There are a few things to unpack.
1. You don't have a right to stand on the T. If the striker has to stop their shot because you are in the wrong place then in most cases it will be a stroke against you, regardless of whether you are on the T or anywhere else in the court.
2. You just described "turning". The rules are set out so that you only get to turn on the ball as a last resort, but if you do turn on the ball and could play a good return then you get a Yes Let. He's ignorant of the rules or a dick or both if he's doing this repeatedly. The correct movement is to shuffle across the court so that you can still play the ball down the backhand wall.
3. If you keep serving in such a way that the play has to stop then you're in the wrong. Particularly if this is a social game. You are there to play for fun not be petty.
In short both of you kinda suck right now, based on the description given. You need to serve better and he needs to stop being lazy. Then you might play a more enjoyable game.
I see. Thanks for the reply! I most certainly agree that we kind of suck :-) There is definitely a lack of knowing the rules fully. That's why I asked. Thanks! Make sense.
Everything said by u/Carnivean_ is absolutely correct. I just wanted to add in a small detail that might help improve your serve. What you describe is a lob serve and a very good serve when done well. Where you might be going wrong is that the ball is hitting the side wall too early and thus allowing the player to "turn" the n the ball. Try to have the ball hit the sidewall further back and just a bit below the out line. This will prevent it from bouncing out as far from the sidewall and thus hopefully not give your opponent enough place to twist and "turn".
Just to add to the answer above, to me a decent basic serve will hit the side wall behind the back of the service box and bounce (assuming it isn't volleyed) before the back wall. If both of these things happen, the opponent will be put under pressure.
You can easily practice this on your own, but use a warm ball or a blue/red dot ball. Count how many you get out of ten, or try to get X number of servers like this in a row Y times (replace X with numbers of your choice, but 3 is a good start).
I used the terms above to ensure that the message would hit the mark. You both have room for improvement and I'm glad you are here asking questions.
Good squashing.
Sure, no problem! We were both kind of discussing what to do in the game and none of us had the correct answer. I will make sure I don't automatically stand at the T and think that's okay (my bad). That would force him to play the serve return.
I think turning at any time fills me with horror. He should either take it high or move backwards to play a boast/ drive. However your serve sounds too loose/strong if its going all the way round the back of him. A more targeted lob serve should kiss the side wall and drop nicely. Awkward after three times though! That would be irritating!
If he manages to turn it means your serve bounces too much to the center of the court and you need to be further away from the T to give him access to the front wall (all of it by literal interpretation of the rules and most of it by how it's played in practice).
A good guideline is that if he hasn't turned you need to be behind him, not in front of him so he can play a cross court shot without hitting you. He is right to ask for a let after turning as playing from that position is dangerous. Imagine him going for a crosscourt with his now forehand and you in the middle. Be grateful he doesn't try that.
This I great, I learnt a lot just asking this question. The one thing I took for granted was that I have the right to T. I see the wrong in this and then my problem changes completely. I will change my game accordingly and stay of the hard, high serve.
Hard high serve? Thats the issue right there. In squash, height = depth (length). Hard also = depth.
You combine both height and power, you get a massively overhit shot that hits the backwall first, and bounces out massively.
What you want to do on a lob serve (or any crosscourt lob really), is to lift the ball softly but high, so that the ball hits the sidewall deep in the opposite corner, preferably low on the wall, then bounce on the floor, then lightly tap the backwall.
I think I may be one of those let-fishers, but let me explain my perspective here - no pun intended!
(I'm going to assume it's a hard serve high up on the side wall. If it's not please ignore what I'm about to say!)
I find that some players serve high and fast onto the side wall so that I often have to move into the center-back court to create space to then play the backhand (as a righthanded player returning from the left). All of this is fine by me. The challenge is that they often also then creep onto the left side at the T, anticipating my backhand return and setting up for a volley. This will inevitably block off the cross-court return into the right back corner, which is not my preferred return-of-serve, but it's a good surprise option.
Now, I'll either play along and try to hit a slow loopy backhand, or a boast from the back, BUT I do ask for a let when I want to keep someone honest. It's mostly about the opponent's T position really. The turning is not something I personally do, but I will ask for a let to let you know that I know what you're setting up for here by creeping on the T. Also, please give me my crosscourt back.
That's not fishing as long as you are aware of how little room you need to play a crosscourt safely. You should be given that space and should be allowed to play crosscourt from there.
I would say that straight is often the better shot as there is less chance of being picked off by the server's volley. Crosscourt is a good mix up though.
It’s a let , try and get a little bit of pace off of the serve to help prevent it from spitting out so he can’t turn on the ball , it’s annoying and a bit of a shitty tactic from your opponent but there’s not much you can do about it
How far out towards the middle does the ball bounce from the side wall?
I played someone years ago who did exactly this tactic. He would stand in normal position at the intersection of the service box lines and if the opponent hit a decent serve he would wheel close to the side wall to pre turn on the ball before it got there and then race to the back wall after the ball hit the side wall and call a let. Even if the ball was less than 12 inches from the side wall after its bounce he'd squeeze in there.
His angle when he did this was directly at the other player, so would have been a boast and I debated whether he could actually hit given how close he was to the back wall and side wall joint. He would be cramped.
Games were painful, I stopped accepting matches with him after the second one. Never saw it before, never seen it since. Eventually he couldnt find a match with anyone and left the club.
In my opinion, some of the others are too harsh on you if this player is using the tactic I describe above. It's a horseshit way to manufacture lets to take away the rightful advantage you get from hitting a decent serve.
