Ask the Squash Sport Scientist a Question #1

With almost 30,000 hits in little over a year, our Science of Coaching Squash blog does get the occasional question. Since in general, we squash coaches are an isolated bunch, I will post any questions with my short initial response. Others are more than welcome to chime in as obviously there is no one correct answer!

Question #1 received from Dr. Shawkat Gaber (shawkat435@hotmail.com) yesterday, August 13, 2009:

“What is the correct order to teach the skills of squash?”

Thank goodness the first question was such a simple one!

No Olympics for Squash 2016 – Bad News for Squash Scientists

The bad news is that squash did not make it into the 2016 Olympics.  Making it in would have meant a massive injection of funds into elite player development – and therefore into the sport science interventions and research behind such development.  Specifically, it would have meant more funding for squash-specific research of all kinds:  physiology, biomechanics, notational analysis, sports medicine, and sport psychology.  Currently, in terms of the number of scientific publications, squash lags well behind its sister sports of tennis, table tennis and badminton.

The at least not catastrophic news, is that there will still be a continuing significant need for squash sport scientists to interpret and apply general and racquet-sport specific research to assist the squash coach to develop their players.  I regularly monitor the major sport science journals for those findings that can be applied to squash.  This requires not only a pretty good knowledge of the different sport science disciplines, but also a good knowledge of the sport in which the research was conducted.

I have been lucky enough to have been a sport science consultant with three different Canadian National Team Programs (Squash, Tennis, Racquetball), each of which has won (or had) at least one world championship or Olympic Gold Medal during the period I worked with the program.  It would have been very exciting to have made it into the Olympics, but at the end of the day, it really is not going to affect the search for excellence by squash coaches and their players.

Games Approach & Squash Camp Update

I am the lead coach in charge of the curriculum at the Premier Performance Squash Training in Mercdersburg, PA going on this week – this is an update report on the curriculum – which is based on recent posts on designing a camp, Egyptian squash, and developing deceptive players.

• After initial uncertainty and some hesitancy over the lower level campers’ ability to do the Games Approach, the coaches (Karim Darwish, his wife Engy and Miguel Rodriguez (World #20), have enthusiastically embraced the method;
• Our “Egyptian” approach has received an overwhelming enthusiastic response by both adult and junior campers (beginners to 5.5 or “A” players – we start each day with 1-2 front- or mid-court deceptions situations – we are going for our first back-court deception game (and then practice tomorrow).
• I have arranged a free trial at Coreperformance.com for our campers (enter code “CP-PPS”) and the camp owners, Squash Design businessmen Haseeb and Sahel Anwar have bought foam rollers (at my insistence) for each camper so we can finish the day with CorePerformance’s great Regeneration workouts.

It really is great for the campers to get a chance to observe Karim whose racquet skills are quite amazing. I observed him use at least 5 different techniques to play balls glued to the backhand wall (topspin, block, cut, push, etc.0 to get the ball to its target (deep or short). I hope to get a HD video of these techniques before the week is out!

We also quiz the campers on the WSF Refereeing Video – go to our YouTube Squashscience channel to get the camper’s response to one of the refereeing committee’s decisions!

Designing the Ultimate Summer Squash Camp

Princeton Squash Campers June 2009

Obviously, for squash campers whether young or old, the squash coach’s priority is to ensure they 1) have fun; and 2) learn something – and we all know “there is more than one way to skin a cat” (apologies to cat lovers).

Having said that, due to the usual compressed time frame of a one-week squash camp it is easy to throw established sport science principles out the window – in a desire to teach the campers “everything possible”.  In this post we will discuss  a few guidelines based on the latest sport science research to ensure that your camper benefit optimally from your coaching program.

Volume, Intensity and Organization of  the Week’s Training. Since one of the primary purposes of a summer camp (versus national camp prior to World’s for example) is to teach new squash skills, care must be taken to not overfatigue the campers as this will hurt learning. A L-M-H-L-H (L=low, M=medium, H=high) distribution of  the daily training load over the week will help accomplish this.  This will produce more and better quality work that a L-H-L-H-L periodization for example.  Obviously, most of us will be violating the rule of thumb not to increase training volume more than 10% from week to week – as most summer campers will not be playing much sqaush or training very hard.

