Tennis strategy
Encyclopedia
In tennis
, a player uses different strategies that both enhance his own strengths and exploit his opponent's weaknesses in order to gain the advantage and win more points
.
Players commonly specialize in a certain style of play, focusing on what they do best as a means of beating their opponents. Based on their style, players generally fit into one of three types: baseliners, volleyers and all-court players.
A baseliner plays from the back of the tennis court
, around the baseline, preferring to trade groundstroke
s rather than to come up to the net (except in certain situations).
A volleyer tries to approach the net and hit volleys, putting pressure on the opponent.
All-court players fall somewhere in between.
A tennis player usually determines his/her strategies based on his/her weaknesses. For example, most players have a stronger forehand, therefore they will favor the forehand even to the point of "running around" a backhand to hit a forehand.
or backhand
. The best offensive baseliners have a huge serve to go with a great groundstroke or can hit huge groundstrokes off both wings. Usually offensive baseliners (as well as defensive players) have the ability to anticipate the next shot very well and also their opponents' styles and tendencies so that they can spot
a weakness and use one of their aggressive shots to act upon it.
An offensive baseliner can overpower and overwhelm most opposition. However, when going for winners, he can also produce many errors since an offensive baseliner has to repeatedly and correctly execute some of the most difficult strokes in tennis. Errors can be due to physical and/or mental
reasons such as fatigue and/or hesitation. Two great old-time players, R. Norris Williams
and Ellsworth Vines
, were famous for being unbeatable when their strokes were "on"; they played with such little margin for error in making their strokes, however, that when they were not 100 percent "on" they could be beaten by other players. Another advantage of this strategy is that the player can shatter his opponent's confidence by executing seemingly impossible shots, and in turn, increase his own confidence.
Hard courts are generally considered to be the best surface for an offensive baseliner who often employ a high risk strategy. However, offensive baseliners can often excel on both grass
and clay courts as well. On grass, they can execute their "winners" and due to the quick and low bounce, makes it harder for opponents to retrieve; whereas on clay
courts, some offensive baseliners might like the slow and high bounce because it gives them a longer time to change their grip and foot-positions in order to set up for a "winner". Offensive baseliners with height especially have an advantage on clay courts because the high bounces land in their hitting zones, allowing them to strike the ball cleanly and more powerfully.
Most high-level players today are offensive baseliners.
At lower levels (NTRP 3.5 and below), the defensive counter-puncher often frustrates their opponent so much that they may try to change their style of play due to ineffective baseline play. At higher levels, the all-court player or aggressive baseliner is usually able to execute winners with higher velocity and better placement, taking the counterpuncher out of the point as early as possible.
Counter-punchers often excel on slow courts, such as clay courts. The court gives them extra time to chase down shots and it is harder for opponents to create winners. Counter-punchers are often particularly strong players at low-level play, where opponents cannot make winners with regularity.
. Serve and volleyers
come up to the net at every opportunity when serving. They are almost always attackers and can hit many winners with varieties of volleys and drop volleys
. When not serving, they often employ the "chip-and-charge", chipping back the serve without attempting to hit a winner and rushing the net. The serve-and-volleyers' strategy is to put pressure on the opponent to try to hit difficult passing shots. This strategy is extremely effective against pushers.
Serve-and-volleyers benefit from playing on fast courts, such as grass or fast concrete. The quick bounce and faster pace of play give them an advantage because opponents have less time to set up for a passing shot. However, the number of serve-and-volley players is decreasing in today's professional tennis, because this strategy requires more experience to master and defeat other playing styles (as well as changes in racquet technology that have improved players' passing shots). In addition to this, there has been a trend toward the slowing down of tennis surfaces over the past few years. The serve-and-volley technique works better on faster surfaces because the volleyer is able to put more balls away without the baseliner being able to chase them down. Although serve and volleyers may be a dying breed, there are still some great players who employ this tactic. The Frenchman Michael Llodra
has been considered by many to be the best pure serve and volleyer of today's game.
Bill Tilden
, the dominant player of the 1920s, preferred to play from the back of the court, and liked nothing better than to face an opponent who rushed the net — one way or another Tilden would find a way to hit the ball past him. In his book Match Play and the Spin of the Ball, Tilden propounds the theory that by definition a great baseline player will always beat a great serve-and-volleyer. Some of the best matches of all time have pitted great baseliners such as Björn Borg
, Mats Wilander
or Andre Agassi
against great serve-and-volleyers such as John McEnroe
, Stefan Edberg
or Pete Sampras
.
