game is to hit the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return. There are about 20 million people who play squash regularly world-wide in over 185 countries. The governing body of Squash, the
World Squash Federation (WSF), is recognized by the
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
(IOC), but the sport is not part of the
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
, despite a number of applications. Supporters continue to lobby for its incorporation in a future
Olympic program. The
Professional Squash Association
The Professional Squash Association (PSA) is the governing body for the men's and women's professional squash circuit. The body operates in a similar fashion to the ATP and the WTA for tennis. The PSA's highest professional level, the PSA Wor ...
(PSA) organizes the pro tour.
History
Squash has its origins in the older game of
rackets
Racket may refer to:
* Racket (crime), a systematised element of organized crime
** Protection racket, a scheme whereby a group provides protection to businesses or other groups through violence outside the sanction of the law
* Racket (sports equ ...
which was played in London's prisons in the 19th century. Later, around 1830, boys at
Harrow School
(The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God)
, established = (Royal Charter)
, closed =
, type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school
, religion = Church of E ...
noticed that a punctured ball, which "squashed" on impact with the wall, offered more variety to the game. The game spread to other schools. The first courts built at Harrow were dangerous because they were near water pipes, buttresses, chimneys, and ledges.
Natural rubber was the preferred material for the ball. Students modified their rackets to have a smaller reach and improve their ability to play in these cramped conditions.
In 1864, the school built four outside courts.
In the 20th century the game increased in popularity with various schools, clubs and private individuals building squash courts, but with no set dimensions. The first squash court in North America was at
St. Paul's School in
Concord, New Hampshire
Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the seat of Merrimack County. As of the 2020 census the population was 43,976, making it the third largest city in New Hampshire behind Manchester and Nashua.
The village of ...
, in 1884. In 1904 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the earliest national association of squash in the world, the United States Squash Racquets Association, now known as
U.S. Squash, was formed. In April 1907, the Tennis, Rackets & Fives Association of Queens, New York, which regulated those three sports (
fives being a similar sport using hands instead of a racket), established a subcommittee to set standards for squash. In 1912, the association published rules for ''squash'',
combining aspects of these three sports.
In 1912, the
RMS ''Titanic'' had a squash court in
first class, available for 50 cents ($15.36 in 2022 terms). The 1st-Class Squash Court was situated on G-Deck. The Spectators Viewing Gallery was one level higher, on F-Deck. Passengers could use the court for one hour unless others were waiting.
In 1923, the
Royal Automobile Club hosted a meeting to further discuss the rules and regulations. Five years later, the Squash Rackets Association, now known as
England Squash, was formed to set standards for the game in
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...
and internationally.
The rackets were made from one piece English ash, with a suede leather grip and natural gut.
The 1980s witnessed a period of restructuring and consolidation. The Cambridge rackets factory was forced to close in face of the move to graphite rackets, and production was moved to the Far East.
["Grays of Cambridge: History"](_blank)
– makers of rackets and founded in 1855 by Henry John Gray, the Champion rackets Player of England. "In those days, the rackets were made from one piece English ash, with a suede leather grip and natural gut. ... The 1980s witnessed a period of re-structuring and consolidation. The Cambridge rackets factory was forced to close in face of the move to graphite rackets, and production was moved to the Far East." Customization of squash rackets has grown over the years as well. There are custom variations on racket head shape, racket balance, and racket weight. The most common racket variation for international singles squash is a teardrop (closed throat) head shape, even balance, and racket weight of 130g. For hardball doubles, the most common variation is an open throat head shape, even balance, and racket weight of 140g.
There are several variations of squash played across the world, although the international version of the sport has become the dominant form. In the United States, a variant of squash known as
hardball was traditionally played with a harder ball and different sized courts. Hardball squash has lost much of its popularity in North America (in favor of the international version). There is
doubles squash a variant played by four players. There is also a tennis-like variation of squash known as
squash tennis
Squash tennis is an American variant of squash, but played with a ball and racquets that are closer to the equipment used for lawn tennis, and with somewhat different rules. For younger players the game offers the complexity of squash and the sp ...
. Finally,
racketball, a similar sport, is also played in the United States.
Equipment
Racket
![Nanoldsquash2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Nanoldsquash2.JPG)
Squash rackets have maximum dimensions of 686 mm (27.0 in) long and 215 mm (8.5 in) wide, with a maximum strung area of 500 square centimeters (77.5 sq in). The permitted maximum weight is , but most have a weight between 90 and 150 grams (3–5.3 oz.). The strings of the racket usually have a tension of 25–30 pounds.
