2024 Squash Stringing Review

2024 has been a really interesting year for me, not only for stringing but also for customising. Just over 10% of my work being with some of the top PSA players, customising/tweaking their racket setups to help them play just a little bit better. By adjusting balance, weight, swing weight, string tension, gauge, string type and even grip size, it can add up to clinching that all important winning point to get the 12-10 win in the 5th game!

There are no surprises as to which string was most popular this year, Tecnifibre's famously green 305 1.20mm string - the most popular string on the PSA tour which, in turn, filters down to a lot of squash enthusiasts at the other end of the spectrum. 305 accounts for nearly 40% of my restrings, whilst TF accounted for a whopping 69% of all restrings (up 9% since '23). These figures are probably a little inflated over what other stringers may see, given my relationship with Tecnifibre and their players, but it still shows how powerful the brand is.

What has been a little surprising is the drop off in Ashaway restrings, accounting for just under 10% of my restrings (, down 5% on '23 but still approx 100+ rackets). Ashaway still make great strings, no doubt, but the like of Karakal, Head and Dunlop have been pushing their strings/new releases hard over the last 12 months - including the brilliant new Karakal Response string, as used by Joel Makin and Tesni Murphy (and other Karakal pros on tour) - more about that later. There are a few less top PSA players using Ashaway on tour right now, or at least they're not quite as visible. I've often wondered why Ashaway don't promote Diego Elias' use of the UltraNick more - one of the finest technical players on tour with amazing touch - surely it could be a pretty easy sell - at least on social media? I also suspect that there are stringers out there with close affiliations with Ashaway whose percentage is higher than mine (perhaps not physical numbers though, depending on how many restrings they do with it). As mentioned, Ashaway make some great strings with very distinct personalities. For me, Tecnifibre and Ashaway are still the top 2 string manufacturers but I think their are some much stronger alternatives arriving on the market than in previous years. Karakal's Response string is excellent quality and has a very distinctive, reactive feel to it, with plenty of power - for me it's probably the string of the year or certainly the best newcomer.

The highest tension, in squash, that I strung at this year was 30lbs - actually for a well know presenter on SquashTV who likes to dress up as Batman when in New York. The lowest tension was 18lbs. I tried 14lbs - it's a very odd feeling if you're used to playing a little higher up the range! average gauge still around 1.19, consistent with 2023, as is the average tension of just under 25lbs. The most restrings I've done for one player this year is 51 - actually for my son, who's a hard hitter and uses 305 1.10mm at 25lbs and is in his first year on the PSA - so that's a restring per week on average. He tells me he's my best customer. I remind him that he's never paid me!

No major surprises on the percentages of Tecnifibre rackets I've strung this year - 52% (up 12% on '23). Although I do string for pros using other brands (Head, Karakal, Dunlop etc), so I think 52% is only a slightly inflated reflection of the amount of people using Tecnifibre across the UK. Tecnifibre also releases new rackets each year - with 2 year cycles on the Carbo's and Slashes, which are staggered - meaning that there are plenty of players desperate to get their hands on the latest rackets and get them restrung with their favourite setup - Just under 26% of my stringing is on new rackets! Dunlop and Karakal are 2nd and 3rd on the list with 16% and 14% of total rackets restrung. The number of Eye rackets being strung has dropped a lot over the last few years - it used to make up a fairly high

The most common reason for restrings this year was due to strings breaking 49% - mostly in the centre but around 20% of breakages were at the head or on the side - mainly through mishits. This year 25% of restrings were due to worn string beds (down from 40% last year - possibly people being more cost conscious) and nearly 26% of restrings were on brand new rackets, which is up 11% from last year!

Oh, I also received my new Tecnifibre X-Cord stringing machine - amazing piece of kit!!!

Predictions for 2025? My previous predictions from 2023 pretty much were spot on; more customisation (it's actually been a lot more this year) and a further drop in average tension. Albeit only a little.

For 2025, I see racket customisation increasing even more, along with other brands sharing the stringing market a little more. Ashaway have recently signed a deal with England Squash as an official string partner, so this may well garner more exposure - especially if they're more present at tournaments.