Developing Touch: Drop Shots

[stotty]

Great article as usual by Dave Hagler...plenty of food for thought as always.

I tend to put players in two categories when it comes to hitting drop shots. There is the learned, manufactured type of drop which the modern player uses and which just generates a very short ball. It's played firmly and in a similar style to a forehand volley. Players are often 'carving' the ball when they do this. What amazes me is players have learnt to this with a forehand grip and can deliver it ''last minute'', catching their opponents off guard. It's a useful tactical ploy. It breaks rhythm and draws the opponent into the forecourt, which these days, is often the last place they want to be.

The other way is the 'spin' way as Dave calls it. But there are so many nuances from here. I look for players who put 'weight' on the ball. Some players have the ability to make the ball so heavy it weighs a ton when it hits the ground...and usually veers off to one side a little. These are the beautiful drop shots and there is an innate quality to them that's much to do with the owner's level of talent and skill. Nothing is more beautiful than seeing Roger, Nastase, and especially McEnroe play exquisitely weighted drop shots. Novak and Rafa just cannot do this in the same way and no matter how hard Novak practices the shot, he will never be able to weight a ball like Roger can. It's a gift, a gift that has been heavily cultivated and practiced, but a gift nonetheless. Not everyone can do it and it cannot always be learnt.

I have never seen anyone with touch like McEnroe. He was remarkably remarkable in this regard.

[stroke]

Another thing about McEnroe, he is unreadable. Because he used the continental grip on everything, no grip changes to read at all. Even though as you say, some are able to do it with minimal grip change and a lot of disguise. Fed, with the best slice backhand out there, can knife it deep or play a great drop shot(usually to the deuce side) with the same preparation and shot execution. Tomic actually has the best forehand grip forehand drop shot I have seen. It is a truly unique shot.

[stotty]

What I don't understand is why Roger has a bye. Why isn't another lower ranked player allowed in the draw to make a 1st round opponent for Roger. We have had to wait a year for Roger's return and now we are waiting until Wednesday to get a glimpse. It's like waiting for the return of Jesus Christ.

[stroke]

https://youtu.be/Ox68399L7rE

Tomic drop shot, one of the best disguised forehand droppers I have ever seen.

[stroke]

What I don't understand is why Roger has a bye. Why isn't another lower ranked player allowed in the draw to make a 1st round opponent for Roger. We have had to wait a year for Roger's return and now we are waiting until Wednesday to get a glimpse. It's like waiting for the return of Jesus Christ.

I agree. I thought these tournaments had done away with 1st round byes but apparently not. And so true, only 32 man draw and they have byes in the draw. OH brother, and please wear a mask, I am begging you.

[stroke]

Oddsmakers have Rublev, Thiem, and Fed as equal cofavorites to win this tournament.

[don_budge]

For David Hagler:

Anticipating Roger's Thunder...then faced with a Federfore Featherer.

http://www.tennisplayer.net/bulletin...liant+disguise

What's the name of that Springsteen tune...Brilliant Disguise?

Brilliant Disguise....Bruce Springsteen

I hold you in my arms
As the band plays
What are those words whispered baby
Just as you turn away
I saw you last night
Out on the edge of town
I wanna read your mind
To know just what I've got in
This new thing I've found
So tell me what I see
When I look in your eyes
Is that you baby
Or just a brilliant disguise

Now you play the loving woman
I'll play the faithful man
But just don't look too close
Into the palm of my hand
We stood at the altar
The gypsy swore our future was right
But come the wee wee hours
Well maybe baby the gypsy lied
So when you look at me
You better look hard and look twice
Is that me baby
Or just a brilliant disguise

Tonight our bed is cold
I'm lost in the darkness of our love
God have mercy on the man
Who doubts what he's sure of

Well talk about lovely tennis shots. This little feathery is a stroke of genius and it's brilliance is in it's disguise. The initial manipulation of the racquet head with the shoulder turn allows The Swiss Maestro to perform two radically different motions, he can pound it into the corners or he can soothe it and smooth it trickling over the net...how beautiful is that? It hurts when you realize what is coming...you've been fooled!