Some players, such as Tommy Haas
, Roger Federer
and Andy Roddick
will only employ this strategy on grass courts or as a surprise tactic on any surface. Roger Federer
uses this commonly against Rafael Nadal
, to break up long rallies and physically taxing games.
They are very versatile; when an all-court player's baseline game is not working, he/she may switch to a net game, and vice versa. All-court players have the ability to adjust to different opponents that play different styles easier than pure baseliners or serve and volleyers. All-court players typically have the speed, determination and fitness of a defensive counter-puncher, the confidence, skill and flair of offensive baseliners and have the touch, the agility around the net and tactical thinking of the serve-and-volleyer.
However, just because the all-court player has a combination of skills used by all tennis styles doesn't necessarily mean that they could beat an offensive baseliner or a defensive counter-puncher or even a serve-and-volleyer. It just means it would be more difficult to read the game of an all-court player.
Roger Federer
has been hailed by many critics, commentators, former and current players, and analysts as the greatest all-court player of all time.
There are three basic doubles strategies:
from either opponent at any time. So, to be successful with Attacking Doubles, they must have effective serves and penetrating volleys
to prevent good lobs and good overhead
shots to kill poor ones.
Teams that play attacking doubles try to get into the both-up formation on every point. When serving
, their server follows most first serves to the net and some second serves. So, attacking doubles is also called serve-and-volley doubles. When receiving, their receiver follows most second-service returns to the net.
At the touring professional level, attacking doubles is the strategy of choice.
Nonetheless, up-and-back strategy is versatile, with both offense and defense in it. In fact, since the server must begin each point at the baseline and the receiver must far enough back to return the serve, virtually every point in doubles begins with both teams in this formation.
Teams without net games strong enough to play Attacking Doubles can play both-up when they have their opponents on the defensive. So, they patiently play up-and-back for a chance to hit a forcing shot and bring their baseliner to the net.
Australian Doubles and the I-Formation are variations of up-and-back strategy. In Australian doubles, the server's partner at net lines up on the same side of the court, fronting the opposing net player, who serves as a poaching block and blind. The receiver then must return serve down the line and is liable to have that return poached. In the I-Formation, the server's net partner lines up in the center, between the server and receiver so he or she can poach in either direction. Both Australian Doubles and the I-Formation are poaching formations that can also be used to start the point for serve-and-volley doubles.
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, a player uses different strategies that both enhance his own strengths and exploit his opponent's weaknesses in order to gain the advantage and win more points
Point (tennis)
A point in tennis is the smallest subdivision of the match, the completion of which changes the score. A point can consist of a double fault by the server, in which case it is won by the receiver; otherwise, it begins with a legal serve by one side's server to the receiver on the other, and...
.
Players commonly specialize in a certain style of play, focusing on what they do best as a means of beating their opponents. Based on their style, players generally fit into one of three types: baseliners, volleyers and all-court players.
A baseliner plays from the back of the tennis court
Tennis court
A tennis court is where the game of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the center. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles.-Dimensions:...
, around the baseline, preferring to trade groundstroke
Groundstroke
A groundstroke in tennis is a forehand or backhand shot that is executed after the ball bounces once on the court. It is usually hit from the back of the tennis court, around the baseline....
s rather than to come up to the net (except in certain situations).
A volleyer tries to approach the net and hit volleys, putting pressure on the opponent.
All-court players fall somewhere in between.
A tennis player usually determines his/her strategies based on his/her weaknesses. For example, most players have a stronger forehand, therefore they will favor the forehand even to the point of "running around" a backhand to hit a forehand.
Offensive or aggressive baseliner
An offensive or aggressive baseliner tries to win the point by hitting winners from the back of the court, attacking with fast penetrating balls that the opponent cannot reach or return effectively to get them back in the point. Being an offensive baseliner player requires a deadly array of shots and shot-types. The tennis player may not try to win the point outright with one shot, but instead may hit the ball from side to side until he spots an opening. Offensive baseliners normally have at least one great groundstroke, forehandForehand
The forehand in tennis and other racket sports such as table tennis, squash and badminton is a shot made by swinging the racquet across one's body in the direction of where the player wants to place the shot...
or backhand
Backhand
The backhand is a tennis shot in which one swings the racquet around one's body in the direction where one wants the ball to go, usually performed from the baseline or as an approach shot. The term is also used in other racquet sports, and other areas where a similar motion is employed...
