Inside the Baseline
Inside the Baseline
Most serious tennis players start their practice session with a few minutes of mini-tennis, i.e., hitting the ball softly within the service area. This gets you used to controlling the ball. I like to supplement this with what I call aggressive mini-tennis: hitting the ball as fast as you can within the service area but with enough spin to keep it in. The essence of this is that you are going to feel stupid if you hit hard and miss, so you have to adjust speed with spin to keep the ball down; most amateur players find it extremely difficult to do. It is a very demanding routine. I also like to do this by stepping back a few feet and doing the same thing at three-quarters court. Yesterday I was doing this with my tennis friends Robert and Jose. The next stage is to go back to just inside the baseline and hit with maximum depth and power—but without backing up, ever. This means you are hitting the ball at half-volley quite often, indeed quarter-volley; it even means you sometimes have to hit a full volley from just inside the baseline—not easy. Just for the hell of it I decided to hit with my partners this way the whole time, but they could step back as much as they liked. I was playing two guys simultaneously from inside the baseline. I noticed a few things. It is really nice to be that close in because you get better angles and have less distance to run forward (the drop shot is far less effective). You feel you have the edge. It isn’t all that difficult to do, just a matter of a couple of feet from normal positioning. Second, it is good practice for when you do step back. Third, it is possible to volley from that far back, which takes time away from the opponent. I wonder why players never adopt this strategy: they have gotten used to hugging the baseline and reaping the benefits, so why not go a step further? I plan to try it out more systematically. It is certainly intimidating to the opponent. No more backing up! Sure, you’re going to miss some, but it forces the opponent to go for deep shots, which results in long balls, and it also puts you automatically in charge of the rally. Everybody knows the advantages of rushing to the net for a volley; this is the same principle but practiced from the baseline. Is it just tennis convention that has held people back, literally? Since I now play with two hands, I will be doing this from inside the court—unorthodox.
I’d love to hear your results with this new positioning. Technically, you are in “no man’s land”, though the closer you are to the baseline, the less risky your position is. I don’t think it is just convention why people go behind the baseline. While standing just inside the baseline might be OK for dealing with balls that come to the centre of court (or, in any case, near where you are), it will be very difficult to deal with deep balls that land farther away than you can reach with a volley. In other words, you are creating more angle for your opponent. So, if I were playing you, I would aim deep (but not necessarily next to the baseline, to minimise risks) but with enough angle so that the ball lands away from you. But, as I said, I’d like to hear how it goes.
That’s a good point, but it applies also to hugging the baseline, which is why people have to back up from that sometimes. It is the same with my method: you might have to back up a bit with a strong player but your standing position could be inside the baseline. The idea is to put so much pressure on the opponent that he never or rarely gets a good cut on the ball. The difference is merely quantitative; the line itself means nothing (except to scoring).
Btw, out of curiosity, what did you mean when you said that you now play with both hands: that both your backhand and forehand are double-handed? I have played a guy who plays like that, and I understand there is/was a (low-ranked) pro who plays like that, but I cannot imagine what the rationale for that could be (other than some physical impediment for playing at least one type of shot single-handedly).
I actually play double-handed both sides and single-handed both sides. I do so because of damage to my right arm a few years ago. I had to teach myself to use my left hand. The rationale for the double-handed forehand is the same as for the double-handed backhand. It is also good for players without a lot of power in their right arm. I wonder why more people don’t learn both single and double, since both have their uses.