With his racquet head in proper position...where the racquet head is higher than his hand and just as importantly the head of the racquet is just barely behind his hand so that he has maintained the subtle flex in his wrist, he is in position to make this soft caress on the ball with his strings moving subtly down and across the back of the ball. It's basically a forehand volley stroke. Notice he is not accomplishing this motion with just his hand...or just his arm...or just anything for that matter. His entire being is into this shot...every bit as much as it is behind his Federfore forehand blast or his biggest serves. The whole being of Roger Federer is into his softest shot...with just the right proportion of forward movement necessary to accomplish such a soft placement. Voila...the Federfore Featherer.

The subtle forward movement as he is making contact with the ball is the key. Many try to slide the racquet under the ball with the wrist or try to absorb the ball into the racquet with an almost backwards movement which are both very risky tries on this type of shot...in fact they don't make any sense statistically speaking. Look at his eyes and the position of his head. No head fakes. No no-lookies. The racquet head must be accelerating through the ball on contact or else you can kiss all semblance of control goodbye. Knowing Roger Federer...knowing what a control freak he is, this is going to be the last thing he is going to surrender on such a tender shot...control.

The most difficult aspect of making short putts in golf is the realization that you must accelerate the putter face through the ball. You have got to swing the putter. For you golfer/tennis players out there try visualizing swinging through to the point of the ball that is closest to the hole or rather closest to the net. Trying to push the ball into the hole or trying to wish it into the hole creates a large degree of uncertainty or doubt even on short putts or shots. That is the last thing you want to be feeling on such a delicate shot or stroke...it's the kiss of death. The same thing applies here...you have to swing the racquet. Even the shortest of shots share some of the most fundamental characteristics as the bigger shots...turn the body away from the ball and move the body through the ball. Weight forward on the front foot and accelerate the racquet head through the ball...it's virtually the same recipe for making short putts.

This tennis player is an artist and you could say that he is "poetry in motion".
Would it be possible to see this shot from the other side of his body so that we can fully appreciate the disguise of his backswing? It's one thing to hit brilliantly disguised backhand drop shots and quite another to deliver the feathery touch off the forehand side...as in the Federfore Featherer.

God have mercy on the man...who doubts what he's sure of.

[doctorhl]

Yes, DB, you are right on target about the subtle acceleration through the ball, a pre-requisite to hitting the spin or “ weighted” drop shot as Stotty so astutely refers to it. The “carved “ drop shot tends to not have any acceleration through the shot and tends to fail short of the net more than the spin dropshot. But, I have a problem accelerating through a club level speed/spin ball. Roger also seems to use a little forward body movement at times to help with acceleration of racket. McEnroe sure seemed to be able to use a little more forward body movement and less arm movement to accelerate the racket through contact on spin drop shots. He also exaggerated this move with half volley drop shots. Anyone have footage of a half volley dropshot? Usually done on grass when people used to come to the net. The shot had little spin, but allowed McEnroe to close in like hell and the opponent had to dig up the dead ball. Seems like this shot was really effective with the old, heavy Slazenger balls when the grass had moisture in it. Or, am I just dreaming this up, Stotty?

[stotty]

Yes, DB, you are right on target about the subtle acceleration through the ball, a pre-requisite to hitting the spin or “ weighted” drop shot as Stotty so astutely refers to it. The “carved “ drop shot tends to not have any acceleration through the shot and tends to fail short of the net more than the spin dropshot. But, I have a problem accelerating through a club level speed/spin ball. Roger also seems to use a little forward body movement at times to help with acceleration of racket. McEnroe sure seemed to be able to use a little more forward body movement and less arm movement to accelerate the racket through contact on spin drop shots. He also exaggerated this move with half volley drop shots. Anyone have footage of a half volley dropshot? Usually done on grass when people used to come to the net. The shot had little spin, but allowed McEnroe to close in like hell and the opponent had to dig up the dead ball. Seems like this shot was really effective with the old, heavy Slazenger balls when the grass had moisture in it. Or, am I just dreaming this up, Stotty?

I think the drop shot is very effective on grass or clay, less so on hard courts. McEnroe's drop shots were exquisite and he played them so effectively on grass. More generally he was so good at doing just enough...nudging and placing balls into spaces to win points rather than bludgeoning. I always thought he played perfect grass court tennis, and by this I mean he played the right shot off virtually every single ball. He's the most unique player, certainly in my living memory.

