Squash injuries are footwork injuries. The knee doesn’t blow out from a random misfortune — it twists because a player scrambled to the ball, planted flat-footed, and turned a lunge into a pivot. Fix the footwork and the sport’s knee rate disappears.
Squash demands the most severe court geometry in racquet sports: deep corners, hard stops, multi-direction sprints. The players who survive it move small, low, and cleanly. This guide is the drill package that gets you there.
Health note: performance advice only. Knee swelling or giving-way needs professional care.
Peter Marshall (left) and Scott Handley (right) at the British Masters Open 2018 – CC CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
The footwork-knee connection
Every squash shot sequence ends in a lunge. The knee injury happens when that lunge is uncontrolled:
Bad footwork
Good footwork
Shuffling over the crossing step
Small adjustment steps
Flat-footed, knocked-out stop
Bent front knee, balanced plant
Landing on locked leg
Soft knee under the line
Late reactions → desperate lunge
Early read → prepared lunge
The knee is a hinge. When the foot is planted flat and the body rotates over it, the hinge becomes a twist joint — and squash’s deep lunges amplify it.
The 4 drills (15 min, 2-3x/week)
Ghost lunge — move to the 4 corners without a ball, lunge low with the front knee bent 90°, hold 1s, push off. 10 reps each corner.
Side shuffle + plant — shuffle 3 steps, plant with the outside leg bent, push off back. 20 reps each direction.
Corner plant & push — from center, lunge to each court corner and push back to center. 8 rounds.
Split-step rhythm — mini split-step before every movement for 5 minutes, then play shadow points.
The strength that supports clean footwork
Footwork keeps the knee aligned; strength keeps it stable under load. Add these 2x/week alongside the drills:
Bad footwork — shuffling, crossing over, and stopping flat-footed — turns the knee into a twist joint. Clean footwork (small adjustment steps, balanced stop) keeps the knee tracking straight on the lunge.
What footwork prevents knee injuries in squash?
Short split-step, lunge to the ball on a bent front knee, and finish the movement with a controlled push-off. The drills that train this are the ghost lunge, side shuffle, and corner plant + push.
How often should I do squash footwork drills?
15 minutes, 2-3 times a week, either on court or ghosting off-court. Footwork is a skill that decays fast — regular short sessions beat occasional long ones.
Can strength training replace footwork?
No. Strength protects the knee, but only footwork keeps the knee aligned when it counts. Players who get low, bend the front knee, and adjust step small are the ones who never twist.
Salma Youssef at Cleveland Racquet Club, The Cleveland Classic 2020 – CC CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)
The bottom line
Squash doesn’t injure knees — uncontrolled footwork does. Train the lunge to land bent, the stop to be balanced, and the push-off to be controlled, and the sport’s twist-injury pattern stops applying to you. The drills are simple; the discipline is the point.
Racquet sports player and writer covering pickleball, padel, tennis, badminton, and squash. Former collegiate tennis player turned recreational pickleball enthusiast. Jackson writes beginner-friendly guides to help new players get on court faster.
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