Squash, not the drink, the sport, is something I have enjoyed for years, when I was in my teens back in Ireland every weekend my friends and I would go to the local sports club where they had a great squash court. We always only played in pairs never doubles as that would just end up in a mangled mess on the floor.


Squash is played in a hard four walled court, it is not a slow paced game, quite the opposite in fact. If it is played with gusto it can be an adrenaline fueled, heart pumping workout. The balls used in squash are far softer than tennis balls and for good reason. If you were to get hit by a tennis ball at the speed one of these balls ricochets off the wall you would not enjoy it, believe me. Squash balls are hollow and made from rubber, this design is perfect for the required bounce necessary for the speed of the game to be guaranteed.


Not all squash balls are the same however. The thickness of the rubber used can vary and there are slow balls available that are used by more experienced players. The slow ball design is actually harder to play with in my experience. It doesn't bounce back as well and more effort is required. The colour dot used on the balls will inform the player or buyer of the balls bounciness.


A ball with a blue dote is perfect for beginners and that is exactly who it is aimed at.


A ball featuring a red dot will have a good bounce and medium speed and is suitable for when you start to become comfortable with the sport.


A White dotted ball is a mid range ball with medium bounce and speed, if you were to start by using this ball you may find it harder than it need be.


A green dot on the ball is pretty much the same as the White really with medium bounce and speed. I can see no difference between the two.


This ball like the one pictured above, has a single yellow dot and that means it has a low bounce and is slow. This is the stage I got to before we all went our separate ways. This single yellow dotted ball is hard work as it bounces off the wall but you need to go towards the wall once you hit to ensure contact as the bounce will not send it flying directly back to you like it would with the blue or the red dot ball for example.


A double yellow doted ball is slow, some consider it average speed, but not me I would consider White to be the mid range ball. But as I said I never progressed to the two dot yellow stage and it's around six years since I played.


An orange dot on a squash ball is the top of the pack, it is the black belt stage if you look at it that way (as your performance improves you move up the ranks by changing balls and climb the colour coded ladder of success).


I played with this orange ball the very first day I tried squash at the age of sixteen and it was exhausting. It was like hitting a bowling ball around the court. It is extremely slow and the strength needed to play with this ball was too much for me. Of course this was a practical joke being played on the novice teenagers by the older guys at the gym but we thought this was what it would feel like to try and play a game. Thankfully it wasn't and when we did get our hands on the beginner ball it was like hitting a marshmallow around the court when compared to the orange.


Squash balls are well made with a soft, durable finish and a vivid dot that is easy to see from a far. They have a quality feel to them and most importantly a good controlled bounce. But the quality can depend on the brand purchased. As with most things there are inferior products available that wouldn't last ten minutes but cost a lot less. Squash balls do tend to split and can suffer quickly from wear and tare but as I said this isn't a gentle, slow paced game however this will not happen as quickly if the ball is well made. Squash balls are put under a lot stress and abuse and this is especially the case if they are communal balls supplied by a gym like it was in my case. On the one occasion that my parents did buy me a pack / tube of these balls there was twelve in it and ten of them must be still sitting up in my attic along with my racket wondering where that energetic young man has gone.


Writing this review has made me reminisce about the good old days. But I think I will leave this sport in the past where it belongs. I fear if I was to get back in the court I would be obliterated by my teenage opponent and have to go back to my baby blue beginner ball. So to avoid that "tail between the legs situation" I will continue to get my daily workout here writing reviews.

Thanks for reading :0) 2night

The price of squash balls varies from store to store, so do shop around.
Argos is selling a pack of three double yellow dotted balls for £5 but there are packs of twelve for £20 so as with most things the more you buy the less you pay.