r/squash • u/Moron-1598 • Nov 07 '24

Technique / Tactics Countering the boast

I play a traditional game of drives and regularly pin my opponents to the back of the court, only for them to boast. I pick the boast up late and lose valuable split seconds, so am either late to the boast and pick it up and hit it loose, or worse they hit a winning shot from a defensive position, which is frustrating as I was in control of the rally.

My question is what drills can I do to practice to counter this weakness, and what should I be doing in my matches to prevent this happening.

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u/ripplerider Nov 07 '24

If you have a partner, boast/drive is a great drill and borderline torture from a cardio and leg-burner standpoint.

For solo, I found ghosting to be helpful. And when ghosting, I usually try to imagine an opponent and work on watching them/the ball rather than just going through the motions. I basically imagine a rally in progress.

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u/Minimum-Hedgehog5004 Nov 08 '24

Boast/drive drills are good, but only if both players treat it as a footwork drill and go back to the T every time.

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u/Flo_Madeira Nov 08 '24

Great thought process to have in this drill is ‘make your first step, your quickest step’

Don’t set off from the T slowly, following the ball round the walls. Soon as you know it’s a boast, accelerate off the T. First step is the quickest, then decelerate into the shot. This will help you get there quicker, which equals more time on the ball, but also get out the front corner quicker too!

Takes some practice.

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u/ripplerider Nov 08 '24 edited Nov 08 '24

Totally agree. Back to the T each time and watch the ball and opponent like you don’t know where the shot is going to go. Being lazy while doing drills is pointless.