Taking short, high balls

[trenzterra]

on balls that are near the baseline, that bounce near shoulder height, i seem to have problems taking them for a forehand winner. if i were to hit flat, most of the time, i hit the net cord. however, when i try to apply topspin to the shot, net clearance is good but i often end up with the ball hitting on the lines or several inches away from the line.

how do i hit such a forehand in such a way that it goes deep, yet not risky in the sense that it goes long half of the time?

 

[jmverdugo]

Do not try a winner. Hit it with topspin to one of the corners. Also if it is near the baseline then it is not a short ball.

 

[ramseszerg]

I think he means short but jumping high so he is taking it near the baseline.

Think drive, not flat (thinking flat is why you're hitting the net) or topspin (actually not the right shot for a high ball, you don't need the extra margin for error).

 

[oldhacker]

If a ball has bounced and reached shoulder height at the baseline (is this what you mean) then it is not a 'green light' ball you want to be going for a winner off. It sounds like a good rally ball to me which is penetrating the court and making you play from behind the baseline so my advice is to try to return it cross court, deep with good net clearance to continue the rally aand wait for a better opportunity to attack from.

on balls that are near the baseline, that bounce near shoulder height, i seem to have problems taking them for a forehand winner. if i were to hit flat, most of the time, i hit the net cord. however, when i try to apply topspin to the shot, net clearance is good but i often end up with the ball hitting on the lines or several inches away from the line.

how do i hit such a forehand in such a way that it goes deep, yet not risky in the sense that it goes long half of the time?

 

[ho]

on balls that are near the baseline, that bounce near shoulder height, i seem to have problems taking them for a forehand winner. if i were to hit flat, most of the time, i hit the net cord. however, when i try to apply topspin to the shot, net clearance is good but i often end up with the ball hitting on the lines or several inches away from the line.

how do i hit such a forehand in such a way that it goes deep, yet not risky in the sense that it goes long half of the time?

You cannot hit topspin with ball bounce high : you hit too much of a low to high direction. ball sail out. You cannot roll racket face with these type of high ball, too hard to do.
You cannot wait for the ball to drop in your regular range since when it drop down fast, hard to time the hit.
if you hit flat, you have to RAISE you hand up high, if the racket face vertical, you will send ball out, close racket face will be the best in this case.
Some case it it is too high, you have to slide your forehand.
Forget the winner here.

 

[LeeD]

As said, shorter, baseline depth slow movers are NOT winners for you unless you get to above 4.0 levels, in which case you would already know to shorten up your stroke, apply lots of spin, and hit to open court with depth, not necessarily speed, then move in.
Since you asked, it's clear you need to just play more tennis and get the strokes and experience before attempting winners from the baseline.

 

[Wes_Loves_Dunlop]

You cannot hit topspin with ball bounce high : you hit too much of a low to high direction. ball sail out. You cannot roll racket face with these type of high ball, too hard to do.
You cannot wait for the ball to drop in your regular range since when it drop down fast, hard to time the hit.
if you hit flat, you have to RAISE you hand up high, if the racket face vertical, you will send ball out, close racket face will be the best in this case.
Some case it it is too high, you have to slide your forehand.
Forget the winner here.

actually you can, i do it all the time. I make sure i jump and hit the ball from the top down. It dips into the court really fast near the baseline and has some sidespin to it.

 

[Power Player]

actually you can, i do it all the time. I make sure i jump and hit the ball from the top down. It dips into the court really fast near the baseline and has some sidespin to it.

For high balls I do the same thing. Windshield Wiper type finish and real aggressive spin to cut the ball back down.

 

[Orion]

Definitely not the ball to go for a winner off of. You need to make sure you're in position to hit it. The safest bet is to topspin it back down the center of the court, you can try going cross court but you've got to catch it right. I sometimes hit it crosscourt but it has a weird sidespin to it. It's a flat stroke but you have to hit down on it before it drops too low.

 

[acehole]

actually you can, i do it all the time. I make sure i jump and hit the ball from the top down. It dips into the court really fast near the baseline and has some sidespin to it.

me too. i actually crush them. i stole the shot from a guy i play with all the time. he used to take these sick ass base line to base line winners. now i do it all the time.

if it is coming deep enough into your court, which it probably is if it is bouncing shoulder high (if you were playing someone with enough topspin to do this, you'd be at a high enough level to handle it, assuming) maybe you could get in quick enough to take it out of the air with a swinging volley. one of my favorite shots, i take them as ofter as i can.

 

[trenzterra]

hmm, but the ball actually bounces near the service line and not the baseline

 

[trenzterra]

also, what do you guys mean by topspin it back down? cos as i said when i do topspin it always goes long

i am striking the ball near the service line btw.

 

[Arzon]

I have trouble with these shots too.. I don't know if I am right or wrong, but what I do is hit an offensive forehand slice from about shoulder height wherever they are not, then close in at the net.

 

[subaru3169]

also, what do you guys mean by topspin it back down? cos as i said when i do topspin it always goes long

i am striking the ball near the service line btw.

if you are standing around the service line while striking the ball, that means the ball bounced really short in your court.. you can either take it on the rise if you're quick enough or let the ball drop and then hit.. either way, these should be taken as opportunity balls and you should come up for the volley to put it away

 

[Kokopelli]

actually you can, i do it all the time. I make sure i jump and hit the ball from the top down. It dips into the court really fast near the baseline and has some sidespin to it.

me too. i actually crush them. i stole the shot from a guy i play with all the time. he used to take these sick ass base line to base line winners. now i do it all the time.

if it is coming deep enough into your court, which it probably is if it is bouncing shoulder high (if you were playing someone with enough topspin to do this, you'd be at a high enough level to handle it, assuming) maybe you could get in quick enough to take it out of the air with a swinging volley. one of my favorite shots, i take them as ofter as i can.

