Racquetball Talk

Since racquetball can dish out a lot of benefits it may pose some demands of its own. One of which is being familiar with the terms that are commonly used within its vicinity. Talent and skills are not the only important elements of the game. You still have to brush up on your racquetball talk.

Let’s start the ball rolling on the court. Midway and parallel to the front and back wall is the back edge of the short line. Five feet right in front and parallel to the back edge of the short line is the front edge of the service line. The service zone is the 5-foot area in between the service line and the outer edges of the short line.

There are service boxes found at each end of the service zone and they are designated by lines that are parallel to the side wall. Each box has a width of 18 inches. The receiving line is a broken line situated parallel to the short line. Its back edge is five feet from the back edge of the short line. The 5-foot area surrounded by the receiving line and the back edges of the short line which is only available during service is termed as the safety zone.

Now let’s move on to error tags. Stepping over the service lines during service is not allowed and is termed as foot fault. If the ball bounces in front of or on the second solid line of the service area the player commits a short serve. A long serve occurs when the ball reaches the back wall before bouncing.

When a served ball initially hits the front wall and then on the rebound phase comes in contact with both side walls before making a bounce a three wall serve is called. An out of court serve takes place when a served ball hits the front wall first then before striking the floor it goes beyond the court area. A served ball that strikes the front wall and on the rebound reaches the server so close that the receiver is unable to have a clear view is called a screen serve.

There are also various forms of hinder in the game. Play is halted when the ball makes an abnormal bounce off a rough or irregular surface or when it makes contact with any portion of the court that was pre-determined as a court hinder. A dead-ball hinder is called when a player is hit by a return shot. Another hinder can be caused by serious body contact which results in the prevention of a return shot.

An offensive player can be awarded with a point once his opponent commits an avoidable hinder. One good example is the failure of a player to move in order to provide sufficient space for his counterpart to execute a shot straight to the front wall. Stroke interference is defined as the intentional movement of a player so as to prevent the other player from making a free swing. Moving into the ball is called when a player goes to the ball while it is in flight after being struck by his opponent.

Although racquetball is characterized by hot exchanges from two fierce competitors there is a standard on how each party must carry themselves during the game. A technical foul is given to any wall banger or racquetball player upon excessive arguing, signs of physical threat and violence, and usage of profane words. Other unsportsmanlike conducts such as excessive game delay, slamming of racquet against the wall, and hard striking of the ball between rallies can give the official a reason to deduct a point from the culprit.