10 Best Squash Racquets for Intermediate Players in 2026

The intermediate squash player already hits the center of the strings often and no longer needs the racquet to generate power for them. What they need now is a racquet that obeys: even or head-light balance, a string pattern that holds the ball long enough to aim, and a weight that doesn't make volleys late. In this selection of the best squash racquets for intermediate players, the Unsquashable Y-Tec Pro 125 is the safest choice for the transition, and the others cover players who want more speed, more control, or more stability.

When you stop being a beginner in squash

There is no formal test, but a few signs are clear:

• You sustain long straight-drive rallies down the wall without the ball drifting to the middle of the court.
• You use the boast and the drop on purpose, not by accident.
• You start volleying at the T instead of letting every ball go past to the back.
• The head-heavy racquet that helped at the start now feels slow on fast balls, and the ball comes off long on short touches.

If three of these items describe your game, your entry-level racquet is probably holding back your progress. If not yet, the guide to squash racquets for beginners is the better fit.

Balance: why intermediate players should move away from a heavy head

Balance is the point, measured from the bottom of the handle, at which the racquet balances. On a racquet of about 68.5 cm, around 350 mm is practically the middle, that is, an even balance. Tecnifibre publishes its figures: 350 mm on the Carboflex 125 and 355 mm on the Carboflex 130, both even.

For beginners, mass in the head compensates for a short swing. For intermediate players, it starts to charge a price:

• Volley at the T: the ball comes fast and you have a very short motion. A heavy head is slow to arrive.
• A ball coming back off the side wall: demands a last-second wrist adjustment. The lighter the head, the easier it is to correct.
• Drop shot: the short touch asks the racquet to stop when you want it to. Mass at the top tends to keep the motion going and lengthen the ball.

Even balance keeps a little momentum for the drive from the back; head-light balance (toward the handle) prioritizes reaction. If you play more up front and at the volley, go head-light. If you still spend a good part of the match defending at the back, even balance is more balanced.

String pattern: 12x17, 14x18, or 16x19

The pattern indicates how many main (vertical) and cross (horizontal) strings the racquet has. In squash, you find three main groups:

For intermediate players, 14x18 is the natural starting point. 16x19 makes sense for players who already have a loose swing and complain that the ball "flies" on touches. 12x17 is for those who want power and spin and accept restringing more often.

Some Head racquets use the Adaptive Fan Pattern, which lets you choose at stringing time between straight strings (more power) and a fan pattern (more control). It is an inexpensive way to test both worlds with the same frame.

Stiffness: what changes and why almost nobody publishes it

In tennis, frame stiffness has an official number. In squash, almost no manufacturer reports it. What you find are technologies that change the feel: Dunlop's Infinergy in the frame, Innegra and Auxetic at Head, the Stabyl mesh in the heart of the Tecnifibre Slash, and Hy-Bor (carbon with boron) in the 2026 Radical.

The general principle is this:

• A stiffer frame returns energy faster, so the ball comes off with more speed. In exchange, it transmits more vibration to the arm and leaves less ball time on the string.
• A more flexible frame holds the ball a moment longer. You feel the touch better and gain control, but you need more swing to generate the same speed.

For intermediate players, this matters mainly for comfort. If your elbow hurts after long matches, prefer models that highlight dampening, like Dunlop's Sonic Core lines, over very dry frames.

The 10 best squash racquets for intermediate players

Comparison of the intermediate racquets

In the table, compare weight and balance first, then the string pattern. Those are the three columns that change the feel most for players who already have technique.

Y-Tec Pro or Tour-Tec Pro: teardrop or classic head?

The two Unsquashable racquets at the top of this list show the decision intermediate players face well. They have the same weight, the same area, the same balance, and the same pattern. The difference is the head shape.

• Y-Tec Pro 125 (teardrop): the head narrows toward the handle and the main strings are longer. More rebound, a more elongated sweet spot, power with little effort.
• Tour-Tec Pro 125 (classic): the head is more rounded and the area is distributed more toward the top. The ball comes off with less trampoline effect and more predictability.

