Attack To Win! by John Power 

 

Introduction: One evening after a couple of beers Kim convinced me that I should do a short article for the ISA website. We came to the conclusion that a discussion on the attacking game might best suit her readers. This idea did not come solely from the fact of being the father and coach of the world’s most effective offensive player, but I’m sure it may have had some influence. Having gotten smitten by the game just a little earlier than my eldest son I personally gained a reputation of being a player that lacked imagination and skill but was able to win matches through fitness and consistency. So it will be from this conflicted background I will “attack” our theme. 

General: Like virtually all sports squash is broken down into offense and defense. Regardless of what level you play you need to have both to be successful. How often has a runner lost because he/she hasn’t been able to finish points or is unable to lengthen the rallies so that fitness becomes a factor. Or on the other hand how many players with great shots and superior skills succumbed to players who “get everything back” or their winner /error ratio was in the negative. To improve as a player you need to work on all aspects with attention to those areas in which you are the weakest. The great Peter Nicol has worked extremely hard at becoming more offensive minded, developing additional skills to move his opponent and finish points. Whereas Jonathon wasn’t ready for top level play until he became more fit, patient and mature in his game so that he could sustain an attack without error and fatigue. 

The Shots: People often ask which shots should I attack with? Normally club players will have one or two good attacking shots – Mary has a terrific drop, Bob hits a mean boast. But I say to be a good attacking or offensive player you need to be able to apply pressure with all shots – drives, volleys, drops, boasts, kills and lobs. It will be how well you hit them and when you hit them that will dictate your success. The higher you move up the ladder the more imperative it becomes that one has to master all the shots. At the “D” level the guy who can drive it hard to length might have all he needs to win, while the young girl with a great lob serve could have all the attack she needs to be successful in girls under 11 competition. But if you can’t attack with a tight volley drop I dare say you won’t have enough game to win at the national level. 

 

The Strategy: We could talk about all our choices with each shot from each area of the court but I don’t think that was Kim’s intent when she asked me to do a short article, but I do wish to go over the basic strategy of an attacking game. Firstly, you need an aggressive attitude towards your game to attack well. The game is changing, the rallies are faster, there is less attritional, steady length play. So what you need to consider is: volley more, get on the ball quicker, change pace and direction often and move your opponent every chance you get. Secondly, you have to understand the concept of moving your opponent, opening the court, and maintaining pressure. One of the toughest things for me as a college coach has been to convey the principle that really there is no such thing as winners, just good attacking shots. So many players when they get a loose ball go for a hit or miss shot not realizing that the miss loses the point and more often than not the hit will come back. We must learn to attack within our skill level and do it without error. A lose ball in the middle should be attacked, it could be good length, straight drop, working boast, it doesn’t really matter which but it should be done with the intention of moving your opponent, opening the court, initiating the attack but never with the thought “I have to hit a winner.”  

Finally, where should I try to hit winners and when do I attack and from where? My thinking here is (and this is brief) if you have time in the front court you should be thinking of finishing the point, but always expect the ball to come back. Here you should be developing a straight drop into the nick, and effective hold to freeze your opponent and then a snap to the back and have a trickle boast or X-ct. flick for very special occasions. But this is the time to win the point or apply extreme pressure. A great practice for this situation is player A hits a high boast (backwall or side) and player B has one shot to win point – keep score. Contrary to popular belief you can attack from anywhere on the court. The basic principles being you need to be balanced and have options meaning you have space around the ball. From the time Jonathon was very young he enjoyed dropping the ball from the back court. This was very effective for him as his opponent would be off guard, is forced to move forward and Jonathon would look to volley the next ball thus getting his opponent moving vertically on the court. But suffice to say when the ball is open, regardless of where don’t hesitate to drop, boast or angle short. By hitting length every time you become too predictable. The midcourt is the key to any successful attacking game. Here you need variation of choices and the skills to attack all four corners. My experience here so far in the States is that the players are not moving forward enough looking for the mid-court attack and there is a reticence to move their opponent to the front corners with good drops, volley drops and boasts. To improve in this area I would recommend pattern training. A simple example would be players play a regular game but every time the player is in the midcourt with opponent behind he/she MUST boast and the reply would be a lob. This form of training helps force players to break old habits. 

So in summary, if you are looking to become more offensive and wish to improve your attacking game:

- play aggressively

- get on the ball sooner to provide more options

- volley when possible

- think movement of opponent and ball not hitting winners

- vary shots in attacking situations

- hold shots for deception

- attack within yourself

- be imaginative and have fun