Ball
![Squash Ball Dunlop Revelation Pro 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/38/Squash_Ball_Dunlop_Revelation_Pro_1.jpg)
Squash balls are between 39.5 and 40.5 mm in diameter, and weigh 23 to 25 grams. They are made with two pieces of rubber compound, glued together to form a hollow sphere and buffed to a matte finish. Different balls are provided for varying temperature and atmospheric conditions and standards of play: more experienced players use slow balls that have less bounce than those used by less experienced players (slower balls tend to "die" in court corners, rather than "standing up" to allow easier shots). Squash balls must be hit dozens of times to warm them up at the beginning of a session; cold squash balls have very little bounce. Small colored dots on the ball indicate its dynamic level (bounciness).
The "double-yellow dot" ball, introduced in 2000, is the competition standard, replacing the earlier "yellow-dot" ball. There is also an "orange dot" ball for use at high altitudes. The recognized colors are:
Some ball manufacturers such as Dunlop use a different method of grading balls based on experience. They still have the equivalent dot rating, but are named to help choose a ball that is appropriate for one's skill level. The four different ball types are Intro (Blue dot, 140% of Pro bounce), Progress (Red dot, 120% of Pro bounce), Competition (single yellow dot, 110% of Pro bounce) and Pro (double yellow dot).
Many squash venues mandate the use of shoes with non-marking tread and eye protection. Some associations require that all juniors and doubles players must wear eye protection. The
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health, commonly referred to as NIH (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in the late ...
recommends wearing goggles with polycarbonate lenses.
Court
![Squash Court](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Squash_Court.svg)
The squash court is a playing surface surrounded by four walls. The court surface contains a front line separating the front and back of the court and a half court line, separating the left and right sides of the back portion of the court, creating three 'boxes': the front half, the back left quarter and the back right quarter. Both the back two boxes contain smaller service boxes.
The court's four walls are divided into a front wall, two side walls, and a back wall. An 'out line' runs along the top of the front wall, descending along the side walls to the back wall. The bottom line of the front wall marks the top of the 'tin', a half meter-high metal area. The middle line of the front wall is the service line. The dimensions of the court are:
North American hardball doubles courts are larger than international singles courts because of a hard ball that has a much faster pace. With double the number of players, the doubles court needs to be significantly bigger than a singles court. The doubles court should measure 25 feet wide by 45 feet long and have a ceiling height of at least 24 feet but preferably 26.
Manner of play
Service
The players spin a racket to decide who serves first. This player starts the first rally by electing to serve from either the left or right service box. For a legal serve, one of the server's feet must be in the service box, not touching any part of the service box lines, as the player strikes the ball. After being struck by the racket, the ball must strike the front wall above the service line and below the out line and land in the opposite back quarter court. The receiving player can choose to
volley a serve after it has hit the front wall. If the server wins the point, the two players switch sides for the following point. If the server loses the point, the opponent then serves, and can serve from either box.
Play
![Payne-whitney-squash](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/Payne-whitney-squash.jpg)
After the serve, the players take turns hitting the ball against the front wall, above the tin and below the out line. The ball may strike the side or back walls at any time, as long as it hits below the out line. It must not hit the floor after hitting the racket and before hitting the front wall. A ball landing on either the out line or the line along the top of the tin is considered to be out. After the ball hits the front wall, it is allowed to bounce once on the floor (and any number of times against the side or back walls) before a player must return it. Players may move anywhere around the court but accidental or deliberate obstruction of the other player's movements is forbidden and could result in a let or a stroke. Players typically return to the centre of the court after making a shot, as it is the optimal position in the court to receive the opponent's shot. The centre of the court is typically referred to as "the T", named after the shape of the floor lines.
Strategy and tactics
A key strategy in squash is known as "dominating the T" (the intersection of the red lines near the centre of the court, shaped like the letter "T", where the player is in the best position to retrieve the opponent's next shot). Skilled players will return a shot, and then move back toward the "T" before playing the next shot. From this position, the player can quickly access any part of the court to retrieve the opponent's next shot with a minimum of movement and possibly maximising the movement required by the opponent to answer the returned shot.
