Point of Contact

Dennis Ralston

For every shot in the game, the point of contact is the most important point, but very few players have a clear understanding of where the contact is, or the feeling for how to achieve it, especially when they are on the move.

In this article, I want to outline a simple strategy for overcoming this universal problem and creating good contact. This is to imagine yourself catching the ball and executing a perfect drop and hit.

Having watched and studied all levels of players, even at the top, I've noticed that most errors come because players hit the ball too soon. A good way to tell if this is happening is to see if you hit the ball at the top of the strings.

When a player hits the ball at the top of the frame and you hear that horrible sound, that's a telltale sign that he is hitting the ball too soon. It's amazing how many people shank the ball or pull the ball crosscourt because of this. My solution comes from watching thousands of players struggle with this common problem of hitting too early.

Late?

When I ask club players why they missed a certain ball, one of the standard answers is "I was late." My observation is that they may have been late preparing, but the real problem was that they were too fast at the hit.

When you prepare late, the brain realizes that you aren't ready and then overreacts. The result is the forward swing happens too fast. It's a kind of panic reaction. It looks awkward, it feels terrible, and the results are terrible. Even when players are moving forward, up into the court to the ball, they tend to swing too soon.

The root of the problem is that these players don't have a true feeling for where their contact point should be, and are therefore unable to find it consistently in match play.

As players we always say we want to hit the ball in front. But can you say exactly where? What I am talking about is refining the concept of contact to a more precise area.

Do you know your own contact point? Here is a simple test: can you execute a perfect drop and hit? It's amazing how many players can't. If you can't hit the ball well by dropping and hitting it, you are going to have real trouble when the ball is coming at you. And it will be worse when you are on the move or on the run.

So the first step is just to create the right contact point in the drop and hit. When you drop and hit correctly you tend to make good contact because the ball isn't coming toward you. It's moving straight up and down.

You drop it in the correct spot, you're on balance, you're comfortable, you make the shot, and you're ready for the next ball. To practice this I encourage players to start every rally with a perfect drop and hit.

Now think about applying this in actual play. Imagine if you were always in position to drop and hit. Your timing would be excellent. If you could catch the ball then place it on the bounce exactly where you wanted to hit it, you wouldn't miss too many shots.

This is the image you need to use. Wherever you are on the court imagine yourself getting into position to catch the ball, and then executing a perfect drop and hit.

If you take the concept seriously and really work to incorporate it, I assure you it will work miracles in your timing. Why? Because it forces you to develop a strong feeling for proper positioning and contact in real time, hitting a real live ball. The more difficult the ball, the greater the payoff.

Volleys

On the volleys the same principle holds as well. Just as on the groundstrokes, players have the tendency to play the ball too far out in front when they are at the net.

Again you have to know your contact point. But once you have the feel for the right contact, the image of the catch and hit will work the same way.

And the same point applies. If you could catch the ball, then drop it and hit out of the air you wouldn't miss many volleys. The idea is to give yourself an image and a feeling of great contact. When you are moving to the net, this is the image you want to visualize.

So my advice is to do this basic work even if you are an advanced player and you think maybe it sounds too basic. It's not. Develop your feeling for the catch, drop and hit. Now picture the image when you are playing, wherever you are on the court. You are going to find out how well it works and see the timing on all your shots become consistent, ball after ball.