Before every point, the serving player has the opportunity to plan their own actions and put pressure on the returner. Choosing a type of serve should always be combined with a plan for the next shot.
The more variations a player has in a given situation, the more unpredictable they can be for any opponent. This will keep the opponent guessing and they will never feel fully comfortable or know what he can expect from the player in the next point.
Playing a serve and volley pattern is always good to have in the locker to surprise opponents and test out their movement. Serving to the backhand and following to the net will force the opponent to hit a potential riskier return and therefore leading to an error. This pattern could be a big point play to give a quick win to the server.
A tiebreak is a short sprint where every point is worth the same as a break of serve. The players who win them are rarely the ones who hit hardest. Here is how to coach the patterns, habits and scoreboard thinking that win the big points.
Most club players practise the serve on its own and then have no idea what to do with the ball that comes back. Serve plus one is the pattern that turns a good serve into a won point.
Wimbledon has just crowned another champion, and if you watched closely you saw the same thing every year: the best returners quietly won the tournament. Here is how to coach a return that pressures the server rather than just surviving it.
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