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Gaining Court Sense: The Dink'em Drill

Have you ever played a match where you hit most of the penetrating shots and generally put your opponent on the defensive--and still lost? It doesn't happen often, but if it happens at all, this lesson is for you.

You lose these type of matches because you couldn't take advantage of your good shots. Why? There could be a number of reasons (like lack of confidence coming to the net) but a common reason is that you've only trained to concentrate on one thing--the ball. Therefore, you have no idea about the positioning of your opponent or the open court opportunities that are there for the taking.

Playing "dink-em" or short court (playing the four service boxes) is an excellent way to learn your opponent's positioning and to develop an overall sense of the court. To start play, just bounce and hit the ball to your opponent. You must let all your balls bounce, and you can't slam the ball to win the point. Also, you must remember you are only playing the service boxes so there is almost no back swing or follow through. Just bump the ball gently. Since you can't hit the ball hard, you will have to win the point by hitting soft angles and gentle touch shots. In the diagram left we see Player #2 playing a drop shot to draw Player #1 into the net. This opens up the court--even this tiny court--for the winner. This drill also help you develop good racquet face control. Every time someone wins a rally, he or she gets a point. The first person to reach 11 wins.

Once you're able to take in your opponent and the court while still keeping focused on the ball during the actual hit, you will make better shot selections and you'll win more points, more games, and eventually more matches. After you have played a few dink-em games, go back to playing regular tennis on the full court. Now that you've trained yourself to be more aware of your opponent's positioning and the open court, you should be quicker about taking advantage of your good shots that put your opponent on the defensive. Once you have your opponent on the ropes, move in, take that weak return in the air and volley or drive it into the open court.

We encourage you to email your comments (pro, con, appreciative, whatever) directly to the author. To send email to Monty Basnyat, click here.

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