The Art of Anticipation
Be Ready for Anything on the Court
By Martin Heath
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A squash court really is a small area. Centered on the T, you are never more than three large steps away from any ball, though we all know the court can assume the size of a football pitch when your opponent is deftly carving the ball to all the corners of the court. When you are retrieving a ball, you are fighting against the linear distance between you and the ball, and you are also fighting against your mind and body telling you that the ball could fly in at least six possible directions. This uncertainty wastes a lot of energy, though can be lessened by the shrewd use of anticipation.
The art of anticipation not only requires you to read your opponent’s upcoming shot, but also requires the correct weight transfer and your body’s readiness to move in the most likely area the ball will travel. You must anticipate the return based upon the quality of your shot, how your opponent approaches the ball, his swing, the angle of his racquet and his footwork. It takes a lot of experience to read your opponent correctly, though once you do, it is almost like ESP how quickly you can get on the ball. Let’s look at a couple of different scenarios and see how you can use all this information to vastly minimize the possibilities:
You play a straight kill shot that stays tight to the wall. Due to the closeness to the wall, it’s unlikely your opponent can get enough angle to play a boast or a crosscourt shot, so you anticipate his main possibility: a straight counter drop-shot. Obviously the tighter your shot is to the wall or the quicker your shot, the less options your opponent will have, which allows you to make an easier decision about how to position yourself on the “T” and move in the right direction. After playing your shot and assessing its value, you can then decide on how far you can creep up the court. If your shot is very tight you can even slightly crowd your opponent in case she tries to sneakily drive the ball straight past you, which will result in you being awarded a stroke. Don’t be shy about using this tactic—it is legitimate and smart to position yourself accordingly to get the ultimate reward for your good play. You are being rewarded for your good shot, your anticipation and your conviction. It is my observation that a lot of young players shy away from this kind of point-winning strategy as being too confrontational or aggressive, only to find that their Egyptian or Pakistani counterparts have mastered this art by the time they leave kindergarten.
In this photo of James Willstrop (L) and Lee Beachill, Beachill is primed and ready on the T, on the balls of his feet and relaxed, ready to move in any direction that Willstrop may put the ball; Photo by SquashPics.com
Let’s take the same straight kill, though the ball is not so tight. Against a great shot-maker with masterful conviction this is a bad play, as it gives her the front of the court to play with, and the chances are you will lose the rally. Against a technically limited player, this can sometimes be a good play as it forces her into taking the initiative, in which case you can hit straight kills all day with no fear whatsoever, and the worst you will have to deal with is a crosscourt drive or a boast.
Let’s say you find yourself stranded in the middle of the court after playing a backwall boast, and your opponent has an easy shot at the front. Where do you move and what do you look for? Watch your opponent closely and assess her options. Your weight transfer should have forward momentum (it’s easier to check, go backwards and retrieve a drive than retrieve a drop-shot from backwards momentum) and lean slightly in the direction you believe most likely the ball is going to go. I’ve found that even walking quickly forward from the backcourt to the T gives you momentum to jump on the most likely area while still not committing you in case you have to change direction. Also, forget about watching the ball in this scenario. Watch your opponent instead to gain a better idea of the general area the ball will be going. This may be contrary to your previous tutelage of watching the ball at all costs, though this is the only exception to this important rule. You will be amazed at how you can turn this defensive position into an offensive one by reading your opponent’s movements and responding quickly rather than by watching the ball and responding from a purely neutral position.
If you are totally unsure where the ball is going to go and you are covering a few different directions, my advice is again contrary to the anxious and defensive situation you are in: you must relax. Relax your knees, your hips and your ankles, feel your legs bend slightly; then read your opponent’s signs, and leap onto the ball from this relaxed, slightly crouched position. This is the readiness I talked about and is just simple biomechanics. If you are upright and on your toes, the only things you will have to change direction are your toes and a bit of downward momentum. If your joints are slightly bent and your legs relaxed, you will be able to change direction using all the appropriate muscles at the appropriate joint angle. I also use this relaxed position when my opponent is hitting from the backcourt with a lot of time. I have found, especially on hotter and bouncier courts, that this helps my economy of movement without sacrificing my speed, which is basically what is squash is all about—if you feel comfortable extending the rallies and keeping the ball in play longer than your opponent, most of the time you will win. On colder courts you may have to be a little more urgent and move further up the court to cover the shorter shots. Either way, practicing a slightly crouched position in practice as well as matches will help strengthen your legs and recruit the correct muscles at the correct times.
As in most sports or zero-sum games (where a player only benefits at the expense of others), context is king. You will have to adjust your anticipation as you improve and play different opponents. Also, you may choose to utilize your ability to anticipate your opponent’s shots on big points or crucial periods in a match, catching your opponent by surprise, giving her less time, or maybe you want to mix up the pace of the game.
Have fun trying out some of the ideas I’ve presented here, find what works for you, and I’m sure you will find that extra edge you may have been lacking to move your game to the next level.
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