RACKETBALL, or racquetball, has changed its name to squash 57 and the sport is flourishing at The Bourne Club where there are now internal leagues.

The 57 refers to the diameter of the ball (57mm). The change was introduced by the World Squash Federation and supported by England Squash.

Apart from leagues, there is a weekly club night at Bourne Club and the first tournaments were held last month.

Gary Hales, the club’s professional squash and squash 57 coach, organised the S57 Tournament, which included a handicap event, with help from Alan Searle and sponsorship from Red Mist Leisure.

Eighteen entrants competed in a league format, with winners and runners-up progressing to a knockout stage.

The S57 final was between David Henderson and Simon Chambers. Henderson was the steadier player and took the first game 11-7. In the second, Henderson made no mistakes at all and Chambers could not find a winner or even force an error from his opponent. He lost that 11-0, but stepped up the pace in the third game and, at 8-8, looked like taking the match into a fourth. However, Henderson stayed composed and solid and took the game 1-9 and the match 3-0.

Rob Atkinson and Jo Ellis met in the handicap final. Atkinson only took up S57 at the start of the year, but raced into a 2-0 lead (11-7, 11-6). Ellis, an excellent tennis player, fought back in the third with powerful ground strokes from both sides of the court. Just as she seemed set to take the game, Atkinson responded with a flurry of well-placed shots to win 11-9, completing a 3-0 victory.

All the finalists were presented with trophies and the two winners each received a £50 Red Mist voucher.

To find out more about squash 57, email [email protected]. uk or the Bourne Club office at information@ bourneclub.co.uk