Your most successful style/ strategy for wins in tennis?

[Power Player]

The more I have drilled my footwork, the more prep time I have and the better my strokes have gotten. I played a flatter hitting guy last night where I was able to hit deep shots CC and DTL safely. They were bouncing about a foot or so in the baseline on average and I was getting confident enough to place the ball closer to the lines. I have played and hit with this guy many times, and this was the most lopsided play in my favor to date.

It felt like I finally had evolved from the high trajectory- pin them back with topspin - force short balls style that I had played before. I find that better players see that style so much that it does not phase them. It is more like the Rafa defensive style that can wear you down, especially if your opponent knows how to take them early. I have gone more to the Djoker style of attacking with lower trajectory and more precise placement. Obviously none of us are on that level of play, but at least this provides a good visual.

This was one guy, but the more I have adapted this style, the better I have been playing. I play guys from 4.0 to 5.0 since my clubs set me up with different players.

What works for you?

[r2473]

I use your old style

....and better players pound the hell out of me (just like you say).

[Power Player]

Are you back on the courts and healed up?

[r2473]

Ya, I'd say I'm back to normal.

While I was healing I ran a ton of miles. I can "moonball" for hours now

[Power Player]

Nice..defensive tennis. I know and appreciate this style

[LeeD]

I can lose badly with almost any style, but my least effective losing style is when I concentrate within, hit my shots loose and flowing, hit the first forcing shot, and flow around the court, rather than lumber around the courts.
Now this doesn't always have to be about winning, but rather, playing well or playing badly.

[PhrygianDominant]

Fun Thread, ok I'll bite.

I am enamoured and obsessed with power and attacking. However, I win more when I focus on placement and play from the baseline, within myself. I wanted to be an all courter and hit winners all the time, but I am built more like a baseliner. I do better when I am channeling Agassi, Nalbandian, and Ferrero(Tactical Baseline) than some of my other favorites such as Federer and Haas(baseline/allcourt...attacking baseline?) , Soderling (Powermonger), or Gonzalez and Blake (Hit that Forehand!....Again! Again!!!!).

[NLBwell]

When I actually was a good player, playing open level, my game consisted primarily of serving and not having the ball come back. On retrun of serve, I would be being aggressive on the serve return and hope I could win 4 out of 6 points at least once out of 6 return games.

Kind of an Ivo Karlovic plan.

[lodeen]

PP, that guy you played is good at the baseline handling medium paced balls, but when he is faced with heavy paced balls, his game will start to collapse. I played him a few times in matches and all I do is overpower him from the baseline with heavy topspin left and right.

But this style does not work for me against all players so I change my style according to my opponents. Although my fav is baseline bashing.

Btw, the Mad Doc & I went over to chat with that sexy legs woman after she was done with her league match. It helps to have a cute dog to break the ice! lol

[Power Player]

Originally Posted by lodeen

PP, that guy you played is good at the baseline handling medium paced balls, but when he is faced with heavy paced balls, his game will start to collapse. I played him a few times in matches and all I do is overpower him from the baseline with heavy topspin left and right.

But this style does not work for me against all players so I change my style according to my opponents. Although my fav is baseline bashing.

Btw, the Mad Doc & I went over to chat with that sexy legs woman after she was done with her league match. It helps to have a cute dog to break the ice! lol

nice! how did it go? she was freaking hot in that outfit

[bad_call]

^ and here i'm taking a little time off to let the elbow heal, hence stuck in the brew house.

[mikeler]

The thread question is:

Your most successful style/ strategy for wins in tennis?

I think the biggest thing I've learned over the years is not to be stubborn. People would say "If you play your game, it won't matter what the other guy does". Unfortunately, playing casual tennis you are not going to be grooved every single match. So start out with your "A" game and see what happens. If you have to hit some shorter balls, come to net more, float a few slices, throw up some moon balls then so be it. I'm not married to any 1 strategy except winning.

Most players prefer pace. It's amazing how you can drill balls at guys and it comes back even harder. Throw up a puffer and all of a sudden the other guy can look lost out there.

[Power Player]

You are right. Those slow balls expose poor footwork and balance. You can pound the ball and get away with bad footwork sometimes. I have played a guy who eats up pace with slice and no pace balls. Only recently have I been able to punish him enough for it to where he will stop no pacing.

