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A problem in squash strategy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2016

W. J. Brooks  and
L. P. Hughston
W. J. Brooks
Affiliation:
Lincoln College, Oxford OX1 3DR
L. P. Hughston
Affiliation:
Lincoln College, Oxford OX1 3DR
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Extract

Two players A and B have a game of squash. Player A serves at the start of the game. They play a sequence of rallies. If the player serving the rally wins the rally, he scores a point, and serves the next rally. If he loses the rally, then the other player serves the next rally, with the score unaltered.

Generally the first player to reach nine points wins the game. However, if the score becomes eight-all then the first player to reach eight has a choice: he specifies whether the game is to be played to nine points or to ten ponts.

What is the correct choice? We propose to analyze the problem by use of an elementary probabilistic model.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Mathematical Gazette , Volume 72 , Issue 460 , June 1988 , pp. 92 - 95
Copyright
Copyright © The Mathematical Association 1988

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