[doctorhl]

https://youtu.be/Ox68399L7rE

Tomic drop shot, one of the best disguised forehand droppers I have ever seen.

What the heck? Looks like he swung horizontally to his left at ball contact with an open face. Unbelievable disguise.

[don_budge]

Yes, DB, you are right on target about the subtle acceleration through the ball...

That post that I wrote about the Federer Featherer is one of my favourites of my now 6,004 posts on this website. Though my posts tend to be lengthy...I haven't wasted a single word. When I referenced the Springsteen song "Brilliant Disguise" that was also a brilliant comparison as it is the disguise of the short ball and the element of surprise and deception that makes it effective. I love that post...I have to admit. Maybe in my top ten...at least top one hundred. 6,004...each one as clever as the next. Consistency! That's the key!

Well nothing like a good old pat on the back on your birthday. Soon it will all be over. Roger Federer may have given us one last hurrah. He played a beautiful match against Daniel Evans and then sort of came out a bit flat in the next. Basilashvili. He couldn't handle the pace. A sign of maybe a couple of things...age and rust. It ends with Roger. Anyone with an ounce of discernment can see it. Most choose not to. Maybe they are just slaves...slaves to the game. Somehow addicted. To a placebo. Fake tennis. Life is fake now too. Fake life. Do as you are told. Take the jab.

Back in 1976 or 1977 I was playing number one singles for Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. I played five players that played at Wimbledon that year. Lost to all in straight sets. But I fought with all of them. I had only been playing eight years or so. Not entire years either. I quit the tennis team to play ghetto ball with black guys one year. My coach gave me a choice. Ball or tennis. I chose ball. I don't regret it either. I went where no others dared to go. One of the players that I faced at Ohio University was a guy by the name of Francisco Gonzalez. A big menacing guy at Ohio State. Handsome guy with a big moustache. I didn't give a damn...I would play anybody in their backyard. Just like ghetto ball. But this guy showed me a drop shot I had never seen before and he wanted to humiliate me every chance he could. He wanted to make me wish my Mom never had me. All is fair.

Off of his backhand he would make such a tremendous cut on the ball with a somewhat open face, he tried to bounce the ball on my side of the court and make it bounce back on the his side of the court. He was toying with me. I think that at that point in time that he had a win over Jimmy Connors. What a brute. Jack Kramer Autograph. A classic player from Latin America somewhere. So guess what? I learned that shot as well. That's how we rolled. Nobody taught me a drop shot per se. My coach taught me tactics. Bring the opponent in and then lob over his head. You tried it out in competition. You ironed out the kinks and then put it into play.

I don't recall ever being taught to drop shot. I was a great lobber. Same principle...a combination of the angle of the racquet face and trajectory of the swing. You figured it out...or you were eaten.

[don_budge]

https://youtu.be/Ox68399L7rE

Tomic drop shot, one of the best disguised forehand droppers I have ever seen.

Strange shot stroke. Not exactly what I would call a drop shot. A soft forehand...with sidespin. Plenty of disguise as well. This is almost a deceleration of the racquet head. As if he is going to take a full swing and then pulls the brakes after he has initiated the swing. The announcer mentions he has seen him blow this shot as well. In my "Federer Featherer" I mention a loss of control and diminished statistical probability of pulling off a drop shot and this is a good illustration of such a thing. Leave it to Tomic. Not the sharpest tool in the shed by any stretch of the imagination. Long on talent...short on attention span. This is a perfect example. He probably lost this match but it made him happy and satisfied to pull of such a stunt shot. He and Kyrgios...peas in a pod.

[jthb1021]