[ATP100]

Originally Posted by mikeler

The thread question is:

Your most successful style/ strategy for wins in tennis?

I think the biggest thing I've learned over the years is not to be stubborn. People would say "If you play your game, it won't matter what the other guy does". Unfortunately, playing casual tennis you are not going to be grooved every single match. So start out with your "A" game and see what happens. If you have to hit some shorter balls, come to net more, float a few slices, throw up some moon balls then so be it. I'm not married to any 1 strategy except winning.

Most players prefer pace. It's amazing how you can drill balls at guys and it comes back even harder. Throw up a puffer and all of a sudden the other guy can look lost out there.

This is the reason I teach start out with "B" game against strangers.
Let's see what we are up against.

[y11971alex]

Against other 3.5 players, I think S&V is the best tactic as most people (in my community) overhit severely (so that judgment is no issue) and a pass is not a concern at all. If you anticipate well the lob and get the first volley in then you're set. Unless, of course, you play another S&V player.

I particularly prize my lob for its dependability yards behind the baseline. I don't attempt a pass at a ball beyond the service line unless it's a wrong-foot pass.

[mikeler]

Originally Posted by ATP100

This is the reason I teach start out with "B" game against strangers.
Let's see what we are up against.

I like the way you think!

[Ballinbob]

My strategy for winning is hitting heavy topspin cross court repeatedly. If my opponent decides to go DTL, I redirect it CC . If I get a short ball I'll hit DTL for a winner. basically, just play the percentages

I keep it simple haha. It's not a very exciting style of play but it works

[Hi I'm Ray]

I vary my game and shots depending on the opponent, from being mostly on the attack, to staying agressive but consistent and waiting for errors, or go from a mostly baseline game to volleying. What works against one player, another may eat up. I try to prevent them from using their strengths and I go after their weak points.

Some things don't change though, such as no one does well against smart targets.

[Avles]

At this point my most successful strategy seems to be this:

-slice slice slice
-retrieve everything
-bring opponent forward with low slices (not quite drop shots)
-come to net and challenge opponent to pass or lob (hoping for the pass attempt)
-throw up moonballs to reset point when inevitably pushed off court by aggressive groundstrokes
-avoid DFs
-chip/block returns, either high and deep or short and low
-if possible, receive second serves from well inside the baseline to pressure opponent and encourage DF

Basically, be annoying.

This seems to work pretty well at my level (3.5ish), particularly against impatient or slower opponents. Against stronger players who are hitting their targets, I start to feel like a punching bag.

[TomT]

Originally Posted by Power Player

The more I have drilled my footwork, the more prep time I have and the better my strokes have gotten. I played a flatter hitting guy last night where I was able to hit deep shots CC and DTL safely. They were bouncing about a foot or so in the baseline on average and I was getting confident enough to place the ball closer to the lines. I have played and hit with this guy many times, and this was the most lopsided play in my favor to date.

It felt like I finally had evolved from the high trajectory- pin them back with topspin - force short balls style that I had played before. I find that better players see that style so much that it does not phase them. It is more like the Rafa defensive style that can wear you down, especially if your opponent knows how to take them early. I have gone more to the Djoker style of attacking with lower trajectory and more precise placement. Obviously none of us are on that level of play, but at least this provides a good visual.

This was one guy, but the more I have adapted this style, the better I have been playing. I play guys from 4.0 to 5.0 since my clubs set me up with different players.

What works for you?

Post some vids. I would love to see your game, and feel sure that I could learn something.

As for your question, well, check out my sig. I actually do play 4.0 and above players from time to time. The warmup usually goes quite well. After that it's pretty much downhill for me.

Recently played a solid 4.0 guy. Actually won a couple of games, and I think I made him work a bit in a few other games. How did I win the games I won? Hard first serves went in, was hitting some really hard, slightly undercut driving approach shots that were clearing the net by inches, landing deep and skidding real low, and didn't screw up the volleys. But of course I can't do that consistently on most points.

Should have made some vids of that match, but didn't anticipate playing as well as I did. As it turned out my level of play was elevated by my opponent's level of play. In the end we were both pleased with the result. Me, because I thought I played pretty well, and him because he won pretty decisively. The old stuff seems to be steadily, but slowly, coming back.