A common tactic is to hit the ball straight up the side walls to the back corners; this is the basic squash shot, referred to as a "rail," straight drive, wall, or "length". After hitting this shot, the player will then move to the centre of the court near the "T" to be well placed to retrieve the opponent's return. Attacking with soft or "short" shots to the front corners (referred to as "drop shots") causes the opponent to cover more of the court and may result in an outright winner. Boasts or angle shots are deliberately struck off one of the side walls before the ball reaches the front. They are used for deception and again to cause the opponent to cover more of the court. Rear wall shots float to the front either straight or diagonally drawing the opponent to the front. Advantageous tactical shots are available in response to a weak return by the opponent if stretched, the majority of the court being free to the striker.
Rallies between experienced players may involve 30 or more shots and therefore a very high premium is placed on fitness, both aerobic and anaerobic. As players become more skilled and, in particular, better able to retrieve shots, points often become a
war of attrition
The War of Attrition ( ar, حرب الاستنزاف, Ḥarb al-Istinzāf; he, מלחמת ההתשה, Milhemet haHatashah) involved fighting between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and their allies from ...
. At higher levels of the game, the fitter player has a major advantage.
The ability to change the direction of the ball at the last instant is also a tactic used to unbalance the opponent. Expert players can anticipate the opponent's shot a few tenths of a second before the average player, giving them a chance to react sooner.
![US Open Squash Championship 2011 Drexel University](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/US_Open_Squash_Championship_2011_Drexel_University.jpg)
Depending on the style of play, it is common to refer to squash players as
* Power players: powerful shots to take time away from their opponent. For example,
John White,
Omar Mosaad,
Mohamed El Shorbagy
Mohamed ElShorbagy ( ar, محمد الشوربجي, born 12 January 1991 in Alexandria) is an Egyptian-English professional squash player. He represented Egypt from a young age until June 2022, and is currently representing England. He reached ...
* Shotmakers: accurate shots to take time away from their opponent. For example,
Jonathon Power
Jonathon Tyler Power (born August 9, 1974) is a retired professional squash player from Canada. In 1999, he became the first North American squash player to reach the World No. 1 ranking. He won 36 top-level squash events during his career, incl ...
,
Ramy Ashour
Ramy Mohamed Ashour (born September 30, 1987, in Cairo, Egypt), known as Ramy Ashour (), is a retired professional squash player from Egypt, widely regarded as one of the best squash players in the history of the sport. He became the youngest pla ...
,
Amr Shabana,
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 P ...
.
* Retrievers: excellent retrieval to counter power and accuracy and to return shots more quickly to take time away from their opponent. For example,
Peter Nicol
Peter Nicol (born 5 April 1973) is a former professional squash player from Scotland, who represented first Scotland and then England in international squash. In 1998, while still competing for Scotland, he became the first player from the UK ...
,
Grégory Gaultier
Grégory Gaultier (born 23 December 1982, in Épinal, France) is a former professional squash player from France. He has won the 2015 World Open Squash Championship, the British Open three times, in 2007, 2014 and 2017, the Qatar Classic in 201 ...
,
Nicol David
Datuk Nicol Ann David (born August 26, 1983) is a retired female Malaysian professional squash player. Beginning in August 2006, David was the world number one for a record-breaking 108 consecutive months, finally ceding the ranking in Septembe ...
.
* Attritional players: a consistently high-paced game both from shot speed and running speed to wear their opponent down over time. For example,
David Palmer,
Nick Matthew,
Jansher Khan
Jansher Khan PP SI HI ( ur, جان شیر خان; born 15 June 1969, in Peshawar, Pakistan) is a former World No. 1 professional Pakistani squash player. During his career, he won the World Open a record eight times, and the British Open s ...
,
Jahangir Khan.
Interference and obstruction
Interference and obstruction are an inevitable aspect of squash, since two players are confined within a shared space. Generally, the rules entitle players to a direct straight line access to the ball, room for a reasonable swing and an unobstructed shot to any part of the front wall. When interference occurs, a player may appeal for a "let" and the referee (or the players themselves if there is no official) then interprets the extent of the interference. The referee may allow a let and the players then replay the point, or award a "stroke" to the appealing player (meaning that he is declared the winner of that point) depending on the degree of interference, whether the interfering player made an adequate effort to avoid interfering, and whether the player interfered with was likely to have hit a winning shot had the interference not occurred. An exception occurs when the interfering player is directly in the path of the other player's swing, effectively preventing the swing, in which case a stroke is always awarded.
When it is deemed that there has been little or no interference, the rules provide that no let is to be allowed in the interests of continuity of play and the discouraging of spurious appeals for lets. Because of the subjectivity in interpreting the nature and magnitude of interference, awarding (or withholding) of lets and strokes is often controversial.