At the higher levels of tennis there has to be disguise right? Learning this shot by preparing in the continental grip stepping in and playing it a little like the shape of a “J” is great. But the masters of the forehand drop shot prepare like they’re going to hit their topspin forehand and then drop it out of that preparation. It’s actually not that difficult! What Tomic did to achieve a sort of illegitimate cousin to the drop shot is interesting but I don’t view that as one to look up to. Cool shot though!
I use a semi western forehand grip for my topspin forehand and in preparation for my forehand dropper. I may slide the grip over to a strong eastern grip to but if I do it Is barely. Holding the disguise long enough is the part that was hardest for me then the racquet face for a strong eastern or semi western grip is already open for a perfectly disguised shot. If you sell it long enough they won’t anticipate it and get a slow first step which is all you need if you execute properly.
On a low and short ball the forehand slice is a great play at the club level. Let’s chip and charge to the opponents bh is typically the choice for me, but every now and again I’ll play a classic dropper off of that with the technique shown in this presentation.
Personally, I love my backhand dropper down the line. The disguise is easy because as a one hander I love to slice. The ball naturally has a runaway spin to it where it hits the court and bites toward the alley. I use my backhand drop shot probably 4:1 over the forehand side. I think the backhand drop shot is easier to disguise for most tennis players as well. For the two handers you gotta give Novak’s backhand drop shot some love on this series as well, it’s as well disguised as any shot in our sport.
Drop shots are always a fun topic and I really like this first part of this series because this would be how you should learn the drop shot. I’m assuming the disguise is coming next month or in subsequent articles.

[stroke]

As I said earlier, Fed is the master of the slice backhand, and his dropper looks exactly the same preparation. Tomic's on the forehand is the best disguise I have ever seen. It looks exactly like his forehand drive until the last moment. He has such a short backswing anyway, and a mild semi western grip, which I don't think he changes at all for that weird(and cool looking) drop shot.

[doctorhl]

That post that I wrote about the Federer Featherer is one of my favourites of my now 6,004 posts on this website. Though my posts tend to be lengthy...I haven't wasted a single word. When I referenced the Springsteen song "Brilliant Disguise" that was also a brilliant comparison as it is the disguise of the short ball and the element of surprise and deception that makes it effective. I love that post...I have to admit. Maybe in my top ten...at least top one hundred. 6,004...each one as clever as the next. Consistency! That's the key!

Well nothing like a good old pat on the back on your birthday. Soon it will all be over. Roger Federer may have given us one last hurrah. He played a beautiful match against Daniel Evans and then sort of came out a bit flat in the next. Basilashvili. He couldn't handle the pace. A sign of maybe a couple of things...age and rust. It ends with Roger. Anyone with an ounce of discernment can see it. Most choose not to. Maybe they are just slaves...slaves to the game. Somehow addicted. To a placebo. Fake tennis. Life is fake now too. Fake life. Do as you are told. Take the jab.

Back in 1976 or 1977 I was playing number one singles for Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. I played five players that played at Wimbledon that year. Lost to all in straight sets. But I fought with all of them. I had only been playing eight years or so. Not entire years either. I quit the tennis team to play ghetto ball with black guys one year. My coach gave me a choice. Ball or tennis. I chose ball. I don't regret it either. I went where no others dared to go. One of the players that I faced at Ohio University was a guy by the name of Francisco Gonzalez. A big menacing guy at Ohio State. Handsome guy with a big moustache. I didn't give a damn...I would play anybody in their backyard. Just like ghetto ball. But this guy showed me a drop shot I had never seen before and he wanted to humiliate me every chance he could. He wanted to make me wish my Mom never had me. All is fair.

Off of his backhand he would make such a tremendous cut on the ball with a somewhat open face, he tried to bounce the ball on my side of the court and make it bounce back on the his side of the court. He was toying with me. I think that at that point in time that he had a win over Jimmy Connors. What a brute. Jack Kramer Autograph. A classic player from Latin America somewhere. So guess what? I learned that shot as well. That's how we rolled. Nobody taught me a drop shot per se. My coach taught me tactics. Bring the opponent in and then lob over his head. You tried it out in competition. You ironed out the kinks and then put it into play.

I don't recall ever being taught to drop shot. I was a great lobber. Same principle...a combination of the angle of the racquet face and trajectory of the swing. You figured it out...or you were eaten.

DB: I too got embarrassed by the swing cut drop shot in doubles. But, in this instance it was a Backhand swing cut drop VOLLEY that bounced back into the net. Since we were deep behind the baseline and on our heels on clay, he could afford to have a margin of error on height. If done on a hard court, the spin would not have grabbed the ground hard enough for a backward bounce. Plus we could have gotten off our heels on a hard court much quicker. Any body know of a link for footage of a swinging “ cut” drop volley. The swing part was short, but had acceleration through contact and was hit with a fairly open racket face made easier by a last minute shift to a forehand grip I think. I know McEnroe and Nasty developed this shot because they actually experienced singles net play on clay. Please support: Bring Back Net Play Now Political Action Group.