Squash Company

Squash coaching with passion

Hitting the ball overly hard and low against good volleyers



Trying something different to gain the advantage

A tactic that has been successfully deployed against me in the past – and which I still haven’t managed to deal with – is to hit all long shots (i.e. drives) excessively hard, as well as low where possible, although the low part doesn’t seem to be a requirement!

A player did this to me after I steamrollered them in the first game taking the ball so early they couldn’t cope with it and they gradually turned the game around. When they were hitting traditional straight drives or playing lob shots, I was controlling the game on the volley. Even when they went short earlier with drops, boasts or kills, I was able to stay in front of them and control the game. The excessively hard drives worked perfectly as the ball was simply too fast and a bit too wild for me to volley. It came off the back wall more than normal drives would have done but this was a worthwhile trade off for stripping me of my volley attacks. It meant he could actually get in front of me, which was also a positive for him as he had a very good attacking volley himself.

Not overhitting the ball

While he was hitting the ball very hard, he was still making sure he didn’t drastically overhit it. The ball was still bouncing before the back wall and was also being hit with a downward angle, which meant he was able to reduce the amount the ball would rebound off the back wall. I had more freedom than I would typically get at the back but I wasn’t able to control the pace of the game as I did on the T-Position. I also typically had to go long from this position in spite of having extra time as the ball came off the back wall, as he was now in front of me and had the pace to get most short shots back unless I made it roll out of the nick!

If you’re playing someone who is exceptional at volleying, this might be a tactic worth trying out. It also just goes to show that sometimes you’ve got to break out of your normal style and perhaps even conventional style to get the upper hand against some types of players.



Is your length shot coming off the back wall too much?




Allowing your opponent more time and space. 

I posted not too long ago about whether people are actually achieving anything when they try to play a length shot, particularly drives (or rails in US parlance). Continuing with that theme, it’s also vital players monitor their length shots to see if they are coming off the back wall too much.

When the ball bounces off the back wall 

Lots of players overhit their length and allow their opponent a good deal of space and time when the ball comes off the back wall. At worst, the ball should come off the back wall no more than a rackets length, which isn’t as much as it sounds. Even when it is coming off the back wall as much as this though, it allows an opponent increased time to get to the ball, they have to move slightly less and they will also have more room to swing as the ball is no longer trapped in the corner. All of this adds up over the course of a game and leaves your opponent feeling fairly comfortable. Contrast this with making them rush towards the back corner as they know your shot isn’t coming off the back. Firstly, they are rushing, which is physically demanding, especially if repeated. Secondly, because they are rushing, they will tend to have weaker decision making and therefore their shot choices may suffer. Lastly, they are under pressure technically, as they have to find a way to get the ball out of the back with two walls in the way.

Balance between overhitting and under-hitting 

On hot days or with a hot ball it can be tough to find a balance between length and overhitting the ball, as it it is just as easy to under-hit the ball and play a short length as it is to overhit. First and foremost make sure your length shot gets your opponent off the T-Position, which usually means getting the first bounce of your shot behind the serve box. However, be keenly aware of how much your shot is coming off the back wall. Do your best to retain your length whilst making sure the ball is bouncing twice right in or near the back corner. The best way to achieve this is to get your racket above the ball, Amr Shabana style, so that whenever you hit the shot it is going downwards. It might also mean hitting the ball lower or even hitting the ball a touch slower. Usually, accuracy is more important than power when hitting drives, although this is not always the case.

During your next few games, see if your length shots are coming off the back wall a lot and if you can do anything about this.




Is your long shot actually long? 




Does your length shot get your opponent behind you?

It can be very easy to get caught up in whacking the ball to the back of the court with little regard for accuracy and thought for why you actually did it. The whole point of playing a long shot is to get your opponent behind you so that you can take the T-Position. Do your length shots actually have this purpose?  

Getting the first bounce behind the serve box

In general, you need the first bounce of your shot to be behind the serve box. The exact area of the ideal first bounce will vary though depending on the court, the ball and what shot you are playing. It’s wise to spend a bit of time during the warm-up trying to figure out where the ideal first bounce is to get the ball bouncing twice right in the back corner. Sometimes it will need to be a good foot behind the service box or possibly even further back that that if the ball is cold or your are playing a slower shot, such as a lob.

Even on the hottest courts, you will usually need the ball to bounce behind the serve box to get your opponent off the T-Position. If it doesn’t get beyond the box, you will usually find your opponent is able to cut the ball off. It might mean the ball comes off the back wall a bit but this is definitely worth it to get your opponent off the T-Position (so long as your length shot isn’t coming off the back wall a long way!).

Most matches are won by the player who gets their shots into the corners of the court the most and if your length is getting your opponent to the back more than their length shots are able to get you to the back, you will have a great chance of emerging victorious in the match.

