Cannot find rhythm against pushers

pico

pico

Hall of Fame
This post is not a knock against pushers. My worst record is against 2 pushers and I will admit - they present to me a game that I have troubles dealing with and need to get better at. What I am noticing is that I just don't get into a rhythm - my timing is off - I either dump into the net or hit long mostly. Unless I play slice shots, I struggle with staying in a rally. Would appreciate your advice on how to handle them.
 
A pusher continually keeps the ball in play, that should be the easier kind of opponent to get in a rhythm and is the points will last if you are able to keep the rally going.

The pusher exposes the weaknesses in other players. Easy answer is you need to get better. You need to be able to sustain a rally first of all, and be able to generate enough pace to drive the opponent into the corners or generate short balls that you can hit for winners or easy put aways at net.
 
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pico said:
I want to say high 3.5.
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Great thank you!
  • Serve them out side when possible, get them off the court so they need to recover more.
  • Get them going side to side for a few shots and then go behind them when you see their shoulders turn instead of a shuffle into the center court.
  • Any short ball, attack down the line and approach the net. If you approach using your backhand and feel ok with it, try and hit a low slice to make them have to hit up for a passing shot.
  • Don't be afraid to grind with them and hit heavier shots into the center of the court to try and get that aforementioned short ball.

Those are my go to at first.
 
From the advice I have received so far, I think one issue I identified is that I am not patient. I don't want to get into long rallies as I am not as fit as them and so I try to be over-aggressive. I should work on my fitness and stay patient.
 
pico said:
From the advice I have received so far, I think one issue I identified is that I am not patient. I don't want to get into long rallies as I am not as fit as them and so I try to be over-aggressive. I should work on my fitness and stay patient.
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Generally that's a good start. But that also shows going into a match against someone you know is a pusher is that you feel already behind the scoreboard before the match begins because of that mentality. The focus for me is to not get into those 9+ rally points over and over again, even as a fit player, because that's not the style that I know will win me matches.

So you gotta focus on imposing your style onto them and making them react/change tactics.
 
You need to work on swinging volleys and taking slow boring balls out of the air. If you wait for a 20 foot high shot to bounce you’re going to be pushed to the back fence and have way too long to think. If it’s a absolute fluff ball, take it out of the air with a compact swing. Don’t worry about putting it away, but just take their time away. Eventually they’ll get exhausted at having no time to get ready. Eventually they’ll miss or give you a really easy sitter at the net.
 
pico said:
This post is not a knock against pushers. My worst record is against 2 pushers and I will admit - they present to me a game that I have troubles dealing with and need to get better at. What I am noticing is that I just don't get into a rhythm - my timing is off - I either dump into the net or hit long mostly. Unless I play slice shots, I struggle with staying in a rally. Would appreciate your advice on how to handle them.
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Imho its not exactly timing. Its lack of pace that is throwing things off, but slicing works because it often is used on paceless balls. I bought the tennis tutor because it simulates hand feeds and you have to get used to paceless balls and adding your own power…
 
You're probably better off hitting a some moon balls yourself. All the other advice will be physically and mentally demanding. Just hit it high and deep a couple of times until they give you an easier ball to hit through.
 
#1 reason to have issues with pushers is not moving your feet.
typically the ball is moving slow, so when i stop moving and wait for the ball, i lose my rhythm.
but if i keep moving/adjusting/taking tiny steps, until just before i swing, i tend not to lose rhythm.
i tend not to lose rhythm against fast hitters, because i'm constantly in motion and adjusting already.
as a rule of thumb, any i pause, it introduces tension, and loss of rhythm:
* eg. pausing during a serve
* eg. pausing on a groundstroke backswing
* eg. pausing to wait for a slow movign ball to come to me
my $0.02
 
You probably don’t know how to generate your own pace. Or put away short balls with enough spin to keep it in the court. You also might not like high-bouncing lob-type moonballs that land deep and lack the footwork to hit offensive shots off them. Or all of the above.
 
socallefty said:
Or put away short balls with enough spin to keep it in the court.
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This is me right here. Not so much of a spin issue, but a targeting issue. If I was better at putting away short balls I would struggle much less against most opponents, especially pushers.
 
