Ted Gross: PSA Thoughts from the Cheap Seats
photo SquashTV
June 28, 2023
Sunday’s WTF matches were tough to watch. Both the men’s and
women’s finals were chock full of referees' decisions and delays. There
was extensive arguing. The court door was opened repeatedly, and it got
kicked a few times. You had 4 elite athletes out there and it should
have been a glorious event--yet it was an embarrassment to the sport.
Going forward:
1- Scrap the video review and install a 3-ref system on the Tour
Court. After the center ref delivers the consensus call,
don’t allow any discussion.
2- Shorten the matches to 3 out of 5 to 9 points, with no
tiebreaks. This will inject more critical points, and
benefit the players’ longevity.
3- Unify rest days. In the world championships Gawad went
quarters-semis-finals back-to back-to back while Farag had a rest day
after the quarters. Can't have that.
4- Limit the walking around and use of the on-court towels.
5- Don’t let a player in the receiving box not play the serve because he is not ready. Not a major one but an obnoxious one.
6- Referees--Stop trying to explain your calls. You’re initiating an unnecessary conversation and prolonging the dead time.
7- Keep the Power Play gimmick if you need to, but limit it to 2 out of 3 play.
Asal
Asal is a freak on a squash court. He’s the size of an NFL tight end
and likely outweighs many opponents by 50 pounds. He’s also
one of the fastest--if not the fastest--players in the sport.
Asal has been correctly Conduct Stroked for obstruction but has also
been penalized when he did nothing wrong. The PSA doesn’t
know what to do about Asal.
The PSA doesn’t want points replayed. They want the retriever to go around the striker to keep the rally going.
Therefore the current 'no replay' rules interpretations reward
blocking. If a player keeps the ball tight and blocks, the worst
outcome typically is a Let and the more common outcome is a No Let.
So players (not just Asal--everyone) hit balls that land in front of
them and block. If they’re being rewarded by the refs, and the
onus is on the retriever to deal with the interference, why wouldn’t
they.
But the PSA didn’t account for a wide-body like Asal at the top of the sport, for whom the ‘no replay’ approach is tailor-made.
Court
Players are faster and stronger and more skilled (and in Asal’s case bigger) than ever.
The PSA is in a tough spot, as the men’s game has outgrown the dimensions of the court.
If the PSA doesn’t want points replayed, and wants to curtail the
blocking--they need to consider full No-Let squash, where when play is
stopped the point is awarded to the player deemed least at fault.
Radical as it is, No-Let squash should be trialed next season in Challenger events.
