Grand Slam The Australian Summer of Tennis 2022

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AdelaideGT

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Sep 1, 2020
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And Rafa in 2nd round

Well, the Kokk obviously won't be the favourite in that, though it could be a great match on RLA on the night of Day Three.

The likely scheduling means TK will be a bit fresher at least for this one.
 

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I don't often post here but I love my Tennis.

Those who have played Tennis competitively, or have plenty to do with Tennis are probably more qualified than a casual observer (like myself) to answer this question.

This absolutely does my head in...

Why do players often take the ball at its highest point by going for an overhead slam, with a higher degree of difficulty, rather than waiting for a skied ball to bounce, and then smashing the ball for a winner? ADM had a chance to go up two break points but he missed an overhead slam by taking the ball at its highest point. It happens time and time again.

If you let the ball bounce, not only does the overhead slam become a lot easier, and is obviously a higher percentage play, but it allows you time to have a read on your opponent's court position, and it allows you time to compose yourself.

Right?? Obviously not, because 70% of the time a player elects to take the ball at its highest point.
 
If you execute the smash properly, by hitting it at its peak it is the higher percentage play because it doesnt give your opponent time to guess where you are smashing it to so you cannot lose the point unless you stuff up.

If you let it bounce, its easier to hit but it allows the opponent to have a guess at where you are smashing it to and if they guess correctly, they can just slap it for a winner. Pros are damn fast these days, so they will definitely be able to make a play on the ball if you give them a couple extra seconds.
 

pepsi

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If you execute the smash properly, by hitting it at its peak it is the higher percentage play because it doesnt give your opponent time to guess where you are smashing it to so you cannot lose the point unless you stuff up.

If you let it bounce, its easier to hit but it allows the opponent to have a guess at where you are smashing it and if they guess correctly, they can just slap it for a winner.
Can't an opponent guess where you will smash it even if you hit it on the full? Interesting question though. Does a player hitting a smash on the full win more points than a player who let's it bounce first?
 
Can't an opponent guess where you will smash it even if you hit it on the full? Interesting question though. Does a player hitting a smash on the full win more points than a player who let's it bounce first?

They can guess but if you execute and hit it into the open court they cant get there even if they guess. Whereas if u let it bounce, they can dummy u and just guess a direction and if u pick the wrong spot, they will win the point.
 

pepsi

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They can guess but if you execute and hit it into the open court they cant get there even if they guess. Whereas if u let it bounce, they can dummy u and just guess a direction and if u pick the wrong spot, they will win the point.
I've seen plenty of points won by a player returning a smash that has been hit on the full. If a player guesses correctly, whether the person smashing let's it bounce or not, they can still win the point.

But I agree that it's more effective and has a higher chance if being a winner of hit on the full. Remember Pete Sampras dunk smashes? Used to love that shot
 
I've seen plenty of points won by a player returning a smash that has been hit on the full. If a player guesses correctly, whether the person smashing let's it bounce or not, they can still win the point.

For sure, because the pre-smashed ball can land anywhere in the court and your opponent can be anywhere on the court so there are a lot of variables that allows the opponent to still make a play even though you smash it on the full.

I think the general rule that pros use is if the ball lands near the net you can either smash or let it bounce. If its mid court, then you smash at its peak and if it lands deep, then you dont smash at all unless you are a freakishly tall player like Isner.
 

Alesana

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Can't an opponent guess where you will smash it even if you hit it on the full? Interesting question though. Does a player hitting a smash on the full win more points than a player who let's it bounce first?
Tough to even measure as they tend to let it bounce more often if it's close to the net so they're already in a better position for those ones. But I'd wager that the men take the ball at it's highest point more often than the women
 

Caesar

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Mar 3, 2005
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My coach always told me to never let the ball bounce unless it is extremely high or extremely deep

There are several advantages to hitting the ball out of the air:
  1. takes time away from your opponent
  2. gives you less time to overthink the shot
  3. usually allows you to hit the ball higher above your head, meaning you can strike it harder and with more disguise
  4. usually allows you to hit the ball closer to the net, which gives you more court geometry to work with
  5. eliminates the possibility of a bad bounce
#5 is perhaps less important on HC than grass/clay, but still a factor since the ball may have unpredictable spin on it

at the end of the day, if you have good technique it's not substantially harder to hit the ball on the drop vs on the bounce anyway
 
My coach always told me to never let the ball bounce unless it is extremely high or extremely deep

There are several advantages to hitting the ball out of the air:
  1. takes time away from your opponent
  2. gives you less time to overthink the shot
  3. usually allows you to hit the ball higher above your head, meaning you can strike it harder and with more disguise
  4. usually allows you to hit the ball closer to the net, which gives you more court geometry to work with
  5. eliminates the possibility of a bad bounce
#5 is perhaps less important on HC than grass/clay, but still a factor since the ball may have unpredictable spin on it

at the end of the day, if you have good technique it's not substantially harder to hit the ball on the drop vs on the bounce anyway
I guess the reason I posted the question is because it does my head in when players miss. It happens a lot. Paire did it twice in his match against Stefanos this afternoon. ADM did it tonight. I saw it a few times yesterday.
 

Caesar

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Mar 3, 2005
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I guess the reason I posted the question is because it does my head in when players miss. It happens a lot. Paire did it twice in his match against Stefanos this afternoon. ADM did it tonight. I saw it a few times yesterday.
More a failure of execution than strategy I’d suggest… unfortunately modern pros are pretty poor net players
 

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