Tennis Volley

Here are 7 questions you might consider before you start:

1. Is there 1 best grip?
2. What is the experience status of the player – beginner, intermediate or advanced?
3. What is the age of the player?
4. What is the physical strength of the player?
5. What are their aspirations as far as development of their game?
6. Will they practice new skills sets?
7. Do they want to change?

Which of the grips do I choose to teach:

1. Eastern backhand
2. Continental
3. Eastern forehand
4. Semi-western
5. Hybrid

You will need to evaluate several tactical questions to come up with the correct technical answer.

Here are 9 to consider:

1. Where is the position your opponent sending the ball from?
2. What is the height of the incoming ball you are receiving?
3. What kind of spin are you receiving?
4. What kind of speed are you receiving?
5. What is the position from which you are receiving the ball?
6. What is the position of the opponent as you send the ball?
7. Do you wish to stay in the point or finish the point?
8. What kind of spin are you going to send away?
9. What kind of speed are you going to send away?

Sample tactical situations you might be faced with – for a right handed player:

You are inside the service line and the ball you are receiving is coming to your right side but close to your body and between waist and chest high.

Options: Based upon the speed of the ball to be received you may choose:

1. Play a forehand or backhand
2. On a faster ball, use more of an eastern forehand grip to block or hit with some underspin into the open court
3. On a slower ball, use more of a continental grip, move away from the incoming ball to create better spacing and hit a short or sharply angled ball to your left
4. On a slower ball, use more of an eastern forehand grip, move away from the ball and play an inside out ball to your right

If the ball to be received were wide to your right, slightly below net height and barely reachable you may:

1. Switch to a heavy continental or even an eastern backhand grip to open the racquet face, maximize your reach and attempt to apply underspin.  This would help to reduce the speed of the ball, apply spin to direct the ball back up over the net and reduce the depth of the ball if the opponent were deep in the court.
2. You may firm up the grip a contact to get more depth with the spin if the opponent were wide or inside the service line and you needed to send it back behind him.
3. You may try for a sharply angled volley behind your position, softer return or deeper return – based upon you skill level, their position, you position and luck.

As you can see, there are literally hundreds of tactical factors to consider in choosing the technical skill.  It takes lots of practice balls to gain the experience to recognize the tactical situation you are in.  It takes lots of practice balls to develop the technical skills to execute correct option available to you in that tactical moment.

In receiving the ball, you might consider 5 basic questions:

1. Who is sending the ball?
2. What kind of ball is being sent?
3. Where is the sender?
4. When will it get to you?
5. Why would you choose that tactical option?

In sending the ball, you might consider 5 basic questions:

1. Who are you sending the ball to?
2. What kind of ball should you send?
3. Where is the ball to be sent?
4. When should you contact the ball?
5. Why should you choose that tactical option?

The 5 tactical factors you must consider are:

1. Get the ball in play?
2. Determine the direction – cross court, down the middle or down the line?
3. Determine the depth – short, middle or deep depth?
4. Determine the spin – underspin, sidespin or topspin?
5. Determine the speed – soft, medium or fast?

Summary:

All grips are correct – based upon the tactical position from which you are receiving the ball and the tactical position you wish to send the ball:

Forehand:

1. Continental on a low ball
2. Continental or eastern of a ball above net high
3. Eastern or semi-western on balls above the chest or head high
4. Eastern backhand on low wide balls
5. Hybrid grip between any of he above

Backhand:

1. Eastern forehand or continental on low ball
2. Continental or eastern backhand grip on balls above net high
3. Eastern backhand or continental on balls above the chest or head high
4. Eastern forehand on low wide balls
5. Hybrid grip between any of the above.

These options are by no means complete – have fun and develop feel for the racquet and ball through practiced discovery with your professional.

The ultimate goal is to prepare the racquet face to receive then send the correct tactical shot.

Ken DeHart

PTR & USPTA Master Professional
USA High Performance Coach
2 time PTR International Pro of the Year
Wilson Premier Advisory Staff
4 time USPTA Divisional Pro of the Year

Photo Credits: nsaplayer

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Get the Competitive Edge with Ken DeHart

Learning a new skill can be quite challenging.  There are 4 basic stages we often encounter to take a new skill from unawareness to an unconscious performance level.

Stage 1

Unconsciously Incompetent – I didn’t know I needed to know that or that it existed.

Ex. I didn’t know I needed to have a continental grip for a serve!

Stage 2

Consciously Incompetent – I have a hard time remembering to use that or do that.

Ex. I find using a continental grip difficult and forget to change to that grip to serve.

Stage 3

Consciously Competent – If I think about it I can remember to use that grip

Ex. I have to make a conscious thought to select my continental grip before I serve.

Stage 4

Unconsciously Competent – I can do it or use it without thought, it is just part of what I do.

Ex. Using a continental grip is how I always hold my racquet to serve.

While this is a simple example of the 4 stages of learning, it identifies why as a player it is difficult to make changes in our game instantly.  It also shows why we as coaches must be aware of which level a player is at in attempting to make changes in their game and to be able to correctly assist them.

We often wonder why a student cannot make a change that we are working on.  We need to find out if they even know the change needs to be made.  We also need to determine how important they feel the change is we want them to make and do they want to make the change.

Two other factors to consider are:

1. What they will receive as a result of making the change.
2. What will happen if they do not make the change.

The stages in between, when the student keeps forgetting to make the change and needs to consciously think about the change before using it can take some time.  It can be a frustrating period where the student has to think before performing.  It was much easier to rely upon an automatic response they were using (although we felt it was in need of a change).

Results can be damaging as losses may occur to players they normally beat and performance levels can be inconsistent.  Students are tempted to just go back to what they already knew and be satisfied with at least knowing what to expect.

With guidance and persistence they will reach the point where the changes become automatic and they will be prepared to perform with out conscious thought.  From here they will be ready to look for new areas they can add to the list of unconscious behaviors that improve their level of performances.

Students may not always start at the “unconsciously incompetent” level.  They may choose a skill they were aware of but had given up on and now choose to work on adding it as an “unconsciously competent” skill.  They may also choose to modify an unconscious competent skill to move it to a new performance level.

Being aware of the 4 stages of learning may help students understand the road map to acquiring new skills or at least appreciate why the journey can be long or difficult.  Awareness of these 4 stages should also helpful to instructors in understand where students are in the stages of learning and how best to help them along their way.

The next time you have to do something, determine which of the 4 stages you are at.  You may find more patience from this awareness as you move through the journey off acquiring possession of new ideas, skills and techniques in your life.

Ken DeHart
USA High Performance Coach
PTR & USPTA Master Professional
PTR International Pro of the Year
Wilson Premier Advisory Staff

Photo Credits: delboy1203

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