A Bit More on Targets

 Let me pass on some thoughts about returning the ball.  This is an extension of the Third Shot Target Post, posted recently.

I was thinking that before you know whether the ball is coming to you or not, should we be thinking of where we'd like to hit it?

Some things to consider.  

• Where will the opponents be?  Up, back, or split.
• Where is your partner?
• Where are you?
• Will this be a poach, volley, ground stroke?

But there is some validity that there are good places to hit the ball regardless of where the opponents are.  

Examples of this: down the middle, cross court if you have a wide angle, at the nearest person, or at anyone's feet.

The thought here is that if you know where you want to hit the ball a priori, then there is much less to do if the ball comes your way.  That can't hurt your reaction time.

I'm not wedded to this thought line.  But I'm going to throw it out there for those thoughtful players who might find interest in it.