. The best offensive baseliners have a huge serve to go with a great groundstroke or can hit huge groundstrokes off both wings. Usually offensive baseliners (as well as defensive players) have the ability to anticipate the next shot very well and also their opponents' styles and tendencies so that they can spot
Spot
The common noun or verb spot has many meanings in English.Otherwise, Spot or SPOT may refer to:-Fiction:* Spot the Dog, a series of children's books adapted for animation* Spot , a character in 101 Dalmatians: The Series...
a weakness and use one of their aggressive shots to act upon it.
An offensive baseliner can overpower and overwhelm most opposition. However, when going for winners, he can also produce many errors since an offensive baseliner has to repeatedly and correctly execute some of the most difficult strokes in tennis. Errors can be due to physical and/or mental
Mind
The concept of mind is understood in many different ways by many different traditions, ranging from panpsychism and animism to traditional and organized religious views, as well as secular and materialist philosophies. Most agree that minds are constituted by conscious experience and intelligent...
reasons such as fatigue and/or hesitation. Two great old-time players, R. Norris Williams
R. Norris Williams
Richard "Dick" Norris Williams II , generally known as R. Norris Williams, was an American male tennis player.-Biography:He was born in Geneva, Switzerland....
and Ellsworth Vines
Ellsworth Vines
Henry Ellsworth Vines, Jr. was an American tennis champion of the 1930s, the World No. 1 player or the co-No. 1 for four years in 1932, 1935, 1936 and 1937.-Biography:...
, were famous for being unbeatable when their strokes were "on"; they played with such little margin for error in making their strokes, however, that when they were not 100 percent "on" they could be beaten by other players. Another advantage of this strategy is that the player can shatter his opponent's confidence by executing seemingly impossible shots, and in turn, increase his own confidence.
Hard courts are generally considered to be the best surface for an offensive baseliner who often employ a high risk strategy. However, offensive baseliners can often excel on both grass
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
and clay courts as well. On grass, they can execute their "winners" and due to the quick and low bounce, makes it harder for opponents to retrieve; whereas on clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
courts, some offensive baseliners might like the slow and high bounce because it gives them a longer time to change their grip and foot-positions in order to set up for a "winner". Offensive baseliners with height especially have an advantage on clay courts because the high bounces land in their hitting zones, allowing them to strike the ball cleanly and more powerfully.
Most high-level players today are offensive baseliners.
Defensive baseliner
A defensive baseliner, or counter-puncher or retriever, returns every ball and relies on the opponent making mistakes. He has consistent shots, makes few errors of his own while making it difficult for opponents to hit winners. The game of the defensive counter-puncher has more to do with physical endurance and determination to retrieve un-retrievable balls as well as mental stamina. They tend to make relatively few errors because they don't attempt the complicated and ambitious shots of the aggressive baseliner, but the effective counterpuncher must be able to periodically execute an aggressive shot. Speed and agility are key for the counterpuncher, as well as a willingness to patiently chase down every ball to frustrate opponents. Returning every aggressive shot that the opponent provides is often the cause of further errors due to the effort required in trying increasingly harder and better shots.At lower levels (NTRP 3.5 and below), the defensive counter-puncher often frustrates their opponent so much that they may try to change their style of play due to ineffective baseline play. At higher levels, the all-court player or aggressive baseliner is usually able to execute winners with higher velocity and better placement, taking the counterpuncher out of the point as early as possible.
Counter-punchers often excel on slow courts, such as clay courts. The court gives them extra time to chase down shots and it is harder for opponents to create winners. Counter-punchers are often particularly strong players at low-level play, where opponents cannot make winners with regularity.
Serve-and-volleyer
A serve and volleyer has a great net game, is quick around the net, and has fine touch for volleysVolley (tennis)
A volley in tennis is a shot in which the ball is struck before it bounces on the ground. Generally a player hits a volley while standing near the net, although it can be executed farther back, in the middle of the tennis court or even near the baseline....
. Serve and volleyers
Serve and volley
Serve and volley is a style of play in tennis where the player serving moves quickly towards the net after hitting a serve. The server then attempts to hit a volley , as opposed to the baseline style, where the server would stay back following the serve and attempt to hit a groundstroke Serve and...
come up to the net at every opportunity when serving. They are almost always attackers and can hit many winners with varieties of volleys and drop volleys
Drop shot
A drop shot in tennis is slicing, putting a backspin on the ball just over the net. A good drop shot travels such that the opponent is unable to run fast enough to retrieve it....
