Racquetball is a racquet sport and a team sport played with a hollow rubber ball on an indoor or outdoor court. Joseph Sobek invented the modern sport of racquetball in 1950, adding a stringed racquet to paddleball in order to increase velocity and control. Unlike most racquet sports, such as tennis and badminton, there is no net to hit the ball over, and, unlike squash, no tin to hit the ball above. Also, the court's walls, floor, and ceiling are legal playing surfaces, with the exception of court-specific designated hinders being out-of-bounds. Racquetball is played between various players on a team who try to bounce the ball with the racquet onto the ground so it hits the wall, so that an opposing team’s player cannot bounce it back to the wall.
Squash, sometimes called squash rackets, is a racket-and-ball sport played by two (singles) or four players (doubles) in a four-walled court with a small, hollow, rubber ball. The players alternate in striking the ball with their rackets onto the playable surfaces of the four walls of the court. The objective of the game is to hit the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return. There are about 20 million people who play squash regularly world-wide in over 185 countries. The governing body of squash, the World Squash Federation (WSF), is recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the sport is included in the Olympic Games, after a number of applications. Squash has been added for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The Professional Squash Association (PSA) organizes the pro tour.
The Grand Slam in tennis is the achievement of winning all four major championships in one discipline in a calendar year. In doubles, a Grand Slam may be achieved as a team or as an individual with different partners. Winning all four major championships consecutively but not within the same calendar year is referred to as a "non-calendar-year Grand Slam", while winning the four majors at any point during the course of a career is known as a "Career Grand Slam".
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the governing body of world tennis, wheelchair tennis, and beach tennis. It was founded in 1913 as the International Lawn Tennis Federation by twelve national tennis associations. As of 2016, there are 211 national and six regional associations that make up the ITF's membership.
The World Squash Federation (WSF) is the international federation for squash, an indoor racket sport which was formerly called "squash rackets". The WSF is recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the International Federation (IF) for squash, and is also a member of the Global Association of International Sports Federations and the Association of the IOC Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF).
Rachael Margaret Grinham is an Australian former professional squash player. She won the World Open in 2007, and the British Open in 2003, 2004, 2007 and 2009. She reached the World No. 1 ranking in August 2004 and held it for 16 consecutive months.
Natalie Marie Grinham is an Australian former professional squash player. During her career, she has won three Commonwealth Games Gold Medals, and finished runner-up at both the World Open and the British Open. She reached the World No. 2 ranking in 2007. She represented Australia in international squash competitions up to 2006. She is married to the Dutch squash player Tommy Berden, and took up Dutch citizenship in February 2008. Both Tommy and Natalie became the first husband and wife team to win a joint championship in squash after winning the respective trophies at the inaugural edition of the Tranzparanz Open in June 2006 which was held in Almere, Netherlands.
Chris Walker is a male squash coach and former professional squash player from England.
Dipika Pallikal is an Indian professional squash player. She is the first Indian to break into the top 10 in the PSA Women's rankings.
Raneem Mohamed Yasser Saad El Din El Welily is a former professional squash player from Egypt. She has reached a career-high world ranking of No. 1 in September 2015. She is a three-time finalist at the World Open, in 2014, 2016, and 2019/2020. She became the World Champion in 2017, after defeating Nour El Sherbini in the finals.
Laura Jane Massaro is an English retired professional squash player.
Olivia Clyne, is a United States professional squash player.
US Squash is the national governing body for the sport of squash in the United States. Previously called The United States Squash Racquets Association, it is headquartered in New York City and is a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee. US Squash owns and licenses the U.S. Open, the North American Open, and all other U.S. championships.
Amanda Sobhy is an American squash player. A five-time national champion, she was the first U.S.-born player to reach the top five in the Professional Squash Association (PSA) world rankings. She reached a career-high world ranking of No. 3 in October 2021 after reaching the semi-finals of the 2021 British Open and the 2021 CIB Egyptian Open, and winning the 2021 Oracle Netsuite Open.
Professional Squash Doubles is the organized, professional competition of squash doubles, a variant of squash which features teams of two people. It is governed by the Squash Doubles Association (SDA) Pro Tour. Professional doubles began for men in 1938, while the women's professional doubles association formed in 2007.
The World Squash Doubles Championship was held in North America from 1981 until 1987 when it was sanctioned by the International Squash Racquets Federation. It was then held bi-ennially from 1994 as the World Hardball Doubles. There has also been a separate World Softball Doubles held under WSF rules, which require double pairs to be made up of two players from the same country. The WSF event has been held since 1997.
The WISPA World Tour 2010 is the international squash tour and organized circuit, organized by the Women's International Squash Players Association (WISPA) for the 2010 squash season. The most important tournament in the series is the World Open held in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. The tour features three categories of regular events, the World Series, which features the highest prize money and the best fields, Gold and Silver tournaments.
Sabrina Sobhy, is an American professional squash player who represents the United States. She reached a career high world ranking of World No. 13 in September 2023.
The Texas Open is an annual women's pro squash tournament that takes place alternately in Dallas and Houston, United States in the first half of the year. It is an official PSA World Tour event.
Squash is a popular recreational sport in India and it is gaining popularity as a competitive sport. It is governed by the Squash Rackets Federation of India. The India men's national squash team has participated in three quarter finals of the World Team Squash Championships since 1967.