MoxMonkey said:
This is me right here. Not so much of a spin issue, but a targeting issue. If I was better at putting away short balls I would struggle much less against most opponents, especially pushers.
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What do you mean by targeting issue? Do you not hit into the corners or away from where your opponent is? If you don’t have the control to aim to smaller targets nearer the lines (sideline and baseline), then you need to develop this skill.

The more topspin you have, the easier it is to hit to smaller and more aggressive targets without missing. I’ve found that flatter hitters struggle with it more than high-RPM hitters. If you hit to bigger targets that are safer, then you need to develop a net game to approach behind those shots and end the point with volleys/overheads.
 
Pass750 said:
A pusher continually keeps the ball in play, that should be the easier kind of opponent to get in a rhythm and is the points will last if you are able to keep the rally going.

The pusher exposes the weaknesses in other players. Easy answer is you need to get better. You need to be able to sustain a rally first of all, and be able to generate enough pace to drive the opponent into the corners or generate short balls that you can hit for winners or easy put aways at net.
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Enough pace, but still, I've been advised to go 70-80% by my coaches. So, OP, don't just swing all out.
 
Happened to me today too. My serve has been so on and off lately and it killed me today, among other problems. Also bothers me is that when warming up this guy is doing moonball and then these short angles. Like I'm taking the warmup casually and moving back for the moonball to take it as it drops, then he hits short angle. Annoying, and not getting any sort of rhythm.

Last time I played this guy I was bulldozing him (close first set, and leading 4-1 2nd set before we called it). He was giving me all sort of junk and I always had answers. Today was exact opposite. Couldn't take his moonballs early enough, everything randomly dropping in. Abysmal serve % for me. Couldn't do ****.

What typically works well for me though against these pusher types is that I don't have to force anything with them. Play out points patiently until you really get the ball you want. If he's gonna moonball or slice, do the same thing back. Chances are that a pusher isn't going to be able to attack anything, and it's usually more likely that they will mess up and give you something attackable. If they're in full brick wall mode and their aren't any openings, might just not be your day.

Can also be worth exploring if they're comfortable at net. Short slice and dropshots can work wonders, especially if they're already playing behind the baseline. If they don't show competency at net, even better. You'll get good looks at passing shots and especially lobs.
 
nyta2 said:
#1 reason to have issues with pushers is not moving your feet.
typically the ball is moving slow, so when i stop moving and wait for the ball, i lose my rhythm.
but if i keep moving/adjusting/taking tiny steps, until just before i swing, i tend not to lose rhythm.
i tend not to lose rhythm against fast hitters, because i'm constantly in motion and adjusting already.
as a rule of thumb, any i pause, it introduces tension, and loss of rhythm:
* eg. pausing during a serve
* eg. pausing on a groundstroke backswing
* eg. pausing to wait for a slow movign ball to come to me
my $0.02
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This is exactly how I am when I play them - i feel very "rooted" to the ground - like I am lazy to move. Its very diff from when I play others.
 
socallefty said:
What do you mean by targeting issue? Do you not hit into the corners or away from where your opponent is? If you don’t have the control to aim to smaller targets nearer the lines (sideline and baseline), then you need to develop this skill.

The more topspin you have, the easier it is to hit to smaller and more aggressive targets without missing. I’ve found that flatter hitters struggle with it more than high-RPM hitters. If you hit to bigger targets that are safer, then you need to develop a net game to approach behind those shots and end the point with volleys/overheads.
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I tend to hit long on short balls. I should practice them more often. I have success in getting people to cough up short balls, but putting them away is still very much a work in progress.
 
MoxMonkey said:
I tend to hit long on short balls. I should practice them more often. I have success in getting people to cough up short balls, but putting them away is still very much a work in progress.
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Perhaps part of the problem is that you're trying to hit winners rather than targeting a more conservative area and moving in to finish it with a volley/OH.
 
MoxMonkey said:
I tend to hit long on short balls. I should practice them more often. I have success in getting people to cough up short balls, but putting them away is still very much a work in progress.
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Believe me when I say it is lack of spin as it is the #1 issue for hitting short balls long. When you have high RPM, you can hit hard to the smaller court in front of you and make it dip in. If you hit flatter, they fly out if you aim deep on a short court.

If you let the ball drop too low, it is hard to put enough spin and hit hard - so, also focus on getting to the ball early so that you can contact it at optimal hitting height. Also, if you get there early, you can stop with good spacing from the ball, setup early and take a full topspin swing. If you get there late while still running, you won‘t setup, you’ll get jammed and you’ll have space and time to hit only a flat, bunty shot.

