March 13, 2009

Playing Squash

A brief introduction to squash:

The game of squash comes under the category of indoor racquet sport. Formerly it was known by the name of Squash rackets with reference to the squashable soft ball that is being used in the game. The game of squash resembles to lawn tennis except the fact that the later is an outdoor game and in the later one player returns the ball of the opponent. Squash is played by two players with standard rackets in a four-walled court with a small hollow rubber ball. The game is believed to be originated in the 19th century at the Harrow school in London as a derivative of the game of racquets. The game remained preserved within the schools and Universities till the early 20th century. By that time it started to gain popularity mostly in the private clubs and within the armed forces of the British army. The game was first codified by the United States in the year 1907 and in the same year a dedicated association was formed for the game.

Squash pros and cons:

Most of the racket sports including squash provide a real test of stamina, strength, power and reactions and shouldn't be taken lightly. Also racket sports can offer health benefits that are similar to running or jogging. Compared to tennis squash is a faster-paced game as it's contained within walls and breaks in play are shorter. Any player can burn up anything between 600 and 850 calories per hour depending on the intensity of the game. However it should be noted that the contained nature of a squash court makes players vulnerable to injury, whether from stray racquet swings or from collisions with players or walls. Moreover to play squash one should have a decent level of aerobic fitness. Some good ways to get fit would be to take up running to build stamina and maybe an exercise like yoga to improve the body flexibility. But they should be done prior starting the game. It should also be made sure before one starts playing there should be a little warm up and stretch.