HEAD Speed 120 Squash Racquet

How much it bounces, and therefore how long rallies last. Fastest and bounciest to slowest and deadest: blue, red, single yellow, double yellow. Double yellow is the competition ball - the lowest bounce of all, because strong players hitting hard would otherwise produce endless rallies.

A blue dot, and nothing else. A squash ball only bounces properly once it is hot, and a double yellow needs the most warming of any ball. A beginner cannot hit hard enough to warm it, so it dies on the floor, every rally lasts two shots, and they conclude they are bad at squash. A blue dot is larger and bounces cold - they will have real rallies on day one.

Where the weight sits. Head-heavy puts mass at the top, which gives more power through the ball on a drive or a kill - and makes the racquet slower to move. Even or head-light balance keeps mass near the hand, which is quicker in a fast exchange at the front and gives you more say over placement.

Most modern racquets are 110 to 140 g. Lighter is quicker and more manoeuvrable; heavier is more stable against a hard-hit ball and more powerful. 120 g is the popular middle and suits most club players. Below 110 g you are into specialist territory.

Lower tension gives more power and a trampoline effect; higher tension gives more control and a crisper feel. Squash racquets string much looser than tennis ones - 20 to 30 lb is the normal window. Start mid-range and adjust from there.

Same rule as tennis: as many times a year as you play per week. Strings die long before they break, and a dead stringbed means you swing harder to get the same ball, which is how technique falls apart.

Heat is hard on strings - polyester loses tension fastest of all string types and heat accelerates it sharply, so expect to restring more often than a European schedule suggests. Never leave a racket in a car boot. Humidity is hard on grips and on natural gut, which absorbs moisture and softens. And pressurised balls go dead faster in heat, opened or not.

Yes. We deliver across Dar es Salaam and send nationwide to Arusha, Moshi, Mwanza, Dodoma, Zanzibar and beyond by courier. Call or WhatsApp us if you need a same-day drop in the city.