TennisOne Lessons

The Drop Shot As a Weapon

Jonathan Buchman

There is a lot of talk these days about how finesse shots are gone from the game of tennis; given way to pure power. Quite frankly, groundstrokes are routinely hit at speeds that would have been unheard of even ten year ago. However, even in this nuclear powered game, there is still a place for finesse – witness the drop shot – the perfect counterbalance  to  today’s massive power game. If you watch the games of many of the  top players then you know what I am talking about. Top players have made the drop shot a weapon that they execute both technically and tactically to perfection.  And please note, mastering the technical without the tactical, is worthless. Here’s how it’s done.

Click photo: Here Serena powers a forehand. Check out her positioning at the top of the backswing. It is nearly identical to that in the video below where she hits a drop shot.

The idea here is to make the stroke mechanics on both the forehand and backhand side look the same as your regular groundstroke until the last possible moment. You need to “sell” it…without communicating the drop shot! (In other words, you have to convince your opponent that you are indeed hitting your more aggressive groundstroke.) With the drop shot, disguise is certainly one of the key elements. Convince your opponent to stay back until it’s too late. Just before the point of contact, open the racket face and soften your grip pressure. The high-to-low swing path will produce the under-spin on the ball that is part of hitting an effective drop shot. This allows the ball to die just over the net.

Some players, like Andre Agassi, used this shot almost exclusively on the backhand side, where, because of its similarity to a slice drive, offers even more disguise.

We often see the drop shot used to draw an opponent into the forecourt (a place where many big hitters are less comfortable) leaving them with few options other than to try a drop shot in return, often an ineffective—if not suicidal—response.

In today’s game the best tacticians use the drop shot unexpectedly during a power rally. Seeing an opponent well behind the baseline and playing defense, a player appears to be setting up to rip a winner, an inside-out forehand for example or a flat down the line approach shot.  Instead, they cut in a finessed drop shot, catching the opponent by surprise. The shot often results in an outright winner, or at least, a shot that leads to an easy passing shot, lob, or subsequent volley winner, depending on the quality of the drop shot.

Click photo: Notice how Serena deftly slides her grip over to a continental just before executing the forehand drop shot.

In the video, Serena Williams employs this shot to perfection. On the forehand side, opponents have to respect her powerful groundstrokes, and many set up well behind the baseline expecting another penetrating, deeply placed shot. Instead, she sets up to the ball the same way she would for her topspin forehand - her racket-work, from the start of the stroke to the top of her backswing looks much the same as her topspin forehand.

Recognizing her opponent is hanging well behind the baseline, Serena changes tactics and feathers a neatly placed drop shot just over the net. With her racket going back in a looping motion until it reaches the top of her backswing, she moves the racket head on a swing path from high to low (instead of dropping the racket head back and down which would be the swing sequence for her top-spin stroke). Her contact point is slightly above her hip, brushing under the ball with an open racket face. From there her swing path continues in a downward direction as she allows the racket head to fall below her grip, now moving across her body and finishing the motion with the butt of the racket facing up. The result is a loopy, softly hit, under-spin ball that dies on her opponent’s side of the net.

Most recreational players fear the use of the drop shot on hard courts. While the court surface does have an effect on the ball (the ball pops up a bit higher on the hard surface than it would on a softer clay court, giving an opponent more time to get to the ball), the success of the shot is really determined by three elements: (1) technique, (2) the ability to disguise the shot as just another forehand or backhand and (3) recognizing the opponent’s court positioning behind the baseline. Measuring your opponent’s speed is additionally something to be aware of, however, a well executed drop-shot will befuddle even the speediest of players.

Click photos: In the videos, Andy Murray steps into each ball in almost the same way. At the top pf the takeback, he can drive it or feather it softly over the net with backspin. Disguise is the key.

Drills

A good drill for you to develop this shot is to have someone feed you three balls: one at the baseline, a second inside the baseline and the third ball also inside the baseline. Return the first ball deep into your opponent’s court; hit the second ball aggressively and deep, and prepare for the third ball the same way you prepared for the second ball until just before impact (“sell it”) and the hit the drop shot. If the ball lands on your opponent’s side of the net and takes three bounces before it reaches the service line, consider it a success. This drill may be done from both the forehand and backhand sides and is great to reinforce the tactics of the drop shot.

A second drill I use with many of my students is to have two players, standing on opposite sides of the net, halfway between the net and the service line, hit drop shots back and forth to one another. Each player is trying to land the ball as close to the net as they can on their opponents side of the court. You should pay particular attention to the height of the ball, the amount of spin you use and the feel you sense and develop. Continue this routine with one player moving toward the backcourt, only a few steps at a time, until they are hitting effective drop shots from their own baseline. Then change roles and let the other player do the same. This drill may be done from the forehand and backhand sides and is great to reinforce the techniques of the drop shot.

Remember there are ideal heights of drop shots. Too low, the ball will bounce more forward towards your opponent. Too high, the ball will bounce higher, giving your opponent time to run it down. Through experience and practice, the optimal trajectory will become more evident.

Even in today’s powerful game, the drop shot can be used as a most effective weapon. I encourage you to practice this finesse shot and incorporate it into your game. After you have stepped into the court to nail an approach shot several times during the course of a match, change the plan and finesse the drop shot. Employ the tactic of hitting a deep ball then the drop shot. Make sure you “sell it,” however, do not overuse this pattern of play. Remember, with the drop shot, the element of surprise is critical.

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Jonathan Buchman

Jonathan Buchman is a certified tennis teaching professional by both the United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) and the Professional Tennis Registry (PTR). A member of the Prince Tennis National Team, Jonathan teaches at the Four Seasons Racquet Club in Wilton, Connecticut. He is also the Varsity Boy’s Tennis Coach for Ridgefield High School and in the summer months is Head Tennis Professional at the New England Tennis Camp.