The game of squash took root in a London Prison in the early part of the 19th century. Prisoners in Fleet Prison, or 'the Fleet', amused themselves by repeatedly hitting a ball against a wall with rackets. And so 'Rackets' was born.

No-one is entirely clear about how Rackets spread from a prison to the select English school of Harrow but spread it did. It was there that it evolved into something more like the sport we know today, when the pupils discovered that a punctured ball, which 'squashed' against the wall, resulted in a more challenging game. This discovery was made around 1830 and by 1864 the first courts were constructed at the school and Squash became a sport in its own right.

The United States Squash Racquets Association was formed in in 1907 and the Canadian Squash Racquets Association in 1911. In England the Squash Rackets Association was formed in 1928.

In recognition of the huge worldwide popularity the sport enjoys nowadays, Squash was introduced to the Commonwealth games roster in 1998 in Kuala Lumpur and the action is expected to be fast and furious at Manchester 2002.