What a concept of Strategies, plural, verses Strategy, singular. The better players have different strategies which involve working with your strengths and weaknesses. Why teach a 2.5 to 3.0 player to ALWAYS go up to the NVZ line when the opponent is a 4.0 player with a hard drive? Why tell 70+ year olds to ALWAYS get up to the NVZ line when opponents have very good lobs. I was coaching 2 female friends playing in the Nationals against an experienced team. The two would run in after every return of serve to do what every body had always instructed them. The other team would lob over their heads and the 2 up would look at each other and say, quotyoursquot. During a timeout I told them to have one player stay back in order to play the lob.
There are different strategies that actually have names. There is the quotThird Shot Drive and 5th Shot Dropquot. In this strategy, the serving team hits a strong serve and the return is hit back and then the serving team hits the Third Shot as a Drive. Boom and this forces the team up to react to a forceful shot. On any volley hit short in the court, the serving team then comes in together and takes control of the point with a Drop Shot into the opponent’s kitchen.
I do not advance when my partner hits an average high ball to players who are up. One of the best players in the world teaches to not follow garbage to the net. Stay back.
How often do you get aced by your opponent’s serve? How often does your opponent hit a winner on the return of serve? Rarely is the answer to both. You can stay back and keep the ball in play against quotbangersquot if there drive is stronger than your volley.
By Gregg Whitfield