Who’s the best next-gen volleyer?
- Thread starter Pitti
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Musetti
Olli Jokinen
Hall of Fame
Shapo.
topher
Hall of Fame
After that horribly botched drop shot in the Wimbledon semifinal, I have to question Denis’ touch.
Then again, the competition is not too fierce. At least Denis tries to come to net.
travlerajm
Talk Tennis Guru
I saw RBA was 12/12 on net points against Kyrgios… oh wait … you said NextGen.
I Am Finnish
Bionic Poster
Zverev
Raul_SJ
G.O.A.T.
Zed has a huge wingspan. Volleys will continue to improve. He is the last next-gen guy you want to see at the net.
Aabye5
G.O.A.T.
Hurkacz is better than Tsitsipas at the net. But probably nothing else.
Terenigma
G.O.A.T.
Did you watch the match between him and Tsitsipas at Cinci? He was absolute garbage at the net. It got so bad that at one point it was pretty much the only reason he was losing.
I think it'll probably be Tsitsipas because he continues to show improvement there. Shapo as well (both are inconsistent but they come to net often).
It's funny but I actually believe all of them are currently inferior in terms of volleys/net play to Djokovic imo. So that should tell you enough.
It's funny but I actually believe all of them are currently inferior in terms of volleys/net play to Djokovic imo. So that should tell you enough.
Mediterranean Might
Professional
Yep. Every single one of the big 3 is a much stronger volleyer than any of the little 4. I will say that Shapo looks great at net though when he isn't in his unforced error mode
Permitlady
Professional
Cressy
I Am Finnish
Bionic Poster
I was joking lol
MeatTornado
Talk Tennis Guru
Weirdly I think his volley has actually regressed. I thought it was a stronger shot 2 years ago than it is now.
MadariKatu
Hall of Fame
Ugo Humbert.
I think Jack Sock doesn't qualify as next gen, or does he? If so, he is a fantastic volleyer.
I think Jack Sock doesn't qualify as next gen, or does he? If so, he is a fantastic volleyer.
That’s a good point actually I think he had quicker hands and feet back then. Seemed to be better at those running stoop down volleys then.
It’s still strong in big moments though which is really what I rate the most in comparison to next gen. He seemed to get every meaningful net exchange right in the AO/Wimby finals.
MeatTornado
Talk Tennis Guru
This may be simplistic, but I think he simply doesn't venture up there as much anymore and its made him rusty.
Could be a result of his ground game improving, so he feels more confident winning points from back there than he used to and doesn't feel the need to rush up. Idk.
RelentlessAttack
Hall of Fame
People get confused by Shapovalov because his shots look good, but they’re not actually effective. If he’s in the candidacy for “best”, it’s only because the competition isn’t even trying
flanker2000fr
Hall of Fame
Tsitsipas, and it's not even close.
Dominic & Andrey
Legend
Tsitsipas/Alcaraz/Hurkacz
Winners or Errors
Legend
Sock
BeatlesFan
Bionic Poster
None of them. Even Federer was a poor volleyer compared to McEnroe, Edberg or Pete. And Fed at 40 is still 100 times the volleyer of any next gen player.
Those saying Denis is a good volleyer must be on heavy drugs. He’s atrocious with the touch of a brick at net. Just because he approaches more often doesn’t mean he’s a good volleyer. They’re all absolutely terrible. Just ask yourself this: when do any of them serve and volley? The answer is “almost never.”
Those saying Denis is a good volleyer must be on heavy drugs. He’s atrocious with the touch of a brick at net. Just because he approaches more often doesn’t mean he’s a good volleyer. They’re all absolutely terrible. Just ask yourself this: when do any of them serve and volley? The answer is “almost never.”
J011yroger
Talk Tennis Guru
Tiafoe.