Planning the Daily Training Sessions. There is actually a theoretically optimal order in which to train the different components needed to play better squash (which I have adapted for squash from  Tudor Bompa – the North America Father of Periodization):

1. Train new technical skills first while the athlete is fresh.
2. Train speed and agility second, as improving these qualities require a fresh and unfatigued CNS.  If you save your sprinting to the end of the day you will be training your athlete to move at sub-maximal speeds in a fatigued state (actually not that unimportant in squash – but not speed work).
3. Practice well-learned technical drills or do match play or conditioned games third as they can be accomplished well with some fatigue (may even be desirable).
4. Train strength-endurance fourth, after most of the on-court work has been done as this does not require a fresh CNS to benefit the athlete. A camp is a great time to focus on functional or core training (e.g., CorePerformance.com to avoid making the prime squash movers (e.g. quads) overly sore.  Another focus would be to avoid heavy loads and focus on the athlete executing good technique – i.e., the actual training is symbolic, and secondary to learning about training.  There probably is no place for plyometrics or maximum strength training at a summer camp – although demonstrations are fine.
5. Lactic work (intense court sprints with efforts of 15+ seconds) should be training second last, since quality work is very difficult to do after a workout of this type, due to the long recovery period required to eliminate lactic acid from the muscles (at least an hour for partial clearance of LA).
6. Aerobic endurance training should be performed last, since little coordination is required, and if the intensity is around 60-70% it will in fact aid regeneration for the next day.
7. Mental and flexibility training and video analysis/tactical discussions can be interspersed with other training factors to help aid recovery and help provide adequate rest.
8. If you really want to help your squash campers learn how to train properly you can model your physical training sessions after an actual periodized training year:  Day 1 do General Prep training, Day 2 to Specific Prep training, etc.). With handouts, this will provide them with a template to help them plan their own year.

Princeton Squash Camp Coaches - June 2009

Pedagogical Approach to Coaching Technical-Tactical Skills. Doing our basic length and boast and drive drills, followed by match play will definitely improve our players, although to a much lesser extent that than a Tactics First Approach using Games Approach and Decision Training methodology and tools. This involves choosing a tactical model (e.g., Zone or Egg) to organize the week’s sessions, and then starting each session with a conditioned game related to the sessions theme (e.g., 2 pts. for a winning volley if the session topic is volleying) game  (not lecture and drills) in order to evaluate the players and motivate them to change in a fun way – everyone loves to play games!  Players trained with the traditional methods will definitely perform better in practice – but those training with a Tactics First approach will perform better later (weeks or months) in match situations – basically because their training has been more game-like – which is just common sense.

A Practical Example of a Sport Science Designed Squash Camp. I usually perform a support role at squash camps (strength & mental training, nutrition lectures, video analysis, etc.) in addition to squash coaching.  Along with the Anwar brothers at Squash Design, we have designed a squash camp based on the above sport science principles, and will give it a try at the Premier Performance Squash Training Camps in a about a week (July 10 – 18, 2009).  We will also be designing the camp around the presence of Karim Darwish to take advantage of the current dominance of Egyptian squash at the world level (a good amount of emphasis on attacking squash and deception). There are still a couple of places for those who have left booking their summer training camp a bit late (mention “Squash Science” to get a 20% discount of the usual rate).

Application for Squash Coaches:

1. Take advantage of recent advances in sport science to enhance the learning at your squash camps.
2. Where possible use a Tactics First Approach (versus traditional drilling) to introduce and coach new squash skills.
3. Be careful not to overfatigue your squash campers if you really want to improve learning.

Play Squash “Like an Egyptian”

I was attending a squash coaching conference presentation on deception a few years ago, and at some point the presenting coach stated that “Deception should only be introduced and taught once the basic strokes are fully developed”.  Although we cannot ascertain the exact age or stage of development that was meant, I disagree with the basic premise behind the statement.

