Squash (sport)

Squash, or squash racquets is a racket sport, akin to tennis.

The game is played in a four-walled court. It is played using a small rubber ball (there are two versions: hardball, predominately played in the USA and becoming less popular, and softball, the international version) with rackets. All balls must be played against the front wall, and all other walls may be used. A point is scored on service when the opponent is unable to return the ball to the front wall before it bounces twice.

The relatively small court and play against the walls makes hardball a fast sport; softball is more cerebral. The game is harder to play than its cousin racketball[?] because the ball doesn't bounce very high - though less experienced players may use balls that bounce higher than those used by more experienced players.

The sport probably originated in the 19th century, as a derivative of the game of rackets[?]. Its name comes from the squashable soft ball which was then used.

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