Instructional Video Lessons for Kids

Chasing kids with many balls

shooting soft foam balls & rolling basketballs at kids by coach
in this very popular game, coach tries to touch the kids with the foam balls and basketballs
foam balls are hit with the squash racquets, use 2 racquets to be able to hit more balls in less time
the basketballs are kicked along the floor
the more balls are in play, the higher is the intensity
kids will learn to judge the bounce of the ball and the angles they come off the sidewall

Pro match: T position during the rally

 See how the T position on rallies strait down the wall is moved towards the sidewall and not in the actual middle of the court, a little more so on the backhand side than the forehand side. This because players have more reach on their forehand, allowing them to cut off the ball even if they wait closer to the middle compared to the backhand side. This position closer to the sidewall is used to be able to cut off any slightly loose shots of the opponent coming out of the back corners.

Squashcannon:progression to make contact with the ball for kids starting out

 in this drill kids are taught to hit the ball consistently
in order to be able to hit the ball, kids need to learn to correctly judge it, catching does that.
first exercise is to catch the ball after one bounce, initially with 2 hands then with one hand
have them catch it with both the preferred and non-preferred hands
use a plastic cup with a handle to catch the ball, I am a big fan of the cup as kids grip something like a racquet and it is some distance away from their hand

Squashcannon target progression to teach kids to aim

 starts with throwing a ball into a target, throwing, underhand in particular is a great precursor to swinging
a relaxed arm and efficient throwing motion should be practiced
a sideways throwing motion needs to be used to engage the entire body
underhand throws would be ideal but at a younger age overhead throws need to be used more often than not
on the backhand side, frisbee throws are used
using the racquet, with solo hits, kids try to hit the ball into the targets
bounce hit, on the fly and coming off the sidewall after one bounce

Squashcannon: positioning drill to hit strait off cross coming off the sidewall

goal for students in this drill is to return a cross-court coming off the sidewall strait down the wall. Adjust the speed to use it for higher level players.
initially players tend to follow the ball which leaves them too close to the ball , often pulling it to the middle
you can see how the student opens up his body when hitting as he is too close
this is the common pattern of beginner players that should be avoided, following the ball toward the sidewall then moving away again

Pro match: alternating between attack and defense

Switching between defensive shots like lob and counter drop and attacking shots is crucial. Matthew demonstrates great use of defensive shots in particularly the lob against the furiously attacking Ashour. But Matthew also switches quickly to attacking shots when the opportunity presents itself 

Pro match: going short with a margin for error

 Especially at the beginning of the rally, players go short frequently without making errors.
It's important to go short at the right time to move your opponent around the court, to add time pressure, tired them out, force a loose shot...
Especially at a higher level, points are often won on a sequence of shots. Drop shots need to be played with a high enough margin for error to not loose the rally right away with an unforced error.

 

Bubble hitting: introduce 4 year olds to hand-eye coordination

to introduce hand-eye coordination
blow some bubbles in the air and have kids pop all of them before they hit the ground
bubbles are so slow that even very young kids have a chance to hit them
and get introduced to hand-eye coordination
have them use their hands to get started or if too challenging
then add some movement and have them start running from the sidewall 

Balloon slalom with 2 squash racquets to improve coordination

while walking through a slalom
while juggling a balloon with one or two racquets, they move through a slalom parcour

Squashcannon: stop the ball on the racquet

kids should try and stop/catch the ball on the racquet after one bounce.
it's a good drill to get a feel for the ball.
use the lowest speed setting initially with max height to me the ball move the least
great drill for kids to learn to track the ball and at the same time to improve racquet handling
everytime they catch the ball they can have to bring the ball back to add movement
stable wrist is needed to be able to stop the ball, negativ impuls is learned to stop it