Interference also occurs when a player's shot hits their opponent prior to hitting the front wall. If the ball was travelling towards the side wall when it hit the opponent, or if it had already hit the side wall and was travelling directly to the front wall, it is usually a let. However, it is a stroke to the player who hit the ball if the ball was travelling straight to the front wall when the ball hit the opponent, without having first hit the side wall. Generally after a player has been hit by the ball, both players stand still; if the struck player is standing directly in front of the player who hit the ball he loses the stroke; if he is not straight in front, a let is played. If it is deemed that the player who is striking the ball is deliberately trying to hit his opponent, they will lose the stroke. An exception occurs when the player hitting the ball has "turned", i.e., letting the ball pass them on one side, but then hitting it on the other side as it came off the back wall. In these cases, the stroke goes to the player who was hit by the ball.
Referee
The referee is usually a certified position issued by the club or assigned squash league. Any conflict or interference is dealt with by the referee. The referee may also take away points or games due to improper etiquette regarding conduct or rules. The referee is also usually responsible for the scoring of games. Three referees are usually used in professional tournaments. The Central referee has responsibility to call the score and make decisions with the two side referees.
Scoring system
Point-a-Rally to 11
Games are played according to point-a-rally scoring (PARS) to 11 points. PARS is almost universally preferred by the game's top professionals, and is the current official scoring system for all levels of professional squash tournaments. In PARS, the winner of a rally receives a point, regardless of whether they were the server or returner. Games are played to 11 and must be won by two points. That is, if the score reaches 10–10, play continues until one player wins by two points. Competition matches are usually played to "best-of-five" games (i.e. the first player to win three games).
Squash can also be played with different scoring systems such as PARS to 15, traditional English or Hand-In-Hand-Out (HiHo) scoring to 9, or RAM scoring (see below). Players often experience PARS and Hi-Ho as requiring different tactics and player attributes.
Other scoring systems
Point-a-Rally to 15
Point-a-rally scoring to 15 was used for the
World Championships between 1989 and 2003. PARS to 15, with the tiebreak being two clear points (as per standard PARS) from 14–14, was used in many amateur leagues because PARS to 11 was considered too short. This system fell out of favor in 2004 when the
Professional Squash Association
The Professional Squash Association (PSA) is the governing body for the men's and women's professional squash circuit. The body operates in a similar fashion to the ATP and the WTA for tennis. The PSA's highest professional level, the PSA Wor ...
(PSA) decided to switch to PARS to 11. Games were considered to last too long and the winner would usually be the fitter player, not necessarily the better player.
English/Hand-In-Hand-Out to 9
Known as English or hand-in-hand-out scoring, under this system, if the server wins a rally, they receive a point, while if the returner wins rally, only the service changes (i.e., the ball goes "hand-out") and no point is given. The first player to reach nine points wins the game. However, if the score reaches 8–8, the player who was first to reach eight decides whether the game will be played to nine, as before (called "set one"), or to 10 (called "set two"). This scoring system was formerly preferred in Britain, and also among countries with traditional British ties, such as Australia, Canada, Pakistan, South Africa, India and Sri Lanka.
RAM
The RAM scoring system is a proposed new scoring system created by former World Champion,
Ramy Ashour
Ramy Mohamed Ashour (born September 30, 1987, in Cairo, Egypt), known as Ramy Ashour (), is a retired professional squash player from Egypt, widely regarded as one of the best squash players in the history of the sport. He became the youngest pla ...
and co-founded by Osama Khalifa. This consists of playing a best of five games. Each game is three minutes long; however, this only refers to the three minutes in play. The 'downtime' in between the end of a rally and a serve is not counted. Once the time is up, the clock stops, and the leading player needs to win a final point. If the player who is behind wins the point the game continues until the trailing player catches up and wins one more point than the initially leading player.
For example, Player one is leading 5–3 and the clock stops. Player two wins the next two points and the score is 5–5. Whoever wins the next point wins the game. This is called sudden death. If the score is 0–0 when the clock stops the clock is reset and the game restarts. For Let Calls the clock reverts to the start time of that point. Further rules include that there must be a referee and a time keeper to make this match official. Players have two minutes of rest between games, and all other standard PSA and WSF rules apply.
Transition from English/HiHo to PARS 11
In 2004, the
Professional Squash Association
The Professional Squash Association (PSA) is the governing body for the men's and women's professional squash circuit. The body operates in a similar fashion to the ATP and the WTA for tennis. The PSA's highest professional level, the PSA Wor ...