If you know how to hit good spin and your shots are going long on short balls, then it is likely that your footwork and setup is late and you are jamming yourself while running through your shot.
 
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I will play my pusher friend again next week. Based on what I have read on here mostly, this will be my strategy:
1) Move feet well and avoid being in stationary positions during a rally
2) Do not go all out on shots but stick to 70 - 80% power level
3) Be aggressive in terms of placement and willingness to come to net
 
Pushers usually lack pace or are generally a slower pace of play. Mentally for me the slower pace drops tension and immediacy of play, so I tend to get lazy or not hit at my normal pace. In any case, what I try to do is lower my pace down (footwork and movement wise) to match it, without dropping my stroke intensity as well. Basically not let my overall level drop or get lulled into pushing or playing at their comfort level. I want to keep pressure on them at my pace to rush them.
 
1) Be active with your movement. Slow balls requires more active movement than faster balls. Since you need to generate your own power, you want to be in the best position to execute your stroke consistently. If the ball won't bounce over your shoulders, put the peak of the bounce in your ideal strike zone. If it goes over your shoulders and is dead, do your best to make contact as close to the peak as possible but still inside your strike zone (on the rise if you're confident and want to be more aggressive, after the drop if it's a tougher shot or you're waiting for a better opportunity to attack).

2) Anticipate their next shot as they're moving to the ball. If they're off balance, stretched, and/or opening their racket face, then they are likely to pop up a high ball. If you can catch that ball in the air, around shoulder or chest height, it's an easy drive volley to run them with. The goal isn't to win the point, it's to rush them and put them off balance. If you catch them putting it really high and can find yourself an overhead, it's the same idea, but you can hit the ball a bit harder and with more access to angles. If you look at your opponent and they look like they're in trouble before they even hit the ball, take a few steps forward. If you read their shot correctly, you cut a few steps off of your preparation and can get into the optimal position more quickly without rushing yourself.

tl;dr move quickly to the ball to catch it at its peak. Keep your eyes on your opponent after you hit your shot and see if you can sneak in to take a weak ball before they even hit the ball. Rush them with drive volleys and overheads. Move all the way in to finish them with easy volleys and overheads when they are on the full run, off balance, and fully stretched.
 
I usually beat pushers by using a safe game of heavy topspin moving them around until i finish the points at the net. Don't know if it would work for OP since he might not dominate topspin to use it as an aggressive tool.
 
With the rhythm part, that's understandable you don't get it against pushers. What you get instead is more time to set up good shot. Probably it's what you can focus on.

One drill I can suggest is self-feeding by popping balls up with backspin, then dancing around, adjusting and making good shot off a sitter (not blast it, but place it consistently). If you perfect this, every pusher's shot will be a familiar feed-adjust-place it situation. Different from bounce-hit-bounce-hit rhythm of faster "proper" rally, but "I'm in control" situation
 
I use to have the same problem as the OP, no rhythm, game fell apart but lately I am finding there is a rhythm in playing such players. It is just a different way of playing and constructing the point. I mean I have beaten 3 pushers/junkballers in a row in league matches and I didn't do it by pushing back.

The first important thing is to not expect to win every point, you need to respect the pusher/junker. If you try to play aggressive against them, you're going to miss and mistake. That is OK, shake it off and reset. Do not fall into the trap of trying push back. That doesn't mean trying absurd shots when you're off balance but only go defensive when you have to.

The junker pusher balls tend to move in the vertical plane, their moonballs stop on the court and so do allot of their slice shots. This takes a bit of getting use to, if you have learnt against more conventional players. I have found that the best plan is to keep as many shots as possible on my forehand and aim for spots, a bit like serving. So if I get one of these balls I will lock my eyes on it, ignore what the pusher does and just aim my spots. Normally the backhand corner.

Of course it often comes back, at which point you have a choice. Take the net, the best option or if you suck at volleying like me, move to hit another forehand, once again aiming at a spot. The good news is, you can generally run down the soft stuff the pusher/junker throws at you fairly easily. So it is then a case of holding your nerve till their defence breaks or they leave a gap. It will happen eventually believe me.