. When not serving, they often employ the "chip-and-charge", chipping back the serve without attempting to hit a winner and rushing the net. The serve-and-volleyers' strategy is to put pressure on the opponent to try to hit difficult passing shots. This strategy is extremely effective against pushers.
Serve-and-volleyers benefit from playing on fast courts, such as grass or fast concrete. The quick bounce and faster pace of play give them an advantage because opponents have less time to set up for a passing shot. However, the number of serve-and-volley players is decreasing in today's professional tennis, because this strategy requires more experience to master and defeat other playing styles (as well as changes in racquet technology that have improved players' passing shots). In addition to this, there has been a trend toward the slowing down of tennis surfaces over the past few years. The serve-and-volley technique works better on faster surfaces because the volleyer is able to put more balls away without the baseliner being able to chase them down. Although serve and volleyers may be a dying breed, there are still some great players who employ this tactic. The Frenchman Michael Llodra
Michaël Llodra
Michaël Llodra is a French professional tennis player. He is a prolific doubles player with three Grand Slam championships, and has also had success in singles.-Life and career:...
has been considered by many to be the best pure serve and volleyer of today's game.
Bill Tilden
Bill Tilden
William Tatem Tilden II , nicknamed "Big Bill," is often considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time. An American tennis player who was the World No. 1 player for seven years, he won 14 Majors including ten Grand Slams and four Pro Slams. Bill Tilden dominated the world of...
, the dominant player of the 1920s, preferred to play from the back of the court, and liked nothing better than to face an opponent who rushed the net — one way or another Tilden would find a way to hit the ball past him. In his book Match Play and the Spin of the Ball, Tilden propounds the theory that by definition a great baseline player will always beat a great serve-and-volleyer. Some of the best matches of all time have pitted great baseliners such as Björn Borg
Björn Borg
Björn Rune Borg is a former world no. 1 tennis player from Sweden. Between 1974 and 1981 he won 11 Grand Slam singles titles. He won five consecutive Wimbledon singles titles and six French Open singles titles...
, Mats Wilander
Mats Wilander
Mats Wilander is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Sweden. From 1982 through 1988, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , and one Grand Slam men's doubles title...
or Andre Agassi
Andre Agassi
Andre Kirk Agassi is a retired American professional tennis player and former world no. 1. Generally considered by critics and fellow players to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Agassi has been called the best service returner in the history of the game...
against great serve-and-volleyers such as John McEnroe
John McEnroe
John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title...
, Stefan Edberg
Stefan Edberg
Stefan Bengt Edberg is a former World No. 1 professional tennis player from Sweden. A major proponent of the serve-and-volley style of tennis, he won six Grand Slam singles titles and three Grand Slam men's doubles titles. He also won one season ending championship title the Masters Grand Prix...
or Pete Sampras
Pete Sampras
Pete Sampras is a retired American tennis player and former world no. 1. During his 15-year tour career, he won 14 Grand Slam singles titles and became recognized as one of the greatest tennis players of all time....
.
Some players, such as Tommy Haas
Tommy Haas
Tommy Haas is a German and recently naturalized American professional tennis player. He has competed on the ATP Tour since 1996. After breaking into the world top 100 in 1997, and reaching a career-high ranking of world no...
, Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
and Andy Roddick
Andy Roddick
Andrew Stephen "Andy" Roddick is an American professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. He is currently the second highest-ranked American player, behind Mardy Fish....
will only employ this strategy on grass courts or as a surprise tactic on any surface. Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
uses this commonly against Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. , he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals...
, to break up long rallies and physically taxing games.
All-court player
All-court players have aspects of every tennis style, whether that be offensive baseliner, defensive counter-puncher or serve-and-volleyer. All-court players use the best bits from each style and mix it together to create a truly formidable tennis style to play against. In game situations, they have the ability to select an action usually executed by one tennis style. They usually have an attacking game, mixing some groundstrokes and volleys to keep the opponent guessing. Most all-court players won't rush the net immediately after a serve like a typical serve and volley player would. However, their game often revolves around "constructing" a point to where they will be able to approach the net and put away an easy volley or pulling their opponent into the net and hitting a passing shot.They are very versatile; when an all-court player's baseline game is not working, he/she may switch to a net game, and vice versa. All-court players have the ability to adjust to different opponents that play different styles easier than pure baseliners or serve and volleyers. All-court players typically have the speed, determination and fitness of a defensive counter-puncher, the confidence, skill and flair of offensive baseliners and have the touch, the agility around the net and tactical thinking of the serve-and-volleyer.