As a small experiment the next fall, I had my team play a deception conditioned game in the front court on the very first day of our Smith College Squash practice.  We used a blue dot ball and blue painter’s tape to “raise” the tin and ensure multiple shots in a rally.  The condition that was assigned, was that the players must try and surprise their opponent on every shot by hitting a different part of the ball on each shot (outside, back, inside).  Since we rarely get experienced players at Smith (only 1.5% of high school girls will consider a women’s college), for some in attendance it was their first introduction to the game that day – none had played for more than three years, and were far from fully developed.  Everyone had a lot of fun, and were often successful in either deceiving their opponent or in anticipating their opponent’s shot.

Why are the Egyptians so good at both attacking and deceptive squash and scrambling, retrieving and anticipating around the court?  Because they have been playing that style from a very young age.  It takes a much longer time to develop a complete game with a wide variety of shots than it does to develop a defensive grinder.  Some might argue that playing a risky attacking style is a sure way to ensure failure at the junior tournament level.  It really depends what you are after with your coaching – do you want to develop a junior champion or a player with the abilities to succeed at the world level?

It has been my observation that often our coaching stifles creativity and shot-making potential – and the necessary calm risk-taking mentality that goes along with that style.  A grinding, defensive style will take you only so far up the world rankings, and it is very difficult to get a player concerned with rankings to add risky shots to their arsenal under the pressure of the tour.  I am working with Mike Johnson (former coach of World Champions Sarah Fitzgerald and Rodney Eyles this week at sold-out  Princeton Squash camps) and he mentioned that it took him about two years to get an adult Anthony Ricketts to add a very good drop shot to his repertoire.

Ideally, each coaching group (Training Center or National Program) should develop a hierarchy of deception tactics (e.g., easiest to most difficult), and then determine which ones should be taught at each stage of their squash LTAD.

We are putting this philosophy into action at the upcoming Premier Performance Squash Camps (July 10-19, 2009 – there are still a few spaces open for juniors, adults, and in our Coach Mentor Program – mention “Squash Science” to get a 20% discount off the weekly rate).  Each morning, while the campers are fresh and eager to learn, we will be using a Tactics First/Games Approach to work on some aspect of deception.  While we won’t expect the campers to be perfect when we leave, with the assistance of World #1 Karim Darwish (lead coach), we hope to instill an understanding of the importance of deception in the modern game, and provide the campers with the framework to work on these deception and attacking skills.

Application for Squash Coaches

1. Introduce some (10%) practice of deception skills early on in a player’s development – both the tactics and the technique (use of wrist).
2. Even attritional grinders should have some deception in their game so that the uncertainty it creates makes there basic length tactics more effective.
3. If a player shows a special talent (like some of the Egyptians) for deception and attacking squash you can help them develop a smart game plan that combines percentage squash with their attacking skills.

“Squash 2016″ Impact on Sport Science & Squash

How will the sport of squash and in particular squash-related sport science change if squash gets into the Olympics?

Squash 2016

If you want a clear, concrete picture of changes that might occur if squash gets into the Olympics, take a look at the Jobs in Sport sections of UK Sport, Sport England, and the EIS in preparation for the London 2012 Olympics (you can monitor Jobs on our page here).  The amount of money being poured into UK Sport at all levels – sport science, coaching development, organizational infrastructure – even mass participation – makes the the world of sport in the U.S. look like an impoverished wasteland – which it is. This increase in resources will be mirrored in many squash countries around the world. 

Mental Training for Beginning Squash Players

Most of the attention in the sport psychology domain is given to advanced and elite adult players.  In an ideal world, squash coaches would start to guide their proteges towards mental toughness at the very start of their squash lives.

In the early 1990’s I helped Tennis Canada develop mental training and sport psychology priorities for every age group in their junior tennis programs:  periodized annual mental training programs to be implemented in Canadian indoor clubs for each of their junior age groups:  U11, U14, U18.