The next problem is the short ball, pushers and especially junkers love to drop it just over the net, especially on the backhand side. You need a way of dealing with this. If you aren't confident enough to volley it, you have to develop a groundstroke to deal with it. Normally I try to take it on the forehand and hit it down the line. Do not blast, put some spin on it and place it. I understand the temptation to overhit because you are worried about being passed. You have to accept that, if they lob or pass you, too good. Move on.

You also need to have a reliable serve. It doesn't matter how you avoid double faulting, be it with a slice, topspin or even a dolly serve. You cannot give them free points on your serve. On their serve I recommend taking their second serve high up the court, come forward from the baseline. Generally a pushers second serve is the easiest ball of theirs to attack. Either aim for the short angle or down the line. It is possible to one shot them from that position.

My last bit of advice, is don't expect it to be easy. I have won 3 in a row this round but I also dropped two sets in those matches. Pushers and junkers are going to make you work for this win, that is what makes them both frustrating but also satisfying to play.
 
zaph said:
I use to have the same problem as the OP, no rhythm, game fell apart but lately I am finding there is a rhythm in playing such players. It is just a different way of playing and constructing the point. I mean I have beaten 3 pushers/junkballers in a row in league matches and I didn't do it by pushing back.

The first important thing is to not expect to win every point, you need to respect the pusher/junker. If you try to play aggressive against them, you're going to miss and mistake. That is OK, shake it off and reset. Do not fall into the trap of trying push back. That doesn't mean trying absurd shots when you're off balance but only go defensive when you have to.

The junker pusher balls tend to move in the vertical plane, their moonballs stop on the court and so do allot of their slice shots. This takes a bit of getting use to, if you have learnt against more conventional players. I have found that the best plan is to keep as many shots as possible on my forehand and aim for spots, a bit like serving. So if I get one of these balls I will lock my eyes on it, ignore what the pusher does and just aim my spots. Normally the backhand corner.

Of course it often comes back, at which point you have a choice. Take the net, the best option or if you suck at volleying like me, move to hit another forehand, once again aiming at a spot. The good news is, you can generally run down the soft stuff the pusher/junker throws at you fairly easily. So it is then a case of holding your nerve till their defence breaks or they leave a gap. It will happen eventually believe me.

The next problem is the short ball, pushers and especially junkers love to drop it just over the net, especially on the backhand side. You need a way of dealing with this. If you aren't confident enough to volley it, you have to develop a groundstroke to deal with it. Normally I try to take it on the forehand and hit it down the line. Do not blast, put some spin on it and place it. I understand the temptation to overhit because you are worried about being passed. You have to accept that, if they lob or pass you, too good. Move on.

You also need to have a reliable serve. It doesn't matter how you avoid double faulting, be it with a slice, topspin or even a dolly serve. You cannot give them free points on your serve. On their serve I recommend taking their second serve high up the court, come forward from the baseline. Generally a pushers second serve is the easiest ball of theirs to attack. Either aim for the short angle or down the line. It is possible to one shot them from that position.

My last bit of advice, is don't expect it to be easy. I have won 3 in a row this round but I also dropped two sets in those matches. Pushers and junkers are going to make you work for this win, that is what makes them both frustrating but also satisfying to play.
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Thank you for taking the time to write this :) all points noted. Will update next Tuesday when I play him again.
 
Curtennis said:
You need to work on swinging volleys and taking slow boring balls out of the air. If you wait for a 20 foot high shot to bounce you’re going to be pushed to the back fence and have way too long to think. If it’s a absolute fluff ball, take it out of the air with a compact swing. Don’t worry about putting it away, but just take their time away. Eventually they’ll get exhausted at having no time to get ready. Eventually they’ll miss or give you a really easy sitter at the net.
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Very good advice.

zaph said:
The next problem is the short ball, pushers and especially junkers love to drop it just over the net, especially on the backhand side. You need a way of dealing with this. If you aren't confident enough to volley it, you have to develop a groundstroke to deal with it. Normally I try to take it on the forehand and hit it down the line. Do not blast, put some spin on it and place it. I understand the temptation to overhit because you are worried about being passed. You have to accept that, if they lob or pass you, too good. Move on.
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Yes the scoop shot is an absolute necessity against pushers and junkballers. The famous Nadal short tight angle running forehand is a good inspiration from the professional level as is this epic winner from Phillip Kohlschreiber against Andy Roddick at the 2008 Australian Open for the backhand side:

You also need to have a reliable serve. It doesn't matter how you avoid double faulting, be it with a slice, topspin or even a dolly serve. You cannot give them free points on your serve. On their serve I recommend taking their second serve high up the court, come forward from the baseline. Generally a pushers second serve is the easiest ball of theirs to attack. Either aim for the short angle or down the line. It is possible to one shot them from that position.
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Should help to remember they are less likely to punish a really weak serve with a power putaway so you can really prioritize getting the second serve in over anything else.
 
