Simplified Strategy and Some Notes about Kitchen Line Position

Simplified Strategy...

In the normal point, we all crawl to the net.  From there it is usually a small test of patience, with a speed up, or lob, or net ball, or pop up to end it all.

Let's think about this net play shot selection.  It's too easy to try to win the point.  You see/know the hero shot and try to make it and it rarely works as a single shot winner.  The speed of the ball and width of the kitchen makes it difficult to pass someone.  So the hero shot frequently comes back.  And if you didn't make a great hero shot, you may have traded a small advantage for a large disadvantage.

What should our aim be?  Jordan Briones, in one of his YouTube videos simplifies it as "try to make your opponent hit a low shot."  I agree with this for a couple of reasons.  You should not trying to win the point immediately, but are setting your side up for a popup.  If the ball has to be hit from a low position, the opponents have to return it higher to get it over the net.  Unless they do a great job with that shot, your side should have a ball that is quite easy to attack.

Note that the attacking shot need not be hard or fast, it just needs to awkwardly placed near the opponents' feet.  And the resultant attacking shot need not be hit hard, just placed well and the point is probably over.

Shot Velocities...

When are hitting any shot to the opponents, the better shot is low.  The speed of the shot is less important.  A soft shot is rarely hit out.  You can curve a soft shot more easily.  

But wait, there is more... A shot that is a change of pace, be it faster or slower is quite effective.  Think of it as an unexpected shot.  We are all familiar with the dink when both opponents are at the baseline.  It works, might be a bit unsporting (like a lob), but one cannot claim that it won't work.  If we wander down this shady path, this trip towards the dark side, let's consider the shot that is just slower than the preceding shots in the point.  Suddenly the ball is half the speed of the last shot.  It's difficult to change pace if you are trying to return this ball.  It's hard to create the soft shot too, but it's worth the effort to learn it.  

Paddles are interesting things and holding them loosely or not hitting the ball very hard will change the shot's velocity a lot/a bunch/mucho.  The very pace of any point makes a soft shot difficult, and that is another reason that the soft shot is effective.    The next time you are at the kitchen and the opponents are back and they are doing a good job returning your deep shots, try hitting a soft shot for a change and see how that works.

Kitchen Play...

A kind reader asked about some information about venturing into the kitchen.  There is not a lot nuance here.  You can stand anywhere you want.  It doesn't have to be in or out of the kitchen or on the court.  However if you volley a ball before establishing both feet out of the kitchen, you lose the point.  

For that reason it's usually a good idea to maintain your position outside of the kitchen as the need to volley can arrive quickly.  

There are a couple of cases where you want to boldly move into the kitchen in preparation to hit a shot.  (Obviously you are expecting the ball you return to be bouncing.)  One such scenario is you've hit a ball that caught the net cord, and the ball drops down very close the net.  If your opponent gets to it, their best response is to hit a ball very close to your net -- basically mimicking the net cord hit.  You need to be in the kitchen a step or so to reach this ball.  You will hit and then move back out of the kitchen.  If you do not, the mean old opponent may try to hit you.

Another shot to be careful about is the one that looks like it will not clear the net.  There are three cases here, the best one is that the ball doesn't clear the net.  In that case it doesn't matter what you do.  Case two: the ball hits the net cord and drops very short.  If you are expecting this, you can get into the kitchen, drop your paddle, and do something smart with it.  Case three: the ball hits the net and bounces up.  Suddenly you want your paddle up.  Cases two and three require different actions.  Note that case three is more time critical than the ball that drops short.  So I would recommend that your best paddle position would be higher for shots that look like net balls.  Sadly you still need to expect either a shot ball or a jumper - so stay in a good position to move forward.

The next shot that you want to setup for in the kitchen is a mishit by opponents that is very lob like and will bounce near or in the kitchen.  You want to get very close to this ball as a lot of them will have a metric ton of spin on them and they can bounce at some strange angles.  So get close and be ready for that.  Extra points if you look for the spin on the ball as it comes down.  Give it a modest whack and then get out of the kitchen.

One last comment on this, don't be afraid to get into the kitchen in a dink rally.  You should be moving for every shot and short dinks need to be fielded from the kitchen.  There is a lot of in and out at play here.  Note that you would prefer to volley the dinks coming your way, but if one is short you must be ready to move in to get it.  And to be complete, if a dink is too long to be easily volleyed, you want to move back, let it bounce, return it and then get back to the line (don't stay back and admire your shot).

That's all I have to say about this.  More stuff to try and to look out for as you play.  Now if only the rain would stop, the courts would dry, and the sun would warm my old bones.