LAWN TENNIS

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 12 March 1927, Page 15

LAWN TENNIS

COURT CRAFT. ADVICE FROM REIVE LACOSTE, Volleying—striking the ball before it tone-lies* the- ground—increases both your chance of error, and your chance of winning points, writes Reve Lacoiste in the course of a newspaper article. Before going to the net you must be sure by the pace and placement of your preceding shot that you will not- be caught out of position. Ulien your position at the net will permit you to finish the point better than if yon were at the bac-Jc of the court. It will open greater .angles for placements, and will leave you.r opponent less time to return your shot. . The technique of volleying ns very easv. Ail volleys are .simply opposition of the racquet, which meets the hall m its flight. When the ball arrives, you bring the racquet forward, and down to - impart, 911 undercut, slice which will increase your control. The 1 wrist helps to impart this undercut. The follow through is .shortThe best grip ofr the forehand volley is the American forehand grip. The EngliWagrip is best- for the backhand volley. ' Some players use this backhand grip for the forehand, too; others •use the West American grip, in which case they strike the ball with the same side of the strings for the forehand as for the backhand. For the beginner. 1 think .it is better to use one grip for the fo.ieh.and volley, and another for the backhand volley. Do pot cut your volley too. much, 01 you will Jose .speed without increasing control. A. volley must always- be an 1 attacking shot, and never a defensive one. Never put top spin on your volleys—it will cause you to increase yom swing too much in order to strike tlie ball. Instead of .striking the ball, p’« h it.

Good footwork is necessary. Borotra’f wonderful net game .is due much more to his footwork than to his strokes. Not only is he faster than anyone else at the net, but his feet are always placed correctly when he strikes the ball. Some iplayers, like Brugnon and Mile. Lenglen, strike their volleys at the height of the shoulder, making the same swing as for a. drive. But, generally speaking it i- ; better to try a push shot like Borotra'ks with very little back swing. Half-volleys are strokes in which the ball is struck just after it leaves the ground, a.ndl is not watched alter at touches the ground. An error in timing, la.n untrue bounce, and the shot is missed. Most of the time they are played with a short swing when you are out of position, and on your way to. the net. and they are only iiseful to put the bal in play. For beginners, constant halfvolleying does not pay. The drive taken on the rise, of the ball, often wrongly called half-volleying, offers great possibilities. Cbchet, Williams, and- Richards use it with wonderful -results. Used in returning the service, this .stroke can catch the server at his feet- if lie follows his service to the net. The best way to play it is to come .as close -as possible to- the point at which the bail is falling. Strike it at the height- of the waist with a- short back swing. The chop shot is a very- useful stroke, but it often prevents -beginners from driving correctly if they begin to learn it too early. The chop is quite distinct from the forehand drive. It is played only with the wrist -and the larm, and is really a service slice produced at various heights. It is useful as a variation for a. player who mixes it with a plain top-spin drive, and is better .as a defensive shot than as ail attacking one. When your opponent i-s tat the net-, never play a chop; it is too .slow a stroke. On a wet court it is very useful, as it -does not bounce much.

As soon as you know how to play your strokes, you must learn how to use them to the best advantage. Everybody who plays tennis soon understands that he must return to the middle line of the court as soon as possible between strokes. If you remain an one corner you will probably see the ball .return to the other comer out of your reach. This is easy to understand, and only inexcusable laziness causes a player to remain on one side of the court after playing his, shot. How should you .get back to position ? Should you proceed along the centre line, near the net or near the .base-line ? You can choose between two positions —two or three feet behind the baseline. or as near as possible to the-net. The ‘best position for most players is five or six feet from the net. \

At the back of the court, if you are more than two or three feet from the base-line, you will be caught by drop shots or cross-court shots. It is the net ability of some players that induces champions like Cbchet and Williams to play their ground strokes from two or three feet inside the base-line, using the stroke we called lai drive on a rising ball. If. on the other hand, you are too. close to the net, you will be lobbed ; if too far off you will be obliged to play a defensive volley, if not a half-volley In doubles, the irules of court position are even more .severe than in singles. Net position is always preferable to the base-line position. When your partner serves you must be close to the net, and on his. return of service you must be ready to jump to the net if his return is good. On your .service, or on vour return, you must go to the net. Naturally, the lob becomes more useful in doubles, for two men at the net cover the court much better than one man at the net in singles. The lob is the only way two men at the back of the court can dislodge their opponents ■at the net from their better position. In mixed doubles, court position depends upon the manner in which the woman volleys. If she does not volley at all, sihe remains at the back of the court, land the man close to the net tries* to anticipate and kill all the shots, he nan. Tf your partner can vollev. .mixed doubles become more or less like men’s doubles. Generally, the woman is closer to the net, than her partner. who must return the greater part of the lobs.

THE PROFESSIONAL WAVE. While as Australians we may regret that we are not going to see Mile. Lenglen here for some time, and perhaps never, we can, as sportsmen, who want to see the game Heed from the dangers of professionalism, rejoice (writes ‘ Austral” in “The Referee,” Sydney). This does not mean that- I have any objection to professionalism : but one realises that many games have been killed by it. Cricket has survived it, so has golf, and tennis may; but the danger is still there, and tennis has gone so far, and has done so well in the short 50 years of its life, that we do not want it to l>e. subjected to shiv risks

Those, therefore, who were waiting to see what happened, will now hesitate before they turn professional. At least, they must wait to see what happens this year to those who have gone over. Many of the leading players of Australia have, while still retaining

their amateur status, done very well from their tennis fame. Only one or two deny this; but the agencies and positions they have attained have lifted them financially, and one is glad for their sakes that it has been so. They will hesitate before they follow the suit of Mile. Lenglen and others. At the same time, the danger that has been made apparent of the leading players turning professional should induce those who control the rules of tennis as to amateurism to ride with a looser curb. Mlie. Lenglen has herself complained of the profit made from her appearances by amateur bodies, and she has hinted that it was largely this that made her turn professional. Frankly, I do not accept this suggestion. What turned her was simply the large amount offered to her Who, situated as she was, would not accept such an offer. She would have been foolish to refuse. Still, there is not the slightest reason in the world why such players as Tilden, Richards, and others should not be allowed to receive some of the money that their piny brings in, and which would recoup them for the loss of time involved. America has sent Tilden to Europe several times, and this must have greatly interfered with his career in life. One remembers what a fuss there was over hi.s writing on tennis, and how the American authorities wished to restrain him, and had finally to make a compromise. Of course there is a happy medium, as in all things; but the past year’s events should teach the tennis authorities all over the world that they must not altogether muzzle the ox that treads the corn.

The London Daily Express states that Suzanne Lenglen is expected shortly in England to discuss a scheme for her to play exhibition matches in London. It is proposed that she should play twice daily at the Albert Hall, and afterwards in a series of games all over England. One does not see that a suitable opponent can be got to make su.h matches interesting. Mrs. Godfree is suggested, but she has never yet taken a set from Suzenne, and is never likely to Suzenne has stated that she is very keen on coming to Australia ; but she will need to be paid, and it is a big expense, and the same difficulty, but even more so, of opponents arises.