If you still depend on the racquet to gain depth, stay with the Y-Tec. If the ball already comes off hard and the problem is precision, go with the Tour-Tec. The guide on open vs. closed throat goes deeper into this choice with more examples.

When to move to a lighter, control-oriented racquet

The intermediate player's temptation is to buy the pros' control racquet right away. Sometimes it is the right step, sometimes it gets in the way. Use these criteria:

Go to a lighter racquet (115 to 120 g) when:

• You are late on volleys, but not on balls from the back.
• Your arm tires by the third game and your stroke starts to get short.
• You play at a high tempo, with lots of exchanges at the T.

Go to a control racquet (smaller head or dense pattern) when:

• Your drives already reach the back with ease and sometimes go too far.
• Your drops come out high or long, even with good technique.
• You hit the center consistently. A 470 cm² head punishes players who don't.

It is not time yet if:

• You win most of your points from the opponent's errors, not from your placement.
• You still depend on a high, hard ball to get out of trouble at the back.

When you are ready, the Dunlop CX 125 and the Head Radical 135 SB, which appear in the ranking of the best squash racquets of 2026, are the natural destination. The guide to squash racquets for advanced players separates these options by playing style.

Thin frame: what the Head Speed 120 SB changes

Frame thickness is another characteristic that only starts to matter at the intermediate level. The Speed 120 SB has a 16 mm Slimbody frame, versus 20 mm on the regular Speed 120. Two practical consequences:

• Balls stuck to the side wall: with a thin frame, the strings reach the ball before the frame scrapes the wall. Players who hit straight drives often feel the difference.
• Aerodynamics: less frontal area cuts through the air better, and the racquet feels a bit faster in the swing.

The price is raw power: a thin frame flexes more and returns less energy than a thick one. That is why the Speed 120 SB is a racquet for players who already generate speed with technique, not for those who depend on the frame.

If your case is the opposite, and you still play a lot from the back and miss mass, the Head Speed 135 2025 sits at the other end of the same line: 135 g, 20 mm frame, and head-light balance, with the same adaptable 12x17 pattern. Head recommends it for the back-court player who wants to add touch, and it is a gentler step for players coming from a heavy entry-level racquet.

A word on the Dunlop FX 115

The FX 115 is the lightest racquet on this list, at 115 g, and has a combination that seems contradictory: extra head-light balance and a big 500 cm² head. In theory, that joins the agility of low weight with the forgiveness of a big head. The Sonic Core Infinergy at the 2 and 10 o'clock positions and the Flex Touch resin are Dunlop's bets for comfort.

The limitation is physics: with little mass, your opponent's heavy balls push the racquet around. If your opponent hits hard and you play a lot from the back, 125 g is safer. And it is worth knowing that the 2024 generation has already been replaced, which usually makes its offers better value while stock lasts. To see the whole line, use the Dunlop comparison.

How to test before switching racquets

A new racquet changes the feel in the first few matches, and it is easy to confuse novelty with improvement. Before deciding:

1. Play at least a few full sessions. First impressions tend to exaggerate lightness or power.
2. Test the situations that bother you most. If the problem is the volley at the T, do a volley-only session. If it is the drop, practice drops.
3. Watch for fatigue at the end. A racquet that is too heavy shows up in the third game, not in the warm-up.
4. Compare with the same string. A racquet with new string always feels better than yours with old string.

String and tension: the adjustment intermediate players tend to forget

Before switching racquets, it is worth trying a different string. Two simple rules:

• Thinner string (around 1.10 to 1.15 mm) grabs the ball more and gives more feel, but lasts less. Thicker string (1.25 to 1.30 mm) lasts longer and is a bit less lively.
• Lower tension makes the strings more elastic and increases power; higher tension firms up the stringbed and favors control.

If your current racquet already has the right weight and balance, but the ball comes off too long, raising the tension a little may solve it before you spend on another frame. The details are in the guide on how to choose a squash racquet.

To cross-check the options against your profile, Find Your Racket filters the squash catalog by level and style, and the squash comparison tool puts the spec sheets side by side.