Proper Volley Dynamics, keep it open

Some Proper Volley Dynamics, Keep it open.

The volley is pretty simple.  As I mentioned in last month’s newsletter newsletter, closing is critical.  Taking a swing is a “no-no” usually as well.  There are exceptions but I won’t go into that now. But aside from that, keeping the racquet face open as you slightly move the racquet from high to low is very important. 

Most people tend to have the racquet face closed down.  The upper edge of the racquet tends to come over the top.  This is usually because they have the wrong grip—an extreme forehand grip instead of a continental or at the most an eastern grip.  Most people fret when they have to change their grip, so I will note that even if you keep your current grip you can still work on getting and keeping the face open. 

The most important thing here is that if the face closes down you are fighting the volley.  If the ball is well above the net and you are close enough then you might be able to make it anyway and many of you do.  But that falls into the category of “despite the form” or as a friend of mine used to say “even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.”  If the ball is below the net then you have a difficult time volleying the ball which is why most people with incorrect grips let the ball bounce.  Now if you are the less fortunate, or more accurately less lucky, closing the face will usually mean two things: you will be too late with the top edge of the racquet closing down,  the ball will trampoline off the top of the face as it accelerates forward and the ball will sail long;  OR you will be too early and the top edge will be closed too much and the ball is in the net.

So how do you volley?  Keep the racquet face open (slightly) and as you move the racquet slightly downward (your entire arm moves as a unit for the most part)—no chopping!—then the open racquet face counters the usual spin and trajectory of the ball and produces back spin which keeps the ball low and hopefully deep.  That is where following through towards the target comes in.  Many try this and the ball goes up and they give in “straight away” (Australian talk in honor of the Aussie Open).  This is because they aren’t properly moving the racquet downward on the ball.  It has to be a gradual, forward high to low trajectory of the racquet. I call it point A to point B.  That is, if you could attach a string on the ball and the other end to the target you want to move the racket and your energy (footwork is huge here but another story or numerous lessons) along that string, plane or line (whatever you want to call it).  Of course your arm and the racket eventually move down (our arms do not come out of their sockets) so staying along that line is critical for “easy power.”

Give a try and please feel free to drop me a line or if you are local, let’s get on court.  I will hopefully be able to set it straight.  Just keep an open mind about keeping the racquet face open. 

Let ‘er Rip