At each stage of development, different psychological qualities were prioritized – for example tennis intelligence, courage, leadership, etc.  In effect what we did was  develop psychological specifics what we would now describe as stages of a Long Term Athlete Development Plan (LTAD).

While many of the technical and physical aspects of published LTADs are very concrete and specific, the psychological aspects tend to be general and vague – reason being that the sport scientists developing the LTADs work primarily in the areas of physiology and motor learning – not sport psychology!

Here is a link to great example of mental training for beginning tennis players – which will apply 100% to beginning squash players – thanks International Tennis Federation (ITF)!

ITF Mental Training for Tennis Beginners

Bi-Lateral Cross-Training for Squash

One of the challenges for WISPA and PSA squash tour professionals is to balance the need to make a living with scheduling sufficient time off to avoid burnout and chronic injury.  Pro racquet sport athletes do not have the luxury of following properly designed 12- month periodized  training plans with built in transition periods:  4-6 weeks of cross-training following the most important competition of the year to allow complete mental and physical restoration.

Most pros will be obliged to use cycles of 3-5 weeks built around their tournament schedule, where hard training is done for 1-2 weeks, followed by maintenance and tapering in order to “peak” at an important tournament, followed by an easier restoration week, before starting the pattern again.

Problems related to the over-development of one side of the body (upper arm/shoulder) are less frequent in squash than in tennis due to the lighter weight racquet.  Rarely do we see a squash athlete reminiscent of Rod Laver’s gargantuan left side – due to the relatively light weight of the squash racquet (compared to the tennis racquet).  We do see a lot of early onset right hip arthritis due to overuse of the right leg on both the backhand and forehand (open stance) sides.

Laver's Large Left Arm

One solution to avoiding possible problems (in addition to doing a few extra “left-side” sets when strength training) would be to incorporate a bi-lateral cross-training activity that could be done during transition and regeneration weeks.  U.S. Handball is a great option, since the one-wall, outside variety can be played almost anywhere (schools, parks, etc.), since all you need is a wall and a ball.  I ordered the easier-on-your-hands “family” ball (and gloves:) today in order to give it a try in the coming weeks.  The U.S. handball site also has some free excellent instructional downloads here.  Apparently, the ubiquitous U.S. racquetball is also a good choice for beginning players.

Here are some pretty good players playing doubles at a local park:

Developing a Squash World Champion: Align Your LTAD & Coaching Programs

Although squash is played in 153 countries around the world, it is not as well developed as some of  the world’s more popular or richer sports like soccer or tennis.  A small, well organized group of dedicated squash coaches (e.g. currently the Egyptians) can develop world class players, and even a world champion. If we look at the recent history of the squash world rankings, we can see that there is quite a bit of movement near the top of the rankings on both the men’s and women’s side in terms of the players’ nationality.  We also see a lot of successful solo efforts that cross national boundaries such as Liz Irving’s (Australia) coaching of Nicol David (Malaysia).

In terms of sheer numbers in the top 100, the English dominate simply because of greater numbers and government related money that is put into player development (more than any other country).  You can read this post to explore the economics of developing champions.

In order to achieve sustainable results, squash nations need to take advantage of the advances in sport science. This means using a system where the coaching certification program and actual coaching programs used in squash clubs are in perfect alignment with  a nation’s comprehensive Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD) system:

An LTAD Aligned Coaching & Club Training System

Rethinking Squash Coaching Education

Currently, most Squash Coaching Education programs are organized based on a hierarchy of technique:

Level 1 Coaching Course – coaches learn how to teach the basic shots.
Level 2 Coaching Course – coaches learn how to teach the intermediate shots.
Level 3 Coaching Course – coaches learn how to teach advanced shots.

The problem with this approach is that there is so much more to good squash coaching than simply “teaching shots”.  Depending on the actual function the squash coach is fufilling (e.g., Assistant Pro in a club responsible for junior clinics or Part-time National Coach for a World Championship 2-year cycle) the skill set that the coach needs to acquire and demonstrate are very different.  The “clients” (i.e., athletes) of these two different types of coaches also have very different expectations about the person guiding their efforts to improve.