Elite coach Paul Carter is back with us on SquashSkills this week, with a brand new playlist focusing on what he considers some of the foundations of technique – what he brands as the ‘non-negotiables’.
Paul had a fantastic career as a player, winning the British National title and reaching the top 20 in the PSA world rankings. His transition to coaching was a hugely successful one, and he’s gone on to coach a number of the very best players in the world, both individually and as part of the England Squash national team set-up.
Every coach will have their own style of teaching, with a focus on the technical and tactical elements that they deem most important to the game. What Paul talks about in this series however, is what he considers the thread of elements that underpin everything else you do on court – his concept of the ‘non-negotiables’ is really about the underlying fundamental principles that he feels need to be in place pretty much universally, no matter your style or pattern of play.
Whether you’re a coach or a player, Paul’s belief is that getting these core principles in place must be a priority before trying to build anything else on top. His approach to elements such as the grip, the wrist position, and the point of contact, is that there needs to be a general consistency that is common to all players regardless of level. That’s not to say that there isn’t going to be some individual variance and subtleties built on top of this, but for Paul there needs to be some foundation commonality that underpins everything else as regards technique – getting these things in place will go a long way to helping you better control the ball, which in turn allows you to better control your opponent.
The aim of this blog is to introduce Paul’s video series, along with the specific solo and pairs sessions that we’ve created to help you get on court to learn how to put it all into practice. There’s also links included below to some related content that we have here on the site along similar themes from some of the other elite coaches we’ve previously featured, to help you gain a more comprehensive understanding of some of the universal fundamentals that Paul believes are crucial to improving your game whatever level you play at.
Watch through the videos from the playlist and then click through the links to the sessions below to check them out, and discover the benefits of getting your ‘non-negotiables’ rock-solid to help enable you to develop consistency with your technique, and to maximise your ball control.
Put it into practice
This solo session is designed to allow you to practice Paul’s non-negotiables with some basic hitting drills.
This pairs session works through a series of drills where you can practice your foundation skills within a more natural rally environment.
Fluidity of movement is another fundamental element of the game, as is developing a good base of physical conditioning. A great way to work on these two elements simultaneously, is with ghosting drills. Try out this great session created by SquashSkills Fitness Director Gary Nisbet.
Related content
Backhand technique session with Jethro Binns
Jethro takes Paul Miles through a coaching session to improve his backhand technique and ball striking.
Forehand technique session with Jethro Binns
Jethro takes Paul Miles through a coaching session to improve his forehand technique.
Different types of length with Nick Matthew
Nick Matthew explains how to use different types of length to maximum impact during a match.
Weight of shot with David Pearson
In this series, we welcome David Pearson, former England National coach and coach to World Champions Nick Matthew and Laura Massaro, back to SquashSkills to focus on weight of shot.
Let us know how you get on with the sessions, we’d love to hear your feedback!
Haven't seen the full series yet?
In this new series, Paul Carter returns to discuss his non-negotiable aspects within squash, factors that must be brought in within the basics of the game.
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