Just had my second hit against the pusher. I did a lot better. Led 6-5 and then it got ugly. It started at 3-3 when he called a ball of mine out when I saw it in. We replayed the point but it was tense after that. So at 6-5 there was another shot i hit on the line and he asked me WAS THAT IN? i said YEP. He got salty after and I told him it wasnt fun anymore. I stayed patient most of the set and constructed points well. I am happy.
 
pico said:
Just had my second hit against the pusher. I did a lot better. Led 6-5 and then it got ugly. It started at 3-3 when he called a ball of mine out when I saw it in. We replayed the point but it was tense after that. So at 6-5 there was another shot i hit on the line and he asked me WAS THAT IN? i said YEP. He got salty after and I told him it wasnt fun anymore. I stayed patient most of the set and constructed points well. I am happy.
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Instead of making your goal to beat this guy, make your goal to watch the ball into your racket. Most of us take our eyes off it at the last moment. If you truly watch the ball it's hard to make a bad shot. What's not easy is to watch the ball. But if you do this one thing, don't pay attention to the fact that the rally is 5 minutes long and you're wondering if he's ever going to miss, or to the fact that this is a break-point, or whatever. Just be a robot who watches the ball and puts everything in and the wins will take care of themselves.

Don't question his calls and give him the benefit of the doubt for your calls. You can beat him anyway. If it gets to 5-0, drop a game so you can show what a gentleman you are. After this, you'll own him pretty much.
 
Steady Eddy said:
Instead of making your goal to beat this guy, make your goal to watch the ball into your racket. Most of us take our eyes off it at the last moment. If you truly watch the ball it's hard to make a bad shot. What's not easy is to watch the ball. But if you do this one thing, don't pay attention to the fact that the rally is 5 minutes long and you're wondering if he's ever going to miss, or to the fact that this is a break-point, or whatever. Just be a robot who watches the ball and puts everything in and the wins will take care of themselves.

Don't question his calls and give him the benefit of the doubt for your calls. You can beat him anyway. If it gets to 5-0, drop a game so you can show what a gentleman you are. After this, you'll own him pretty much.
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I watched the ball well today. I constructed points well and hung in the rallies. That is why I am happy! I went in with a game plan and executed! Loved moving him around and then doing a touch volley at the end of a long rally lol.
 
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pico said:
I watched the ball well today. I constructed points well and hung in the rallies. That is why I am happy! I went in with a game plan and executed! Loved moving him around and then doing a touch volley at the end of a long rally lol.
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Sounds like you don't need "rhythm" to play well. Congrats. Improving in tennis is not easy.
 
As everybody else stated above, a pusher's goal is to outgrind you and make you hit another ball. I am also at your level and what I can share is that although pushers slice a lot, they don't necessarily like to receive slice. Since pushers don't really attack, I like to slice and lob them back until I get a good ball to attack. By slice, I mean a penetrating slice, a straighter one rather than one that sits up or is too loopy. The key is to not rush, or avoid "seeing red" as people call it. That's exactly what they want you to do.
 
dkshifty said:
As everybody else stated above, a pusher's goal is to outgrind you and make you hit another ball. I am also at your level and what I can share is that although pushers slice a lot, they don't necessarily like to receive slice. Since pushers don't really attack, I like to slice and lob them back until I get a good ball to attack. By slice, I mean a penetrating slice, a straighter one rather than one that sits up or is too loopy. The key is to not rush, or avoid "seeing red" as people call it. That's exactly what they want you to do.
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I definitely used the backhand slice a lot but kept it penetrating and short so that they had to really step / lunge in to play it and it drew errors.
 
most UE's, assuming you have decent strokes, are due in large part to overhitting/'anxiety' during the point that you have to 'make something happen.'

