LAWN TENNIS: HOW TO PLAY IT.

Otago Witness, Issue 3853, 17 January 1928, Page 9

LAWN TENNIS: HOW TO PLAY IT.

VOLLEYING.

HINTS FROM A CHAMPION.

BY

RENE LACOSTE.

(Special for the Otago Witness.)

XIV. To-day, just as in the past, there are champions who are hardly able to volley, and undoubtedly it is possible to win a match from the base-line.

Nevertheless, for the truly great player of to-day, and especially for the champion of to-morrow, volleying is essential. It is true that Tilden often plays whole matches from the base-line; but he would not be invincible there if he was not able to volley when the necessity arose. Good ground strokes are necessary, and so are good volleys. Neither must be neglected for .the other.

Y<W would not get a chance of a good volley, if you could not play a good drive, for a volley always follows good preparation. For every service game Borotra will follow his delivery to the net; but for the alternate games he cannot reach the net until he has returned his opponent’s service from the base-line.

A drive can be either offensive or defensive, but a volley is always offensive, for if it is played defensively it only gives the opponent an opening for a decisive passing shot. Naturally a ball hit before its bounce will give less time for preparation and timing; it must be played with a shorter swing and with reliance rather on the reaction of the strings and on the action of the wrist than on momentum and follow-through. Here the ball is rather pushed than struck. See the absence of backswing, to all intents, and purposes, in the sliced volleys of Borotra and Johnston. The racket is merely brought slightly to the back of the body line, and a little upward; then it is immediately carried forward and doyvnward with a pronounced wrist motion to meet the ball. There is no follow-through, but a downward motion of the wrist, after the impact, imparts a slight undercut to the ball.

In hard volleying you must rely on the shifting of your body weight and not on bodj' rotation. The speed of Borotra’s volleys and of Johnston’s comes partly from their strong wrists and partly from the way in which they throw forward their weight as the result of perfect footwork. Similarly, the lack of pace in Tilden’s volley comes from his bad finish to the stroke with the weight of the body still on the back foot. Footwork and Grip.—Footwork is just as important at the net as in the back of the court; you must place your feet just as carefully whether you are playing a forehand volley or a backhand volley. While it is true that it is possible to produce a good volley facing the net, you will never- become a great volleyer unless you learn to avoid facing it. Never widen your stance when striking a volley.. In the back of the court a wider stance can help your follow-through, but at the net it will only make you slower of foot. Generally speaking, ground-stroke grips can also be successfully used at the net. Practically all the great players' play backhand volleys with the same grip as backhand drives; and most of them play forehand volleys with the grip of the

forehand drive. But the Californian drive grip is weak for low volleying, and sorne players use the English backhand grip for forehand volleys. The best grip of all for the forehand volley, however, is the Eastern American forehand grip’ which is thus used by Borotra, Johnston, Tilden, Richards, and many others. You cannot volley accurately, even on low balls, without strong wrist action, keeping the racket at right angles to the forearm. Most of the experts also use wrist action in the short follow-through to undercut the ball, so as to get better control 'and reduce the bounce.

Because a volley must always be aggressive, it has to rely primarily on speed and accuracy, and therefore spin must never be accentuated. You must never impart top spin to a volley, nor must you undercut it so heavily that your opponent will have time to reach it.

Suzanne Lenglen and" Brugnon and some others strike the ball as they would at the back of the court, instead of pushibg it as is usual at the net. Judging from my own experience in playing these shots, I must say that they seldom pav, except for killing high and slow returns. How to Volley.-—Technically speaking, vollying is easy. But at the net the stroke is nothing, *and position—-where it is played from and where it is sent—everything. You must always volley long. You must always volley from as close a position to the net as possible; for if you are too far away you will be obliged to play low defensive shots in the returns from which you will be easily passed. Most, of the great volleyers, Borotra, Cochet, Richards, are wonderfully quick on their feet, and you must acquire this celerity, to enable you to come close to the net without loss of time.

A volley will be more decisive if it is played high, and in order to get a high ball to play you must prepare your openings with care. Never go to the net except for a strong attack. Try to plav a hard shot placed so well that your opponent’s return will be indefinite. Your opponent’s weakness will probably be in his backhand, and when he shows it, punch hard and follow up. Do not rely too much on the centre theory. ■ It is true that a long low chop to the centre is used by Borotra because it makes him very difficult to pass. But most players will answer your centre play with lobs, and these are so easy to play from the centre that I recommend vou to put your trust rather in strong attack. Beginners usually play their vollevs diagonally across the court, often short and low, with more or less undercut. This is a mistake. Unless a volley, short or across the court, wins the point outright, it gives an opening for a kill. Incidentally the short volley is always more difficult to play than a straight and long volley into an opening. Borotra hardly ever shortens a volley or plays across the court, except to kill a high return. Do not run unnecessary risks. Instead, attack simply, straight into .openings.

(Next Week : “ The Smash and the Lob.”)