Ways of getting the ball behind the service box

If you’re struggling to get the ball behind the serve box it can be for a number of reasons. Typically people could do with opening their racket face more, which you can do by rotating your forearm. You can find out more about this here.

It might also be your positioning and/or footwork is preventing you getting enough power or leverage on the ball, in which case you might need to ensure your feet are pointing towards the sidewall or even a touch forwards, which might mean moving around the ball more to ensure you are more ‘side-on’ to the front wall. You might even use a little jump. You can find out more about positioning and footwork here.

You could also try putting more weight into your legs by bending your knees more and squatting slightly or lunging, although this lunge needs to be directed by your feet and body pointing towards the side wall as much as possible as previously mentioned.

During your next few matches, check if your length shot actually gets past the service box. The player whose length is weaker and shorter typically loses the match, as they don’t get possession of the T-Position as much and provide their opponent with more opportunities to attack.




Cross-courting with discipline 




Changing direction at the optimum moment. 

One thing that drives coaches, team mates and spectators batty everywhere is players (usually juniors) hitting the ball cross-court too much. Quite often for squash players, hitting the ball cross-court is the path of least resistance. You don’t need to move your feet as much to play cross-court, which means it is quicker to play the shot and therefore you don’t need as much time.

Players rarely come off better as a result of this trade-off between reduced effort and having to play a cross-court shot. The player may use less energy and save themselves some time but they also typically gift their opponent an opportunity to attack when the cross-court doesn’t reach the required area of the court.

Showing the straight drive

The cross-court length can be one of squash’s great attacking shots when used effectively. The optimum time to use it is when an opponent is anticipating a straight shot, particularly from the back, and so starts to edge towards the back corner to get ready for a straight length shot. At this point, the cross-court length is incredibly damaging, as the player has already begun to move in the opposite direction. The best way to get players to start moving towards the straight length shot is to use the cross-court length sparingly, so that they feel the straight shot will be your most likely shot choice. This naturally then makes your cross-court all the more effective when you do use it.

Cross-courting from a position of strength 

Personally, I think the key to getting the cross-court length right is to play it when you are in a position of strength. Most of the time people flap and play a cross-court shot if they are unsure or under a bit of pressure, because as we mentioned earlier, it is always an easy shot to hit. Logically, this is a disaster as the shot is likely to be inaccurate if played while under pressure, which means it is likely to be looser and in the middle of the court and in an area where the opponent can intercept it comfortably.

Be the one who changes the direction of play with the cross-court, but only on your terms. Only change it when you are in a strong position and preferably when your opponent is vulnerable, as in the previous paragraph where they may be anticipating a straight ball and are already on the move.

Turning your opponent

When playing your cross-court you need to aim to turn your opponent towards the back corners. If your cross-court doesn’t get behind them, then it’s likely to give them an opportunity to volley or put you under pressure. So ensure when you do play cross-court that you get the depth to really turn your opponent towards the back of the court to limit their options significantly.

Never cross-court unnecessarily. Cross-courts are great attacking shots when your opponent leaves a gap but they should be used at the right time and at the right moment; always from a position of strength.




Playing Cross-Courts from the back



The easiest shot to play badly.

Playing a Cross-Court from the back can be a really effective shot. Often players will drift in anticipating a straight return and when they do this, the Cross-Court can be a great way of catching them out, seizing the T and putting them on the defensive as they have to turn towards the back wall.

However, as a lot of people know (except almost all junior players…), it can also be a liability of a shot. If you play it badly and it’s either loose and in the middle or too short, you can come under a lot of pressure or even lose the rally.

So how do we make it a weapon and not a liability?

The Technique

There can be a number of reasons why Cross-Courts from the back don’t make the grade. Some people get too ‘front-on’, which is to say their body faces the front wall as they hit the ball. If you do this, you typically lose engagement in the hips and torso which means you don’t get the same swing, which can cause the shot to come up short.
Do your best to remain more ‘side-on’, having your body facing the side wall, although you may need to play about with this and find a middle ground between being side-on and front-on.

Another thing to be aware of when playing this shot is the follow-through. A lot of players finish their follow-through very quickly, which means they lose a bit of their accuracy and ball control. Your hand should go through the ball when you’re playing this shot by quite some distance, so just check you are allowing it to do so and also letting it do so in the right direction!

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It can also be an idea to snap your elbow and lower arm more, especially if the ball is in the back corner or getting behind you, as this can give the ball a little bit more impetus for making it to the other back corner of the court.

Added Deception

An added benefit of remaining more side-on is that you take up roughly the same position that you would if you were going to play straight, which means the shot can have some natural disguise, which could help to make it an even more devastating attacking threat.

Make sure you don’t play any rash Cross-Courts from the back but wait for the right opening and then make sure you achieve that depth and width with the quality of your technique!