Zero To Hero: Squash Technique Fundamentals – With Jesse Engelbrecht

The Grip

Jesse starts with the grip, and he’s honest that it’s a tricky area: he has seen players with the wrong grip doing quite well, and changing it ruined their game for a while. His advice is still to sort it early rather than late, because a closed ‘club’ grip leaves the racket face flat and limits almost everything you do.

• Form a V: make a V with your thumb and forefinger and rest it on the open edge of the racket.
• Fingers, not palm: let the grip sit in your fingers rather than your palm, so you can manoeuvre the racket and place the ball.
• Hold a small bird: Jesse’s favourite description of grip tension. Firm enough that it won’t fly away, never so tight you crush it.

For more on holding the racket, see our full guide to the squash grip.

The Forehand: Skimming A Stone

On the forehand, Jesse wants the wrist slightly cocked, with the racket head just above it at roughly 45 degrees. Not straight up at 90, and not flopping down below the wrist.

Then get the racket up as early as possible, as soon as you know the ball is coming to your forehand. The earlier it’s up, the more time you have to address the shot.

His picture for the swing is skimming a stone across a lake. Arm and racket up, elbow dropping in a little, and the stone released along the line.

The Backhand: The Diamond

The backhand starts the same way, with the racket up early. The difference is the shoulder: it sits in front of you, and if you don’t rotate it out of the way, it ends up in a bad position.

Jesse’s answer is the diamond shape. As the ball goes to your backhand, pull your hitting hand towards your opposite shoulder, so the shoulder, forearm, racket and head form a diamond. Rotate quickly into it, step into the shot and release, letting the swing wrap around your body.

If you don’t set up well, he warns, a lot of the other moving parts fall down.

Follow-Through And Legs

A controlled follow-through is part of the swing, not an afterthought. Get it right and the ball goes roughly where you want it to go. The faults Jesse sees most are the follow-through dropping off, or stabbing at the ball.

The last connection is your lower body. Too often players set up nicely, then there’s a disconnect below the waist. Jesse wants your knees and hips in the shot: knees working as shock absorbers, bouncing into the lunge, with the timing all put together.

The Straight Drive

Jesse calls the straight drive arguably your most important shot in squash: it runs parallel to the sidewall, bounces behind the service box, and buries your opponent in the back corner. Good players play it again and again.

Get the racket up early and get side on. Facing the front wall, or turning away and hooking it out, won’t go well. Your contact point should be in line with your front foot, with the racket face square to the ball.

Any variance at contact, with the racket head behind or in front of your wrist, sends the ball spinning off in different directions. Underpin it with a firm follow-through along the line.

The backhand needs more rotation, with your hips and shoulders turned further back. Its follow-through has more of a flourish, but keep your chest side on so you don’t over-rotate and open up to the front wall.

The Volley

Volleying lets you command the middle of the court, and the volley changes the priorities. You have less time, so the backswing is short and compact. Racket up, then a short, punchy swing.

The mistake Jesse sees most is trying to hit the volley with power. The priority is an early contact point, a little in front of you rather than side on, which he calls almost late on a volley. Then keep the follow-through commanded, because a wavy, wishy-washy finish sends the ball everywhere.

He’s honest that the backhand volley, especially above the shoulder, is one of the toughest shots in squash. It needs more rotation and the bigger muscles: lean into it.

Drops, Lobs And Boasts

The same squash technique basics carry into the touch shots.

• Drop: half a backswing, an open racket face with the bottom edge leading, and low hips and knees so your body is at the height of the tin. Jesse calls the low hips possibly the most important point. Aim to cut the ball, not slice under it.
• Lob: height is the priority, so hit the bottom of the ball with a low, sweeping backswing and a contact point well out in front. Cross-court gives the ball more time in the air, and you more time to recover.
• Boast: imagine the sidewall isn’t there and aim at the opposite front corner of your neighbour’s court. Face backwards, commit, and punch it into the sidewall. Tentative boasts don’t come off.

Serve And Return

For beginners and improvers, Jesse recommends a power serve. Start near the front of the box with one foot fully inside it (a foot on the line is a fault), toss the ball out in front of you, and whip it into the front wall so it hits the sidewall and comes at your opponent’s body. The lob serve, drifting high and feathering the sidewall, is worth adding once you’re confident.

On the return, stand about a racket’s length from the corner of the service box, relaxed, and move with your opponent as they serve, what Jesse calls a little dance. Track the ball, then prioritise height over power: use the top third of the front wall and land it behind the service box.

Pick One Or Two

Jesse is clear that this is a lot to take in. Try to do it all at once, he says, and you’ll have “a bit of a brain melt”.

So pick one, two or maybe three elements, and work on them until they’re embedded in your game. Start with the grip and early racket preparation, because every other part of your squash technique is built on them. For the bigger picture of the series, read Zero to Hero: Mastering Squash Fundamentals.

Read next: Fundamentals Of Deception In Squash and Play Slow, Move Quick: A Squash Tactic.