The Volley: The Vanishing Stroke

Never in the history of our sport has there been a greater difference in the way professionals play and the way most recreational players perform. The players on the tour today have almost taken every stroke and shot to a new level. The only exception might be their lack of net play. This has resulted in the vanishing of a very commonly used shot, the volley, which ironically is one of the most important and used shots by most recreational players.

Go back 50 years or so, and in a three-set match at the top level of tennis, you would see around 150 volleys. Today, that number is lucky to get to as many as 30 attempts in a long three-setter. Of course, these numbers vary depending on the surface and the players. However, it is an important observation that our coaching community needs to address. It is a two-fold problem, few role models and also a significant disparity between the athletic skills of the tour players and the common skills of the recreational player.

But before we address how these two issues, it is important to know why this transition at the professional level has occurred. Knowing this journey will help us all understand the current paradox that exists.

There are several reasons for this transition from less frequent net players to the current great expert baseline players. None of these reasons were purposely created to limit the use of the volley; they are just part of the evolution at the advanced levels of tennis.

First, the change in the surfaces of most courts played a significant role. Remember, up until the early 70’s three of the majors were played on grass courts, and in turn, created the coaching model. Grass courts were so fast and had such erratic bounces, that it was a challenge to stay back and perform consistent aggressive groundstrokes. In addition, the bounce of the ball was much lower, making it very difficult to get under the ball and create heavy topspin. Also, in the 40s through the 60s, there were few indoor courts available. So, the year-round outdoor climate on the West Coast attracted many of the top players. The courts were predominantly hard fast concrete courts. A player had to use a chip serve return, carve and cut approach shots, and, of course, master the serve and volley. When indoor courts became more common, and composite courts were more available, that opened the door for more dominant baseline tennis.

Then there was the change in the rackets, much lighter and more capable of creating greater racket speed and heavy topspin. Players also transitioned with these rackets to Western grips, perfect for handling higher balls and hitting more aggressive topspin shots. These heavy topspin shots were challenging for a net player, resulting in fewer players taking the risk of coming to the net.

There was also a big transition to the two-handed backhand. Besides being mechanically very different than the one-handed backhand, this change impacted the development of a young player’s forearm. To have a great feel and touch at the net, a player needs a strong forearm. The one-handed backhand more rapidly developed the ECRL (extensor carpi radialis longus) and the pronator muscle (pronator teres muscle) which are the two greatest physical attributes to providing control and feel for the volley. In addition, if a player does not have the muscle development to maneuver their racket, they will tend to hold the racket too tight and also shy away from the classic continental grip used for volleying. This grip is key in promoting control through backspin on the volley. This backspin not only helps control the ball but also results in a lower bounce that makes the passing shot more challenging for the opposing baseline player who seeks to get under the ball to produce their preferred topspin stroke.

So now that we know how we got here, coaches who work with all levels, can take steps in their coaching style to focus more on how each individual can best optimize their method of volleying, instead of just a generic approach to how the mechanics and style of a volley should be executed. This is a great challenge, but also an opportunity to become a master of flexible coaching that best suits each individual student. It also allows a coach to be less dependent on using examples extracted from the performance of players on the tour. It will require providing more insight and examples that can best explain to each student the mechanics of a volley through analogies and strategic goals.

Years ago, one of the common coaching tips was for a player to “Punch the ball,” but nothing could be further from the actual interaction with the ball during a quality volley. Probably the most similar physical reaction in sports to a quality volley is the catcher in baseball when receiving the ball from the pitcher. They learn to provide give and feel in their execution. Remember that they use a mitt, not a glove, so there needs to be a soft feel in the receiving of the ball to capture and control a 3-inch 100-mile-an-hour missile that can also curve nearly two feet in flight. This also allows the catcher to frame the ball into the strike zone in hopes of inducing a called strike from the umpire.

Remember that most recreational players are looking to have fun playing social tennis, which more often will be accommodated via doubles play. Even in league play, the format is predominantly doubles. Their goal is often to come to the net and try to win the point…it’s that simple. Any coach that can provide a road map to how to win at the net with touch volleys and clever angles, will likely enjoy a strong clientele.

It’s a hard sell for many coaches to explain to any students that they should not try to perform at the net like the pros they are seeing on television. But consider this example to support your case, if they’re a player who enjoys league play or casual tournament play, and while playing doubles their opponent sends up a lob and it falls a bit short, resulting in them smashing it away for a winner, the opponents first thought is usually, “I set them up with that weak ball.” No credit is given. On the other hand, if they return that short lob with a sharply angled touch volley that is virtually unreturnable by any player, now that opponent’s thinking, “Damn, they're good and I should avoid them.” It doesn’t take much of a genius to see which style of net play will have more impact, students need to be reminded of that. On top of that, the execution of such volleys is not as often challenged by an aging body, so that style of net play can continue to improve over time.

This discrepancy between the top-level players and the abundance of average players is a real challenge for many coaches. Fortunately, many competitive senior players are still out there as great role models. These successful players have transitioned to a style of volleying that is compatible with their gradually diminishing physical style of play. You know who they are, those are the ones ranked at the top of the 60-plus age groups, especially in doubles. If there is a top-level senior event in your area, send your students there to watch these matches. They will have an opportunity to see great examples that they can learn from and likely emulate. You may be surprised how much more they enjoy seeing their peers perform competitively.