(PSA) decided to switch to PARS 11. This decision was ratified in 2009 when the
World Squash Federation confirmed the switch to the PARS 11 scoring system. Since that time, almost all professional and league games have been played according to PARS to 11. One of the reasons for switching to PARS was that long, taxing matches became less frequent and promoters could more easily predict match and session length.
Gawain Briars, who served as the Executive Director of the Professional Squash Association when the body decided to switch to PARS in 2004 hoped that PARS would make the "professional game more exciting to watch,
ndthen more people will become involved in the game and our chances of Olympic entry may be enhanced."
One of the problems with English or Hi-Ho scoring is that games often last longer as players continually win service before losing service to the other player without the score being affected. Consequently, the winner is more often than not the fitter athlete. Moreover, English or Hi-Ho scoring can encourage players to play defensively with the aim of wearing down one's opponent before winning by virtue of one's fitness. Such exhausting, defensive play can affect player's prospects in knock-out tournaments and does not make for riveting TV. In English or Hi-Ho, one player might win by 9–0 despite the opponent having repeatedly won service, but without converting that service into actual points.
For the World Championships: HiHo to 9 was used until 1988; PARS to 15 from 1989 to 2003; and PARS to 11 from 2004. For the British Open: HiHo to 9 was used until 1994; PARS to 15 from 1995 to 2003; and PARS to 11 from 2004.
The WSF's decision to switch to PARS 11 proved controversial in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth where games were usually played according to English or Hi-Ho. When the Veterans Squash Rackets Club of Great Britain surveyed their members in 2012, they found that 80% of their members were against switching from HiHo to PARS.
President Philip Ayton argued that PARS would "kill the essence of the game."
Ayton was particularly concerned that the "great comebacks" that characterised English or Hi-Ho when "the player who is down in a game can still attack when in hand serving"
would disappear as PARS fostered an "ultra-defensive attitude, because every rally counts the same."
Jahangir Khan has countered that PARS actually made the game far more attacking, but diminished the psychological aspect of the game: "With the nine points scoring system, matches were more mental and physical and could go longer, but now with the 11-point system, every rally counts, and even if you go behind you can still recover. That makes it a lot more attacking." Maj Madan, one of the game's top referees, similarly stated that PARS had "destroyed the fitness element and, more importantly, the cerebral magic of the…game." His comments were unearthed when an email chain of referees discussing the problem of shorter and shorter squash matches was leaked in 2011.
Contribution to health
Squash provides an excellent cardiovascular workout. Players can expend approximately 600 to 1,000 food
calorie
The calorie is a unit of energy. For historical reasons, two main definitions of "calorie" are in wide use. The large calorie, food calorie, or kilogram calorie was originally defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of on ...
s (3,000 to 4,000
kJ) every hour playing squash according to English or Hi-Ho scoring.
The sport also provides a good upper and lower body workout by exercising both the legs in running around the court and the arms and torso in swinging the racket. In 2003, ''Forbes'' rated squash as the number one healthiest sport to play.
However, one study has implicated squash as a cause of possible fatal
cardiac arrhythmia
Arrhythmias, also known as cardiac arrhythmias, heart arrhythmias, or dysrhythmias, are irregularities in the heartbeat, including when it is too fast or too slow. A resting heart rate that is too fast – above 100 beats per minute in adults ...
and argued that squash is an inappropriate form of exercise for older men with
heart disease
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a class of diseases that involve the heart or blood vessels. CVD includes coronary artery diseases (CAD) such as angina and myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack). Other CVDs include stroke, hea ...
.
Around the world
According to the World Squash Federation, there are about 50,000 squash courts in the world, with 188 countries and territories having at least one court. England had the greatest number at 8,500. The other countries with more than 1,000 courts, in descending order by number were Germany, Egypt, the United States of America, Australia, South Africa, Canada, Malaysia, France, the Netherlands, and Spain. Today, The United States has the fastest growing squash participation. There are an estimated 20 million squash players worldwide.
As of November 2019, there were players from eighteen countries in the top fifty of the men's world rankings, with Egypt dominating with fifteen players, six of whom were in the top ten, including ranks one through four. Similarly, the women's world rankings featured players from sixteen countries, again led by Egypt taking thirteen spots of the top fifty, whilst holding spots one through four in the world.
The men's and women's Professional Squash Association
tour,
men's rankings and
women's rankings are run by the
Professional Squash Association
The Professional Squash Association (PSA) is the governing body for the men's and women's professional squash circuit. The body operates in a similar fashion to the ATP and the WTA for tennis. The PSA's highest professional level, the PSA Wor ...
