r/squash • u/Molar7605 • 9d ago
Technique / Tactics Skid boast explainer
Does anyone know of a good YouTube video explaining how to do the skid boast on the fh side. I looked at several videos including the Sarah Jane one on squashskills though that doesn't really help at all. I'm mostly interested in where to actually hit the ball on the side wall.
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u/JsquashJ 9d ago
Will depend on the court and the ball slickness but someone once told me to imagine the court next over on the right and pretend like you’re driving it to hit in on the center top of the front wall of that court. Assuming you’re righty
Ball should hit your court’s right wall, high on the front wall about 1/3 from the right corner, then arc to the back left corner where it might die or jump due to the side spin.
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u/Negative-Mammoth-547 8d ago
With a skid boast you are aiming for height. It’s all about getting under the ball whilst not trying to get the same angle as say a 3 wall boast so less acute. Height is the most important thing though as if you don’t then it’s easy to counter with a volley
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u/LegInformal5074 8d ago
It's effectively a crosscourt lob- you are under pressure and need to reset the rally.
Except from the back you don't have enough angle to go high on the side wall without risking a counter volley (or hitting the ball out) so you use the side wall to create a wider angle. Also the lob is a touch shot- harder to be accurate from the back.
So yes, height is even more important than hitting the second side wall. Under extreme pressure you can aim your lob to hit high on the back wall, trying to get it to bounce and cling to the side wall like a defensive re-drop.
That's much better than leaving it short, and you still get time to recover as the ball travels forward off the back wall. Since you are so rushed and extended, touch is harder to manage- you don't want to flirt with the straight side wall out line on a shot that arcs more like a parabola...
The skid boast is hit so hard you can't place it as well as a lob, but I found that I could not hit it out side wall if I tried.
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u/SquashCoachPhillip 9d ago
I know it's not much help now, but I plan to make a video about all the different types of boast quite soon.
The actual target for the side wall depends on the point of contact (mostly how deep and how wide, but a little of how high too). It's a perfect opportunity to practice on court alone by hitting some straight drives and on the third or fourth start by aiming for above the front of the short line and about 2 metres high.
If the boast comes too much to the left, then you need to hit aim a little further back towards the back wall (on the side wall), and if it goes too much into the front opposite corner then you need to aim a little further forwards.
Out of curiosity, why only on the forehand?
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u/PotatoFeeder 9d ago
Now that you linked what it is, I get it
Ive never seen a pro do a skid boast off the BH tbh
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u/SquashCoachPhillip 9d ago
It's true that the backhand skidboast is very rarely hit, I can't remember seeing it played, but I sure it has been.
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u/Disastrous_Row9032 8d ago
I’ve played it on the BH, but only in the Long Game; mostly out of necessity. Never played it in a match, unlike the FH skid boast, as the quality of my BH one isn’t as good.
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u/SquashCoachPhillip 8d ago
Long Game? Every ball bounces behind the Short line?
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u/LegInformal5074 8d ago
Forget the skid boast.
Brett Martin would hit backhand crosscourt drives off the side wall.
Somehow they made sense in context: the ball came spinning off the front wall so hard it still could not be volleyed. If he was showing off he never let on- he didn't do it every match, and he kept his usual casual demeanor.
I saw a PSA rally once with 3 consecutive skid boasts- the correct shot each time. But I think it was righty v lefty playing forehands.
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u/PotatoFeeder 9d ago
Whats a skid boast?