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Edberg split very low, bent knees, almost as if he were sitting down, which allowed for faster lateral movement, and immediately lower volley positions.
Murray splits very high, often as much as 12" up, and he is very fast on the baseline.
Chang and Hewitt split very wide, which kept them lower to the ground, for quicker lateral baseline sprints.
Nadal machine guns his feet on returns, before attacking the returns with split forward, fast on his feet.
Nalbandian has a very fast split, which allows for quicker forward movement and helps his all court game.
Whether the split is used for forward, sideways, rear, diagonal retreat or advance, all pros use it on virtually every shot just before their opp. hits their shot. Male and females use it. The only time they don't, is when they have anticipated a cross court shot, or open court, or have no other option but to sprint to a given spot ahead of time. Yet, very few club players split step as the pros do! I think it's not just a question of stamina, but a question of intention and desire to move fast at all times/footwork wise...
Murray splits very high, often as much as 12" up, and he is very fast on the baseline.
Chang and Hewitt split very wide, which kept them lower to the ground, for quicker lateral baseline sprints.
Nadal machine guns his feet on returns, before attacking the returns with split forward, fast on his feet.
Nalbandian has a very fast split, which allows for quicker forward movement and helps his all court game.
Whether the split is used for forward, sideways, rear, diagonal retreat or advance, all pros use it on virtually every shot just before their opp. hits their shot. Male and females use it. The only time they don't, is when they have anticipated a cross court shot, or open court, or have no other option but to sprint to a given spot ahead of time. Yet, very few club players split step as the pros do! I think it's not just a question of stamina, but a question of intention and desire to move fast at all times/footwork wise...