J
J
smalahove
Hall of Fame
Not comparable at all. Mac and Edberg didn’t face anything near the level of returns that Fed has, and to some degree Sampras, simply due to the advent of poly strings and the massive effect that had on technique and tactics. Mac and Edberg faced flatter shots which is much, much easier to handle.
MadariKatu
Hall of Fame
Serve and volley is dead, not because people cannot volley. It is because passing shots are much more precise with more power and more spin. That is due to poly strings. That makes people go less often to the net, and hence less skilled there, because they don't train it.
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Aabye5
G.O.A.T.
Why isn't Hurkacz NextGen?
James P
G.O.A.T.
Well, there's a double definition of NextGen. Players that initially were labeled "NextGen" when they created the tournament (players born roughly 96-99), and the current players that are eligible for the NextGen tournament (players born 2000 or later).
ibbi
G.O.A.T.
Taylor Townsend. Remember when she randomly appeared out of nowhere at the US Open a couple of years ago reborn as a serve and volleyer? 
Never heard from her again
Speaking of, Cressy is not bad. He serve-volleys behind every point and occasionally wins matches, so he'd have to be up there given the dearth of competition.
Never heard from her againSpeaking of, Cressy is not bad. He serve-volleys behind every point and occasionally wins matches, so he'd have to be up there given the dearth of competition.
Aabye5
G.O.A.T.
Not that it really matters, but...
I feel like they created the NextGen label for Coric and Zverev (see the article below from 2017). Hurkacz is the same age as Zverev, and Medvedev was born in the same year as Coric although he's several months older. Either way they were all 21 and younger in 2017, which is the definition of NextGen (in terms of the tournament at least).
By that definition Kyrgios is not NextGen, although I can see someone including him in that bunch since he's close enough. Thiem is definitely not NextGen.
James P
G.O.A.T.
Nothing I said clashed with your points here lol.
Aabye5
G.O.A.T.
Sorry, I'm not mentioning this because I think you are wrong, it's just a pet peeve of mine. For example, people saying that no NextGen player has beaten Novak at a Slam (not true).
It's funny how NextGen refers to both, even though I think someone could make the argument that Hurkacz and Alcaraz are not of the same generation. A bit like the term Millennial.
The Green Mile
Bionic Poster
Generally solid tier - Tsitsipas, Alcaraz, Popyrin, Musetti, Federer, Hurkacz, De Minaur, Humbert
Up and down tier - Zverev, FAA, Shapo, Tiafoe, Fritz
Pretty bad tier - Medvedev, Sinner, Rublev, Coric
Up and down tier - Zverev, FAA, Shapo, Tiafoe, Fritz
Pretty bad tier - Medvedev, Sinner, Rublev, Coric
I will put Zverev into Tier 3 - other than that you are correct.
Yeah, I agree. It's so easy to jump on the "it was so much better in the ol' days" bandwagon. I used think like that, especially as a former 5.0 serve and volleyer who played competitively in the early 90's, but once I started watching those old matches of yesteryear, I realized those old greats weren't as consistently great at volleying as we think. In the old days, the good volleyers would, on at least 1/3 of the approaches, just slice a ball in the middle of the court with enough depth and come in. Yet they could still count on winning over 50% of these points if they had the other player running a bit because the passing shot wouldn't be consistently low and hard. Watch any sampras match again with the expectation of today's passing shots and you'd start saying, "why would he come in on such a weak shot?" And yet he did, and he won many of them. These days no one can do that.
Fed, Tsitsipas, etc, better come in on very very good approach shots or they'd be in the line of a firing squad all day long.
That's not to say volleys have probably gotten worse on average. Medvedev, sinner, rublev - these guys are not very good volleyers but it's more than form. They don't know how to cut off angles, they don't know how to hit set up volleys and they don't know how and when to approach. You can only learn about these nuances of the S/V game by doing(and failing) it a lot. Compared to these guys, Chang was a serve and volleyer.
TennisLurker
Professional
Hurkacz is genuinely great
Aabye5
G.O.A.T.
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