if you're a better player than the pusher (can miss less, essentially) you should be able to win every time by simply relaxing and going for high-margin stuff until they give you something really easy to put away. the secret to playing pushers is to realize that they aren't going to 'hurt' you...all your wounds against players like this are self-inflicted.
 
mental midget said:
most UE's, assuming you have decent strokes, are due in large part to overhitting/'anxiety' during the point that you have to 'make something happen.'

if you're a better player than the pusher (can miss less, essentially) you should be able to win every time by simply relaxing and going for high-margin stuff until they give you something really easy to put away. the secret to playing pushers is to realize that they aren't going to 'hurt' you...all your wounds against players like this are self-inflicted.
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@Curious
 
mental midget said:
most UE's, assuming you have decent strokes, are due in large part to overhitting/'anxiety' during the point that you have to 'make something happen.'

if you're a better player than the pusher (can miss less, essentially) you should be able to win every time by simply relaxing and going for high-margin stuff until they give you something really easy to put away. the secret to playing pushers is to realize that they aren't going to 'hurt' you...all your wounds against players like this are self-inflicted.
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The disconnect usually occurs when someone thinks they are better than the pusher, goes for too much too often, and gifts away many errors.
 
pico said:
This is exactly how I am when I play them - i feel very "rooted" to the ground - like I am lazy to move. Its very diff from when I play others.
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Sounds like a mental issue. I've run into this many times. Ball comes slower, so mentally you feel that you have more time to get to the ball and thus aren't sharp or on your toes getting set up ahead of time. it's like they sap all of the energy out of the game so you become mentally disconnected. Find a way to get motivated for every shot so you're mentally aggressive/confident. the feet will want to get to that ball, and you will feel like you're controlling the game. Nothing I said is really an answer to your issue, but maybe diagnosing the issue will lead to a solution.
 
I think pushers thrive on four points against those who are in their first few years of learning tennis. I’ve seen that with my students also in their first year or two of learning tennis - they struggle in year 1 to beat pushers, they become pushers themselves in year 2 to improve their win rate and only by Year 3, they start to beat pushers more easily by hitting winners and forcing errors. If you are not receiving coaching and you are an adult beginner, the process is not so accelerated and it might be a decade-long struggle to develop enough technique to blast past pushers while having good shot tolerance.

- They don’t give pace and make opponents generate their own pace. Many beginners have low racquet head speed and either a linear, bunty swing path or an open face lob-style swing path. When they get an opponent who gives them pace, they actually find it easier to counterpunch with pace. When they have to generate their own pace, they struggle because without a topspin-generating swing, increased swing speed creates errors. So, the pusher reduces the other player to becoming a pusher also who cannot generate pace to trouble the pusher. Or the other player becomes an error machine trying to hit harder without knowing how to put spin on the ball to control it.
- Beginners don’t do well when made to hit on the run. While pushers don’t hit near the sideline, they vary the depth of their shots intentionally or unintentionally and since their shots are slow, opponents have to run up/down to get to the ball before it drops too much. So, they force errors by making the other player hit more shots in longer rallies while running.
- Many pushers are also junkballers who keep the ball low with slice or just by hitting short with less pace so that their normal shots can become drop shots unless the opponent is a quick mover. Many beginners don’t hit low balls well as they haven’t learned skills like bending their knees, low-high swing path, brushing up on the ball to clear the net etc. This particularly frustrates opponents of pushers as they hit many low, short balls out which in their minds they should have hit for a winner. Short, low balls can even include many pusher serves where their unskilled opponent blasts the return into the net or the back fence because they let it drop too low or hit without enough spin to control it.
- Pushers don’t give away points with unforced errors and force opponents to win points by hitting winners or forcing errors by troubling them. Unfortunately many beginners win points mainly through their opponent‘s unforced errors and if they don’t get enough of that, they find that they cannot end points in their favor. This causes a lot of frustration and many beginners end up tanking mentally as they are not up to the grind of playing many long points until their opponent misses for the duration of a match.

When you can generate pace and topspin, when you can hit shots on the run without missing, when you can handle low balls/put away short balls, when you can end points with forcing shots that trouble the pusher opponent, the pusher will no longer be a problem. And will be mentally easier to play. You just have to keep developing the fundamentals until the pusher is no longer a gatekeeper to higher levels. Pushers actually prey on technique issues of beginners and are not winning through psychological warfare. They make a beginner realize very vividly that you are not as good as you thought you were when you play only against other players who give pace and make unforced errors quickly. Learn a topspin swing which you can hit on the run and the puzzle that pushers pose becomes solvable.
 