You, two gentlemen, need to elaborate on this as I am too interested in the anatomy of this shot because I do often face shoulder-high balls near the baseline.

 

[trenzterra]

if you are standing around the service line while striking the ball, that means the ball bounced really short in your court.. you can either take it on the rise if you're quick enough or let the ball drop and then hit.. either way, these should be taken as opportunity balls and you should come up for the volley to put it away

well, actually most of the time, this is happening on a safe second serve shot by my friend, so i cant do a volley there

it gets frustrating when he hits all second serves in a game and still wins it because i dump all these easy shots into the net or long. i can't seem to be consistent when handling such shots.

 

[Power Player]

How far is the ball kicking from the service line? If it comes to the baseline, then why not just wait for it? That is what the pros who play Nadal do.

 

[acehole]

You, two gentlemen, need to elaborate on this as I am too interested in the anatomy of this shot because I do often face shoulder-high balls near the baseline.

i use a western fh, but when i get this ball - instead of hitting say 50-50 topspin vs drive, i go for about 30% topspin and maybe 70% drive. the advantage with the ball being shoulder high at contact is that you dont have to ad lift to the shot. that is you dont need to hit it UP and OVER, its more down and straight. so you are able to flatten the shot severely because you dont need spin to bring it down once it clears the net. you could draw a perfectly straight line from the ball to the target area and the line would not hit the net and the line would contain no arc. and since you are hitting more downward there is less worry about hitting long.

 

[ho]

You, two gentlemen, need to elaborate on this as I am too interested in the anatomy of this shot because I do often face shoulder-high balls near the baseline.

this two gentlement are right, trenz correct his question: ball short, bounce high, not ball long bounce high. in this case, YES

 

[ho]

How far is the ball kicking from the service line? If it comes to the baseline, then why not just wait for it? That is what the pros who play Nadal do.

that can be done, however, when ball bounce high it will drop down fast, hard to time the hit. you want to hit the ball at his peak, not far down.

 

[subaru3169]

well, actually most of the time, this is happening on a safe second serve shot by my friend, so i cant do a volley there

it gets frustrating when he hits all second serves in a game and still wins it because i dump all these easy shots into the net or long. i can't seem to be consistent when handling such shots.

ahh i see.. well, obviously don't volley lol.. but i'd practice what i suggested, though i'd much prefer hitting the ball on the rise on those type of serves because

1. you cut off the angle if you're closer
2. once you master on the rise shots, you can create opportunity balls to put away on your next shot
3. stand too far back, your opponent can ace you if he places it right with some pace

depending on your level, you can get away with standing back and letting the ball drop.. but with higher level of play, getting to the ball earlier is optimal

 

[trenzterra]

hmm okay... but i;m not really used to taking on the rise shots, so i guess i must do some practising drills eh.

but i feel kinda frustrated already. i played with the same friend like 10 sets over the past week and haven't won a single set off him.. the frustrating thing is that he often hits dink second serves yet i am often unable to break him, or he breaks me back right after i break him.

and the weird thing about my service as of late is that one game i may have a love service game, yet the next i lose confidence totally and gift my friend a few double faults which gives him an easy break point.

argh...

 

[trenzterra]

and in the end i end up with a score of often 6-3 or 6-4 because he just manages to break me once and i kind of play safe and chip the ball in (which cedes control) instead of going on a winner outright.

oh btw, is there a way to edit my post here? i cant seem to do so

 

[masterxfob]

it really doesn't matter how much you play, if you do so without purpose or attention to detail. i see plenty of people that play tennis every week and yet they never seem to improve. it's because they aren't playing to improve. they don't work on what they have trouble with, they don't break down their game. if you really want to improve, you need to practice with purpose. when you hit a shot you like, analyze it, then try to emulate it. rinse, wash, repeat.

also, if you don't have the proper form, you'll most likely never be better than a 3.0 pusher. if you want to go beyond, you may need to hire a private coach, or you can possibly learn it by watching and emulating the pros. either way, what you put in, is what you get out.

 

[subaru3169]

^^^that's pretty much it.. if you haven't mastered every single shot, then you must practice the ones you don't do well because they WILL come up in a match.. so since your friend serves the same way all the time, it'd be a good time to practice

of course on the rise shots are uncomfy intially.. they bounce up faster than they drop and it's intimidating.. but the more you practice, your eyeballs will get used to them and you can see them clearer and clearer the more you hit them.. but you absolutely must possess this skill to be a well rounded player

btw, you can't edit your posts until your name stops being green

 

[trenzterra]

oh okay, how many posts until my name becomes normal?

yeah, i guess so. i think i'm starting to burn out--have been playing for seven out of the past eight days since its the school holidays here.

i guess i shall take a little break and then do more of a focused rally style kind of thing.

 

[subaru3169]

i don't remember how many posts it takes.. i've just been reading a bunch of stuff on here and replying as helpfully as i can

ya going for rallies is a good idea since there's no pressure to win a point or anything.. usually, ppl oblige when you tell 'em you wanna practice.. but perhaps you can try asking whoever you're hitting with to hit every shot as deep loopers next time.. gives 'em a chance to practice consistency as well