Raal (16), a year 12 pupil at Kaikorai Valley College, has been named in the nine-strong New Zealand under-17 women's squad that is preparing for the 2011 world junior championships in Egypt.
"I'm excited," Raal said.
"It will be really rewarding for me."
It will be a busy 12 months for Raal next year as she will attend a weekend training camp in Auckland each month.
Former world champion Susan Devoy will be manager of the squad.
Raal started playing squash at the Logan Park club six years ago and quickly developed her skills under the coaching of her father, Peter Raal, and Mark Gribben.
She is dedicated to the sport and spends 10 to 12 hours each week playing and training.
This involves court work most days, running, sprinting and core work in the gymnasium.
Raal is the fourth-ranked woman in Otago and the sixth-ranked under-17 junior in New Zealand.
She is a member of the Academy Otago programme.
The constant play against the best players in the country is expected to lift her standard next year and make her backhand drop even more lethal.
The short-term goal is to lift her national ranking from the B1 grade to A2.
"Longer term, I want to represent New Zealand at the Commonwealth Games and world championships," she said.