(PSA).
The Professional Squash Tour is a tour based in the United States.
Inclusion in multi-sport events
Squash has been featured regularly at the multi-sport 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, and, with the exce ...
and
Asian Games
The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...
since 1998. Squash is also a regular sport at the
Pan American Games
The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...
since 1995. Squash players and associations have lobbied for many years for the sport to be accepted into the
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
, with no success as of 2021. Squash narrowly missed being instated for the 2012 London Games and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games (missed out again as the IOC assembly decided to add golf and rugby sevens to the Olympic programme). Squash also was not selected as an event in the 2020 Olympic Games. At the
125th IOC Session
The 125th IOC Session took place at the Buenos Aires Hilton in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from 7 to 10 September 2013. On 7 September, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) elected Tokyo as the host city of the 2020 Summer Olympic ...
in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
, the
IOC
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
voted for
Wrestling
Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
instead of Squash or
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
/
Softball
Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
. The usual reason cited for the failure of the sport to be adopted for Olympic competition is that it is difficult for spectators to follow the action, especially via television. Previous world number one
Peter Nicol
Peter Nicol (born 5 April 1973) is a former professional squash player from Scotland, who represented first Scotland and then England in international squash. In 1998, while still competing for Scotland, he became the first player from the UK ...
stated that he believed squash had a "very realistic chance" of being added to the list of
Olympic
Olympic or Olympics may refer to
Sports
Competitions
* Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896
** Summer Olympic Games
** Winter Olympic Games
* Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
sports for the
2016 Olympic Games
)
, nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams)
, athletes = 11,238
, events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines)
, opening = 5 August 2016
, closing = 21 August 2016
, opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer
, cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro d ...
, but it ultimately lost out to
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
and
rugby sevens.
Squash was accepted as a
demonstration sport
A demonstration sport, or exhibition sport, is a sport which is played to promote it, rather than as part of standard medal competition. This occurs commonly during the Olympic Games, but may also occur at other sporting events.
Demonstration spor ...
for the
2018 Summer Youth Olympics
The 2018 Summer Youth Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de la Juventud de 2018), officially known as the III Summer Youth Olympic Games, and commonly known as Buenos Aires 2018, were an international sports, cultural, and educational event held ...
.
The World Squash Federation hopes that this inclusion will create a strong bid for a potential inclusion at the
2024 Summer Olympics
The 2024 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 2024), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la XXXIIIe Olympiade, links=no) and also known as Paris 2024, is an upcoming international multi-sport event that is s ...
.
Major tournaments
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Squash World Open
The World Squash Championships are squash events for men and women organised by the Professional Squash Association. The men's event was first held in 1976 in London, England and the women's was inaugurated in 1976 in Brisbane, Australia.
Overv ...
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World Super Series
*
British Open
The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...
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Tournament of Champions
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US Open
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Hong Kong Open
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Qatar Classic
The Qatar Classic is an annual international squash tournament that takes place in Doha, Qatar in October or November. The event was re-established in 2001. Between 1992 and 1997, the tournament was formerly known as the Qatar International. The ...
*
Windy City Open
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El Gouna International
The El Gouna International is an annual men's and women's squash tournament held in El Gouna, Egypt in April. It is part of the PSA World Series
The PSA World Series (formerly known as the PSA Super Series) was a series of men's and women's sq ...
*
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, and, with the exce ...
Players, records and rankings
![Jansher_Khan_in_happy_mood](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Jansher_Khan_in_happy_mood.jpeg)
The (British) Squash Rackets Association (now known as
England Squash) conducted its first
British Open
The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...
championship for men in December 1930, using a "challenge" system.
Charles Read was designated champion in 1930, but he was beaten in home and away matches by
Don Butcher
Donald Butcher was an English squash player, and the first player to win the British Open men's title in open play.
Butcher was a professional squash player based at the Conservative Club in London when he played in the first British Open fina ...
, who was then recorded as the champion for 1931. The championship continues to this day, but it has been conducted with a "knockout" format since 1947.
The women's championship started in 1921, and it has been dominated by relatively few players:
Joyce Cave
Joyce Irene Cave (2 June 1902 – 13 March 1953) was an English squash player who won the inaugural women's British Open tournament in 1922, defeating Nancy Cave in the final 11–15, 15–10, 15–9. She also won the tournament in 1925 and ...