However, just because the all-court player has a combination of skills used by all tennis styles doesn't necessarily mean that they could beat an offensive baseliner or a defensive counter-puncher or even a serve-and-volleyer. It just means it would be more difficult to read the game of an all-court player.
Roger Federer
Roger Federer
Roger Federer is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP no. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks, and 285 weeks overall. As of 28 November 2011, he is ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals . Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles...
has been hailed by many critics, commentators, former and current players, and analysts as the greatest all-court player of all time.
Doubles strategy
Though strategy is important in singles, it is even more important in doubles. The additional width of the alleys on the doubles court has a great effect on the angles possible in doubles play. Consequently, doubles is known as a game of angles.There are three basic doubles strategies:
- both-up strategy (also called "two-up" strategy)
- up-and-back strategy (also called "one-up/one-back" or "I" strategy)
- both-back strategy (also called "two-back" strategy)
Both-up strategy
The ideal is both-up strategy, often called "Attacking Doubles" because the net is the "high ground", and both-up strategy puts both players close to it, in a position to score because of their excellent vantage points and angles. A team in the both-up formation, however, is vulnerable to a good lobLob (tennis)
A lob in tennis is hitting the ball high and deep into the opponent's court. It can be used as an offensive or defensive weapon depending on the situation.-History:...
from either opponent at any time. So, to be successful with Attacking Doubles, they must have effective serves and penetrating volleys
Volley (tennis)
A volley in tennis is a shot in which the ball is struck before it bounces on the ground. Generally a player hits a volley while standing near the net, although it can be executed farther back, in the middle of the tennis court or even near the baseline....
to prevent good lobs and good overhead
Smash (tennis)
A smash in tennis is a shot that is hit above the head with a serve-like motion. A smash can usually be hit with great force relatively safely and is often a shot that ends the point. Most smashes are hit fairly near the net or in mid-court before the ball bounces, generally against lobs that have...
shots to kill poor ones.
Teams that play attacking doubles try to get into the both-up formation on every point. When serving
Serve (tennis)
A serve in tennis is a shot to start a point. A player begins a serve by tossing the ball into the air and hitting it into the diagonally opposite backside box without being stopped by the net. The ball can only touch the net on a return and will be considered good if it falls on the opposite side...
, their server follows most first serves to the net and some second serves. So, attacking doubles is also called serve-and-volley doubles. When receiving, their receiver follows most second-service returns to the net.
At the touring professional level, attacking doubles is the strategy of choice.
Up-and-back strategy
At lower levels of the game, not all players have penetrating volleys and strong overhead shots. So, many use up-and-back strategy. The weakness in this formation is the large angular gap it creates between partners, a gap that an opposing net player can easily hit a clean winner through.Nonetheless, up-and-back strategy is versatile, with both offense and defense in it. In fact, since the server must begin each point at the baseline and the receiver must far enough back to return the serve, virtually every point in doubles begins with both teams in this formation.
Teams without net games strong enough to play Attacking Doubles can play both-up when they have their opponents on the defensive. So, they patiently play up-and-back for a chance to hit a forcing shot and bring their baseliner to the net.
Australian Doubles and the I-Formation are variations of up-and-back strategy. In Australian doubles, the server's partner at net lines up on the same side of the court, fronting the opposing net player, who serves as a poaching block and blind. The receiver then must return serve down the line and is liable to have that return poached. In the I-Formation, the server's net partner lines up in the center, between the server and receiver so he or she can poach in either direction. Both Australian Doubles and the I-Formation are poaching formations that can also be used to start the point for serve-and-volley doubles.
Both-back strategy
Both-back strategy is strictly defensive. It is normally seen only when the opposing team is both-up or when the returner is passing the net player on the return. This might be a good tactic when the opponent has a serve with a lot of pressure and an aggressive player at the net. From here the defenders can return the most forcing shots till they get a chance to hit a good lob or an offensive shot. If their opponents at net become impatient and try to angle the ball away when a baseliner can reach it, the defender can turn the tables and score outright. However this strategy leaves the volley court open to drop shots from the opposition.See also
- Tennis terminologyTennis terminologyThis page is a glossary of tennis terminology.-A: ace: Serve where the tennis ball served is served in and not touched by the receiver. Aces are usually powerful and generally land on or near one of the corners at the back of the service box. action: Synonym for spin...
- Tennis shotsTennis shotsThere are seven basic shots in the game of tennis: the serve, forehand, backhand, volley, slice, smash and lob. Each shot is made by using a racquet to strike a ball with the intent to hit the ball over the net...
- Other Forms