Observation of Squash Practice

The popping sound of rubber colliding with a hollow wood floor fills the air in the Belkin International Squash Courts at the Reis Tennis Center. In all six courts slim athletes sprint with legs the width of tree trunks, reach with gangly arms and flick their wrists as if they were made of elastic in order to get their opponent to chase the ball into a narrow corner. With their eyes wide open like a child on Christmas morning, they fixate on the black rubber ball no larger than a walnut as it bounces off all four walls like a pinball. Both players remain inside the court, which looks like a cardboard box with the top cut off, after several volleys. The punctuated grunts that escape their throats continue after each precise hit, as do the heavy gasps of air. A piercing shout escapes the throat of a player and echoes off the walls after the ball bounces twice inside their square, earning the foe a point.

But a few feet outside the seven foot glass doors that provide entry to the court sit nine other athletes, sweat staining their white tee shirts and dripping from their athletic shorts. The pungent aroma of various deodorants they’ve used to mask their body odor fills the bleachers and slowly wafts over into the court. They talk amongst each other with wide open eyes and a straight expression like critics, debating the proper techniques of the feet, arms and wrist, the three most heavily utilized body parts in the sport of squash. Their jaws hang open for half a minute after the final volley as they watch the opponents shake hands, one with a smile that escapes their mouth and lights up their eyes. The losing player feels defeated with his head down and hands on his knees. He has lost the battle that concludes the last contest of squash practice for Tuesday night.