,
Nancy Cave
Nancy Frances Cave (2 March 1896 – 1989) was an English squash player who won the British Open three times in 1924, 1929 and 1930. She was also the runner-up in the championship in 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926, 1927 and 1931. She was one of three ...
,
Cecily Fenwick (England) in the 1920s;
Margot Lumb
Margot Lumb (1 July 1912 - 3 January 1998) was a left-handed English squash and tennis player.
Margarita Evelyn Lumb was born in London in 1912 to Charles Fletcher Lumb and Margarita Johnson. Her father was a businessman and inventor; her mothe ...
and
Susan Noel (England) in the 1930s;
Janet Morgan
Janet Rachael Margaret Morgan (later known by her married name, Janet Shardlow) (1921–1990) was an English squash player who dominated the game in the 1950s. She won the British Open on ten consecutive occasions and was the sport's most famou ...
(England) in the 1950s;
Heather McKay
Heather Pamela McKay (née Blundell) (born 31 July 1941) is a retired Australian squash player, who is considered by many to be the greatest female player in the history of the game, and possibly also Australia's greatest-ever sportswoman. Sh ...
(Australia) in the 1960s and 1970s;
Vicki Cardwell
Vicki Cardwell BEM (née Hoffmann, born 21 April 1955, in Adelaide, South Australia) is a former World No. 1 squash player from Australia. She was one of the leading players on the international squash circuit from the late-1970s through to t ...
(Australia) and
Susan Devoy
Dame Susan Elizabeth Anne Devoy (born 4 January 1964) is a former New Zealand squash player and senior public servant. As a squash player, she was dominant in the late 1980s and early 1990s, winning the World Open on four occasions. She served ...
(New Zealand) in the 1980s;
Michelle Martin and
Sarah Fitz-Gerald
Sarah Elizabeth Fitz-Gerald AM (born 1 December 1968) is an Australian women's squash player who won five World Open titles – 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001 and 2002. She ranks alongside Janet Morgan, Nicol David, Susan Devoy, Michelle Martin and ...
(Australia) in the 1990s; and
Nicol David
Datuk Nicol Ann David (born August 26, 1983) is a retired female Malaysian professional squash player. Beginning in August 2006, David was the world number one for a record-breaking 108 consecutive months, finally ceding the ranking in Septembe ...
(Malaysia) in the 2000s.
The Men's British Open has similarly been dominated by relatively few players:
F.D. Amr Bey
Abdelfattah Amr () (14 February 1909 – 23 November 1988), better known as "F.D. Amr Bey" or simply "Amr Bey", was an Egyptian diplomat and squash player. He won the British Open men's title six consecutive times (1933–38), and is considered ...
(Egypt) in the 1930s;
Mahmoud Karim
Mahmoud el Karim (1916–1999) was a squash (sport), squash player from Egypt. He won the British Open Squash Championships, British Open men's title four consecutive times from 1947–1950.
Playing career
Karim first played golf and tennis at the ...
(Egypt) in the 1940s; brothers
Hashim Khan
Hashim Khan ( ps, ; – 18 August 2014) was a squash player from Pakistan. He won the British Open Squash Championships (the then ''de facto'' world championship) a total of seven times, from 1951 to 1956, and then again in 1958. Khan ...
and
Azam Khan (Pakistan) in the 1950s and 1960s;
Jonah Barrington (Great Britain and Ireland) and
Geoff Hunt
Geoffrey Brian Hunt, (born 11 March 1947), is a retired Australian Squash (sport), squash player who is widely considered to be one of the greatest squash players in history.
He was ranked the World No.1 squash player from 1975 to 1980. He ...
(Australia) in the 1960s and 1970s,
Jahangir Khan (Pakistan) 1980s ;
Jansher Khan
Jansher Khan PP SI HI ( ur, جان شیر خان; born 15 June 1969, in Peshawar, Pakistan) is a former World No. 1 professional Pakistani squash player. During his career, he won the World Open a record eight times, and the British Open s ...
(Pakistan) in the 1990s and more recently,
David Palmer and
Nick Matthew.
The
World Open professional championship was inaugurated in 1976 and serves as the main competition today.
Jansher Khan
Jansher Khan PP SI HI ( ur, جان شیر خان; born 15 June 1969, in Peshawar, Pakistan) is a former World No. 1 professional Pakistani squash player. During his career, he won the World Open a record eight times, and the British Open s ...
holds the record of winning eight World titles followed by
Jahangir Khan with six,
Geoff Hunt
Geoffrey Brian Hunt, (born 11 March 1947), is a retired Australian Squash (sport), squash player who is widely considered to be one of the greatest squash players in history.
