Okay, try this...
I think volleying in doubles has become a real struggle for me. As I improved to 3.5, my game improved quicker in doubles than in singles. Then suddenly my doubles game stopped improving and my singles game really stepped up and surpassed it. I find now that in singles I am pretty consistent but in doubles I have so many botched volleys and I'm almost always in frustration mode when I play doubles. When I win its always a struggle no matter how weak the opponents.
I come to the net after just about every serve, and chip & charge whenever I get the chance. I have trouble setting up for volleys properly during competitive play (vs. practicing volleys on my ball machine), and I think that I have a tendency to hang deeper in the service box than I should. I think I do this because I have a hard time reacting when I am in the front third of the service box, so I often stay deeper if my opponent has an offensive or neutral shot, but come forward when he is on the defensive.
Another thing that is annoying is that I feel like my partners are always hitting overheads and putaway volleys and I NEVER get a chance to hit overheads and putaways. Its either I hit many good offensive shots that set them up and they don't return the favor, or I am unable to capitalize on opportunities because my positioning might be a little off.
- First of all, you say that you've progressed more in singles than in doubles. That's not unusual, nor is the reverse. Doubles is not two singles player who happen to be on the same side of the net, and it's a different game than singles. I play singles about 5 or 6 times a week from May through October; I might play doubles twice in the same period. And when I do, it's always a learning experience all over again for at least the first set. So unless you have unlimited amounts of time and desire to practice conscientously for both singles and doubles, you kind of have to pick your favorite and go in that direction.
- "Botched volleys", well, that could be a lot of things, including the movement issues you're talking about, but the chances are pretty good that at least some of it is technique-related. So let's just review good volley technique:
- Start with the ready position. Weight on the balls of the feet, hips over the feet, shoulders over the hips, head up, angles, knees, and hip joints flexed. Continental grip...no funky grips allowed!...for FH and BH volleys. Racket head up and
out in front, very important because...
- ...on the stroke, you want to contact the ball out in front, and if your ready position doesn't have the racket out in front, you're not prepared, and it'll be harder to contact the ball out in front. Stroke is simple: turn shoulders (don't just bring the arm back) for power and control. "Turn the shoulders" is all you need for backswing. Step to the net with the front foot,
punch through the ball, finishing on the same side of the body that you started the stroke. Don't finish across the body, and don't swing! Don't carve under the ball, don't drop the racket head...just stick it with a short punch.
That's the stroke itself, the footwork getting to the volley is...short steps, follow the approach shot you just hit, split step as the ball comes off your opponent's racket...you're now in the ready position, and you know what to do next, see above. Why split step? Best example of "why split step" is a jump shot in basketball. Dribble, dribble, dribble, foot to foot, short steps...split step, jump up and forward, up and back, up and to either side, shoot...2 points! A split step sets you up to move in any direction, whereas if you end up on one foot, you're kind of hard-coded in terms of where and how efficiently you can move. One thing I finally realized about split step is that it's pretty light...balls of the feet, remember? If you clomp down heavily and flat-footed, you're now stuck to the court, and movement is harder, not easier.
So that's technique, and it sounds like you've got that part going on...but do go back up and brush up on the fundamentals with your ball machine. Now...you've got all that wired, but it's still not happening in a match situation. What gives? Well, it's simple: the ball machine is going to help you hit a bazillion great volleys because it hits to the same spot or spots every time. Your opponents, on the other hand, if they have a half a brain, are going to hit to a bazillion different spots to help you shank as many volleys as possible! Remember, no matter how good your technique is, your opponents have a vote, too, and they don't
want you to hit volley winners.
What you have to do to figure this one out is start setting up, then
read your opponent's shot, move accordingly, and knock off the volley. Proactive as opposed to reactive tennis, in other words. Best way to work on this is the standard one-on-one drill where both partners are on the "T" of the service line, and stay there, hitting volleys back and forth, where the objective is to hit clean volleys and keep the rally going, not to bang winners at each other. You're not hitting at your partner's feet, you're hitting full length, as if he was in the backcourt, and he intercepts the shot with his volley. The key to this one, and the key to proactive tennis in a volley exchange, is this: After you hit your volley, watch the ball track across the net and
onto your opponent's racket face. If you watch the ball coming off his racket face, you've got a good idea of where it's going next, and guess what? If it doesn't come off his racket face, it ain't coming back!
- Okay, you were talking about movement and position as being a potential problem. We've talked about that some, the next drill hones those skills. This is also another standard drill, where your partner is on the baseline feeding you a series of 3 balls, one at a time. First ball, you're on the service line, at the T. You punch a first volley (deep, forcing, if possible, but always in...Nick Bolletieri says you should never miss a first volley), move forward, split step, more angle if you can on the next volley to open up the court, split step again, move all the way in, knock off the 3rd volley for an angle and a winner. Repeat, endlessly.
Finally, you said you often set up your partner for a winning volley or overhead, but it doesn't often go in the other direction. Guess what? That's doubles. I was watching the Men's Doubles USO final yesterday, and Pat McEnroe was talking about good doubles teams having complimentary (but not identical) skills. Most good doubles teams consist of a setup man and a closer. As long as you win the point, who cares? You won it as a team, which is the other aspect of doubles most people never get. You have to have a doubles strategy as a team, you can't just go out there thinking "Gee...I wonder where the Sam Hill my partner is going to serve this time, and what I'm gonna do when he does whatever he does." That doesn't mean you can't improve your volley/net playing skills and get in on the fun, too, but it does mean you and your partner ought to sit down at some point and figure out how to combine your skills in a winning strategy...
