Feb
1, 2005
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Kim Shanley, Publisher Why Is It So Darn Hard to Move Forward?
Why is it so difficult to move forward after pinning your opponent deep in the corner? I wonder if terminology may interfere. Perhaps because, to approach, one actually enters "No Man's Land" (NML). NML, so called, because when standing in mid-court many balls are likely to land at one's feet. The secondary assumption is the half volley is an all but impossible shot. Therefore, I see players who take comfort either at the baseline, or crowding the net, but the vehicle to get them from the baseline to the net is no where in site.
Habit . . . probably. Most players learn ground strokes first, and generally are shown a low to high stroke path. Coaches (either inadvertently or purposely) feed balls that land in the mid-back court and gently descend into the students strike zone, so their low to high path actually matches the balls descending path. After 25,000 repetitions, this low to high stroke path becomes habitual. But when moving forward for the transition shot, there are adjustments that must be made. The court is now shorter, the ball is rising rather than descending (at least some of the time), and the height of contact may be less predictable than when waiting comfortably at the baseline. So to my mind this transition is about more than the stroke, but the ability to be fluid, to make decisions about tempo and placement, and to make these decisions quickly. Certainly, many a highly ranked junior has figured out that the difficulty in learning this shot and skill set will create serious short term pain, and only possible rather than guaranteed long term results. But what if Agassi had been trained more like Sampras, what if Hewitt had been trained more like Rafter. What if Roddick at a young age was repeatedly encourage to play at the net. Can you imagine Roddick playing with Edberg's volleying skills behind his amazing serve – come on! The first step on this journey is to embrace improvisation, and venture into the unknown. Moving forward means taking the ball early, means playing the ball into a shorter court, means timing the split step for the subsequent volley. On the split step score, I heard Gambill mention a few years ago after a Davis Cup tie in Switzerland {where a young Roger Federer won all three points} that he was still trying to perfect his split step when approaching the net. Unfortunately that realization may have come a little on the late side, for that horse had already left the barn.
In this neck of the woods experiment with a variety of quick hits – underspin floaters, topspin drives, topspin half volleys, backspin drop volley drop shots – all possible solutions to balls that land near ones feet in NML. In each case the decision accrues from the height of contact and how I can “use” the court. And if at all possible, embrace these shots for the fun of trying them – certainly you have seen Federer smile at some of his own shots, why not you and I. As always, we would love to hear from you! Questions, comments, personal experiences all create helpful dialogue for everyone! Please click here to send us your email. Jim McLennan TennisOne Editor (Click link to purchase Jim's McLennan's Secrets of World Class Footwork Video)
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