He was ranked the World No.1 squash player from 1975 to 1980. He ...
&
Amr Shabana four,
Nick Matthew &
Ramy Ashour
Ramy Mohamed Ashour (born September 30, 1987, in Cairo, Egypt), known as Ramy Ashour (), is a retired professional squash player from Egypt, widely regarded as one of the best squash players in the history of the sport. He became the youngest pla ...
three. The women's record is held by
Nicol David
Datuk Nicol Ann David (born August 26, 1983) is a retired female Malaysian professional squash player. Beginning in August 2006, David was the world number one for a record-breaking 108 consecutive months, finally ceding the ranking in Septembe ...
with eight wins followed by
Sarah Fitzgerald five,
Susan Devoy
Dame Susan Elizabeth Anne Devoy (born 4 January 1964) is a former New Zealand squash player and senior public servant. As a squash player, she was dominant in the late 1980s and early 1990s, winning the World Open on four occasions. She served ...
four, and
Michelle Martin three.
Heather McKay
Heather Pamela McKay (née Blundell) (born 31 July 1941) is a retired Australian squash player, who is considered by many to be the greatest female player in the history of the game, and possibly also Australia's greatest-ever sportswoman. Sh ...
remained undefeated in competitive matches for 19 years (between 1962 and 1981) and won sixteen consecutive British Open titles between 1962 and 1977.
Current rankings
The
Professional Squash Association
The Professional Squash Association (PSA) is the governing body for the men's and women's professional squash circuit. The body operates in a similar fashion to the ATP and the WTA for tennis. The PSA's highest professional level, the PSA Wor ...
(PSA) publishes monthly rankings of professional players:
Men's
Women's
Current champions
See also
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The Howe Cup
The Howe Cup is an all-female American Squash team championship run since 1955 for all ages and abilities. About the Cup
Creation
The tournament started in 1928 as an inter-city competition between the cities of New York City, Philadelphia an ...
*
World Squash Federation
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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 ...
*
PSA World Tour records The Professional Squash Association, or PSA, was formed in 1975, is the governing body for the men's and women's (since 2014) professional squash circuit. The previous women's squash tour were the Women's International Squash Players Association, ...
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Racquetball
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List of squash players
This is a list of notable top international players of the racquet sport squash.
Names are highlighted in bold if the player has officially been ranked the World No.1; has won the World Open; has been champion at the British Open (which was the e ...
*
World Championship
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
*
Hardball squash Hardball squash is a format of the indoor racquet sport squash which was first developed in North America in the late 19th century and early 20th century. It is sometimes referred to as being the "American version" of the sport. Compared to the "Br ...
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List of PSA number 1 ranked players
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List of WSA number 1 ranked players
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World Team Squash Championships
The WSF World Team Squash Championships are an international squash competition organised by the World Squash Federation (WSF) and played between teams representing different nations. Countries enter teams of three or four players to represent t ...
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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 of ...
*
List of US Intercollegiate squash champions
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US Junior Open squash championship
The United States Junior Open Squash Championship is the largest individual junior squash tournament in the world and is considered the third most prestigious junior open squash championship after the World Junior and the British Junior Open squa ...
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Longest squash match records This article details longest squash match records by duration.
Overall
Men
*2 h 50 Holtrand Gas City Pro-Am 2015, semifinal:
Leo Au def. Shawn Delierre, 11–6, 4–11, 11–6, 7–11, 16–14 (170 min).
*2 h 46 Chichester Festival 1983, final: ...
*
Squash tennis
Squash tennis is an American variant of squash, but played with a ball and racquets that are closer to the equipment used for lawn tennis, and with somewhat different rules. For younger players the game offers the complexity of squash and the sp ...
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Table squash Table squash is a sport for two players which is an evolution of table tennis and uses similar rules and equipment. The game is played by placing a table tennis table against a playing wall with the net remaining on the table perpendicular to the w ...
*
rackets
Racket may refer to:
* Racket (crime), a systematised element of organized crime
** Protection racket, a scheme whereby a group provides protection to businesses or other groups through violence outside the sanction of the law
* Racket (sports equ ...
(also called "hard rackets”, “prison tennis”).
References
Citations
General sources
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*
*
*
Further reading
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* Zug, James;
Plimpton, George (2003)
''Squash: a history of the game'' New York: Scribner. .
External links
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World Squash Federation official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Squash (Sport)
Ball games
Racket sports
Wall and ball games
Sports originating in England