This week I have some more tips on how to deal with those ‘sitters’, you know what I mean, those slow serves, or weak returns, your opponent hits that are just begging you to hit the cover off the ball. Truth is, those slow serves and weak returns, are not as easy as some think.
Picture this scenario: You’re playing a match against an opponent who is solid from the baseline, however, his serve is weak and slow. You’re trying to take advantage of his weakness but you’re making way too many errors on the return of serve. You may resort to ‘just get it back’ and lose your opportunities to go on the offensive. As you may know, it’s tougher to be consistent against a slow ball as compared to someone who hits hard. When you’re playing against a hard hitter you can get into a rhythm, there’s not a lot of thinking, you’re sticking the racquet out there and consistently keeping the ball in play. However, with a slow ball this is much tougher. Why? Because it takes better stroke mechanics to hit a slow ball, consistently in the court. If you improve your stroke mechanics less can go wrong.
The four tips mentioned above should only be practiced TWO POINTS at a time. I realize I gave you FOUR TIPS to consider, however, when you’re practicing never exceed TWO POINTS at a time. When we get too many points to think about, the brain gets confused and we cannot concentrate at all, and we don’t improve. So, pick TWO and work on those for awhile. Then pick another TWO and work on those. Find the TWO that work best for you. You can then use those TWO next time that slow serve sits up and you want to get offensive. Remember, this will take some concerted effort on your part to implement these tips. If you do, I guarantee, you’ll look forward to those sitters in the future.
