Tips for Defensive Lob?

[misterchris]

I want to practice defensive lobs. I have practiced offensive lobs some which involves the same grip as my forhand and or backhand but with less follow through and more topspin.

My understanding of the defensive lob is that its a slice shot. how does it differ from a normal fh/bh slice? What grip do you use? How do you control exactly where it goes?

 

[10s talk]

slice shot

just hit it high and deep

 

[TonyB]

I don't quite understand. If it's defensive, it's probably going to be a shot of last resort. Hit it flat, slice, or whatever. Just get it high and deep, as the previous poster said.

I guess I don't quite understand the questions of "what grip do you use" or "how do you control where it goes."

Those questions seem to deal with the very basics of tennis. Use any grip you want, and if it's defensive enough, you don't control where it goes. You just hit and hope.

 

[autumn_leaf]

i was wondering about the OP's question myself for a while now. i assume it would be using a continental grip and flick the ball into the air. but when thinking about the situation you'll be using it in you'll prolly be on the run or the ball's gonna be coming in too fast so you'll be forced to use whatever grip you have and hope that the ball goes over the person's head and into the court, you're not gonna be worried much about placement at that time.

 

[Fedace]

slice shot

just hit it high and deep

more slice, harder you can hit

 

[Steady Eddy]

Don't forget to put it on the backhand side. A backhand smash is more difficult, (and usually easier to return), than a forehand one. If he chooses to run around it, fine, it's just that much more running he'll have to do.

 

[10s talk]

more slice, harder you can hit

we are talking about a lob !

YOU CAN NOT BE SERIOUS :roll:

 

[Fedace]

we are talking about a lob !

YOU CAN NOT BE SERIOUS :roll:

If you experiment with slice lob, you will know what i mean. I don't mean launch it into the sky like a rocket. Once get used to the tragectory of the slice lob, you can make it more Offensive by putting more slice on the shot and hit it a bit harder and still keep it in. All advanced players know this. I first learned this shot in college. I saw a player hitting slice lob as a Offensive weapon against a net rusher. then i only knew topspin lobs as offense but Slice ??? that was new. but when i saw him do this, it was a very effecitive shot. You have to hit it little bit lower and have a good idea of what the reach of your opponent is. You have to make the tragectory just out of your opponent's racket. and put heavy slice and hit it little bit harder right in the corner.

 

[10s talk]

The question was about hitting a defensive lob.......... I still do not know how to hit a hard lob

 

[dmtree]

slices tend to be slower, float more in the air, and therefore are more likely to be long or chased down, no?

 

[In D Zone]

A Lob is a Lob - it's how you use it. You can use it as an offense to change the pace of the game or to return a serve. Use Lob as a defense - lob behind the opponent when he is rushing to the net, or when you are stretch wide on a dead run.

Three ways to hit a defensive shot:

Lob using topspin. Focus on getting to the ball first. I normally use my regular forehand (SW) or backhand (1 hbh eastern) grip - I bring my racquet low and brush it up in a relax swing. Make sure you target your shot to land behind the service line - keeping the opponent back at the baseline. Allowing you to buy time to reset for the next point. And if you got to the ball sooner, you can lob the topspin to the open court - forcing your oppoent to retreive the ball.

Block/ punch - Block is when you simply your racquet as a wall and you body's forward motion to deflect the ball back.

Slice - best option to use when you are stretched out to get to the ball. Use Continental grip on both sides Foot work is the key to getting to the ball (track it down). You can hit a good slice even when the ball is almost close to the ground. Try to slice the ball low to the net, if possible. first option to hit the slice dtl; to the middle second and cross court (if you have time).

 

[mikeler]

Use whatever technique works best on a lob by lob basis. Depending on how much time you have should determine where you aim in the court. If you have enough time, do aim for the opponents backhand corner. If you are on the dead run, you'll do best aiming for the middle most of the time. The worst thing you can do is hit the ball wide. Make your opponent hit 1 more shot. Sure, they'll more than likely put it away, but if you get enough balls back, don't be surprised if they miss an overhead on a key point.

 

[Squall Leonheart]

If you experiment with slice lob, you will know what i mean. I don't mean launch it into the sky like a rocket. Once get used to the tragectory of the slice lob, you can make it more Offensive by putting more slice on the shot and hit it a bit harder and still keep it in. All advanced players know this. I first learned this shot in college. I saw a player hitting slice lob as a Offensive weapon against a net rusher. then i only knew topspin lobs as offense but Slice ??? that was new. but when i saw him do this, it was a very effecitive shot. You have to hit it little bit lower and have a good idea of what the reach of your opponent is. You have to make the tragectory just out of your opponent's racket. and put heavy slice and hit it little bit harder right in the corner.

I apologize if I misunderstand you, but I disagree in that more slice on a lob is a good thing. As other posters have mentioned, the ball will float more, and also bounce back towards the net, both of which will help the player that was lobbed to return the ball. In my opinion, this is like recommending a topspin dropshot. It won't be very effective since the ball would bounce higher and towards the opponents, thus negating the shot's effectiveness. Again, I don't quite know if I understand you, but I apologize if I took your words out of context.

 

[willgonase10]

There are 3 major things to a defensive lob in my opinion:

1. Be fast and get to the ball
2. Hit it as high as you can
3. Hit it as deep as you can