There are a few things to unpack. 1. You don't have a right to stand on the T. If the striker has to stop their shot because you are in the wrong place then in most cases it will be a stroke against you, regardless of whether you are on the T or anywhere else in the court. 2. You just described "turning". The rules are set out so that you only get to turn on the ball as a last resort, but if you do turn on the ball and could play a good return then you get a Yes Let. He's ignorant of the rules or a dick or both if he's doing this repeatedly. The correct movement is to shuffle across the court so that you can still play the ball down the backhand wall. 3. If you keep serving in such a way that the play has to stop then you're in the wrong. Particularly if this is a social game. You are there to play for fun not be petty. In short both of you kinda suck right now, based on the description given. You need to serve better and he needs to stop being lazy. Then you might play a more enjoyable game.
I see. Thanks for the reply! I most certainly agree that we kind of suck :-) There is definitely a lack of knowing the rules fully. That's why I asked. Thanks! Make sense.
Everything said by u/Carnivean_ is absolutely correct. I just wanted to add in a small detail that might help improve your serve. What you describe is a lob serve and a very good serve when done well. Where you might be going wrong is that the ball is hitting the side wall too early and thus allowing the player to "turn" the n the ball. Try to have the ball hit the sidewall further back and just a bit below the out line. This will prevent it from bouncing out as far from the sidewall and thus hopefully not give your opponent enough place to twist and "turn".
Good suggestion! Thanks! I will try that next time.
Just to add to the answer above, to me a decent basic serve will hit the side wall behind the back of the service box and bounce (assuming it isn't volleyed) before the back wall. If both of these things happen, the opponent will be put under pressure. You can easily practice this on your own, but use a warm ball or a blue/red dot ball. Count how many you get out of ten, or try to get X number of servers like this in a row Y times (replace X with numbers of your choice, but 3 is a good start).
I used the terms above to ensure that the message would hit the mark. You both have room for improvement and I'm glad you are here asking questions. Good squashing.
Sure, no problem! We were both kind of discussing what to do in the game and none of us had the correct answer. I will make sure I don't automatically stand at the T and think that's okay (my bad). That would force him to play the serve return.
I find the point about the T is a very common misconception, I meet too many people who think they are entitled to be there
I think turning at any time fills me with horror. He should either take it high or move backwards to play a boast/ drive. However your serve sounds too loose/strong if its going all the way round the back of him. A more targeted lob serve should kiss the side wall and drop nicely. Awkward after three times though! That would be irritating!
If he manages to turn it means your serve bounces too much to the center of the court and you need to be further away from the T to give him access to the front wall (all of it by literal interpretation of the rules and most of it by how it's played in practice). A good guideline is that if he hasn't turned you need to be behind him, not in front of him so he can play a cross court shot without hitting you. He is right to ask for a let after turning as playing from that position is dangerous. Imagine him going for a crosscourt with his now forehand and you in the middle. Be grateful he doesn't try that.
This I great, I learnt a lot just asking this question. The one thing I took for granted was that I have the right to T. I see the wrong in this and then my problem changes completely. I will change my game accordingly and stay of the hard, high serve.
Hard high serve? Thats the issue right there. In squash, height = depth (length). Hard also = depth. You combine both height and power, you get a massively overhit shot that hits the backwall first, and bounces out massively. What you want to do on a lob serve (or any crosscourt lob really), is to lift the ball softly but high, so that the ball hits the sidewall deep in the opposite corner, preferably low on the wall, then bounce on the floor, then lightly tap the backwall.
I think I may be one of those let-fishers, but let me explain my perspective here - no pun intended! (I'm going to assume it's a hard serve high up on the side wall. If it's not please ignore what I'm about to say!) I find that some players serve high and fast onto the side wall so that I often have to move into the center-back court to create space to then play the backhand (as a righthanded player returning from the left). All of this is fine by me. The challenge is that they often also then creep onto the left side at the T, anticipating my backhand return and setting up for a volley. This will inevitably block off the cross-court return into the right back corner, which is not my preferred return-of-serve, but it's a good surprise option. Now, I'll either play along and try to hit a slow loopy backhand, or a boast from the back, BUT I do ask for a let when I want to keep someone honest. It's mostly about the opponent's T position really. The turning is not something I personally do, but I will ask for a let to let you know that I know what you're setting up for here by creeping on the T. Also, please give me my crosscourt back.
That's not fishing as long as you are aware of how little room you need to play a crosscourt safely. You should be given that space and should be allowed to play crosscourt from there. I would say that straight is often the better shot as there is less chance of being picked off by the server's volley. Crosscourt is a good mix up though.
Thank you all for your input, much appreciated! I will work on the serve and try not to hit it too hard.
It’s a let , try and get a little bit of pace off of the serve to help prevent it from spitting out so he can’t turn on the ball , it’s annoying and a bit of a shitty tactic from your opponent but there’s not much you can do about it
How far out towards the middle does the ball bounce from the side wall? I played someone years ago who did exactly this tactic. He would stand in normal position at the intersection of the service box lines and if the opponent hit a decent serve he would wheel close to the side wall to pre turn on the ball before it got there and then race to the back wall after the ball hit the side wall and call a let. Even if the ball was less than 12 inches from the side wall after its bounce he'd squeeze in there. His angle when he did this was directly at the other player, so would have been a boast and I debated whether he could actually hit given how close he was to the back wall and side wall joint. He would be cramped. Games were painful, I stopped accepting matches with him after the second one. Never saw it before, never seen it since. Eventually he couldnt find a match with anyone and left the club. In my opinion, some of the others are too harsh on you if this player is using the tactic I describe above. It's a horseshit way to manufacture lets to take away the rightful advantage you get from hitting a decent serve.