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socallefty said:
I think pushers thrive on four points against those who are in their first few years of learning tennis. I’ve seen that with my students also in their first year or two of learning tennis.

- They don’t give pace and make opponents generate their own pace. Many beginners have low racquet head speed and either a linear, bunty swing path or an open face lob-style swing path. When they get an opponent who gives them pace, they actually find it easier to counterpunch with pace. When they have to generate their own pace, they struggle because without a topspin-generating swing, increased swing speed creates errors. So, the pusher reduces the other player to becoming a pusher also who cannot generate pace to trouble the pusher. Or the other player becomes an error machine trying to hit harder without knowing how to put spin on the ball to control it.
- Beginners don’t do well when made to hit on the run. While pushers don’t hit near the sideline, they vary the depth of their shots intentionally or unintentionally and since their shots are slow, opponents have to run up/down to get to the ball before it drops too much. So, they force errors by making the other player hit more shots in longer rallies while running.
- Many pushers are also junkballers who keep the ball low with slice or just by hitting short with less pace so that their normal shots can become drop shots unless the opponent is a quick mover. Many beginners don’t hit low balls well as they haven’t learned skills like bending their knees, low-high swing path, brushing up on the ball to clear the net etc. This particularly frustrates opponents of pushers as they hit many low, short balls out which in their minds they should have hit for a winner. Short, low balls can even include many pusher serves where their unskilled opponent blasts the return into the net or the back fence because they let it drop too low or hit without enough spin to control it.
- Pushers don’t give away points with unforced errors and force opponents to win points by hitting winners or forcing errors by troubling them. Unfortunately many beginners win points mainly through their opponent‘s unforced errors and if they don’t get enough of that, they find that they cannot end points in their favor. This causes a lot of frustration and many beginners end up tanking mentally as they are not up to the grind of playing many long points until their opponent misses for the duration of a match.

When you can generate pace and topspin, when you can hit shots on the run without missing, when you can handle low balls/put away short balls, when you can end points with forcing shots that trouble the pusher opponent, the pusher will no longer be a problem. And will be mentally easier to play. You just have to keep developing the fundamentals until the pusher is no longer a gatekeeper to higher levels. Pushers actually prey on technique issues of beginners and are not winning through psychological warfare. They make a beginner realize very vividly that you are not as good as you thought you were when you play against other players who give pace and make unforced errors quickly.
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Well said imo.
 
pico said:
This post is not a knock against pushers. My worst record is against 2 pushers and I will admit - they present to me a game that I have troubles dealing with and need to get better at. What I am noticing is that I just don't get into a rhythm - my timing is off - I either dump into the net or hit long mostly. Unless I play slice shots, I struggle with staying in a rally. Would appreciate your advice on how to handle them.
Click to expand...
I think net game against pushers are even more important than usually.
How confident are you at the net?
How do you like approach the net?
 
I have the issue struggeling against slower ball on my bh wing too, but for me slice is a solution.
Another solution is try to take these balls with the fh.
I can take these balls with my regular thbh too, but to hit flatter is difficoultier than hit loopy replies - for me...
 
toth said:
I have the issue struggeling against slower ball on my bh wing too, but for me slice is a solution.
Another solution is try to take these balls with the fh.
I can take these balls with my regular thbh too, but to hit flatter is difficoultier than hit loopy replies - for me...
Click to expand...
Why do you struggle hitting flat if you able to hit loopy replies?
 
optic yellow said:
Why do you struggle hitting flat if you able to hit loopy replies?
Click to expand...
I learned my thbh with extrem grips and with more low to high swingpath.
Consistent but not so agressiv.
I am working on playing more agressiv with more net game, still not agressiv enough from the baseline on the bh wing.
 
toth said:
I learned my thbh with extrem grips and with more low to high swingpath.
Consistent but not so agressiv.
I am working on playing more agressiv with more net game, still not agressiv enough from the baseline on the bh wing.
Click to expand...
I would suggest just using a less extreme grip and allowing less racquet drop at the start of the downswing.
 
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