The Hunter and the Helper

The Hunter is closer to the net and hits "close to close."

The System starts with the definitions of the two roles on a doubles team, the role of the Hunter and role of the Helper.

The Hunter is the player closer to the ball. He is always closer to the net. The key to the Hunter's shot selection is that he hits "close to close" on high volleys and overheads. This means hitting in the direction of the opponent closest to the net.

The position of the Hunter is determined by the position of the baseline opponent. The closer the opponent to the baseline, the closer the Hunter is to the net.

The Hunter is always somewhat turned or partially sideways at the net with his toes pointing to the ball. From this position, the Hunter moves forward diagonally toward the ball rather than laterally.

The Hunter has an area of responsibility and must be in the center of all possible shots in that area. The Hunter cannot just "cover their alley." He must cover his part of the middle of the court as well.

The Hunter looks to pick off volleys at the net when their partner sets them up. The Hunter must also cover certain overheads. But only overheads he can hit aggressively. If he can hit it aggressively, the Hunter can go back 2-4 steps for an overhead. For a lower level player that might be only two steps and no further back than the service line.

The second player is called the Helper. The Helper is the player diagonally across from the ball. The Helper plays further back than the Hunter, from the area around the service line.

The Helper is further back, diagonally across from the ball.

The distance the Helper gets from the net is determined by the distance from the baseline of the opposite side opponent. The closer the opponent gets, the closer the Helper gets but he is always in proximity to the service line.

He does not close in unless drawn in by a short ball. This eliminates or severely minimizes the effectiveness of the crosscourt lob.

The Helper points his toes toward the ball and stands in the center of all possible returns to his side. To do this he always keeps the net strap directly between himself and the crosscourt ball. This eliminates vulnerability to sharp angles.

The Helper hits crosscourt, Deep to Deep. The goal is to keep the ball in front of his Hunter partner.

On volleys the Helper hits "wide to wide" and "middle to middle on volleys." That means an angled ball goes back with angle and a middle ball goes back to the middle. This will put you in perfect position for the return and also preempts the opponent from picking off your shot.

Notice the position of the Helper and Hunter relative to the net.

The only time the Helper closes in is on a short ball that pulls him toward the net. If the ball is a high floater, the roles reverse. The Helper now becomes the Hunter and hits directly down the line. His partner now drops back to the service line and becomes the Helper.

But if the Helper is pulled toward the net by a low ball, he hits a short angle volley crosscourt in front of his partner. The roles do not reverse in this case and the Hunter stands his ground. The Helper then simply readjusts his position to keep the net strap in front of the ball.

Rather blasting deep topspin groundstrokes, the best shot to set up your team in our system is short, angled, and low.

Here's why. Regardless of whether your opponent is staying back or coming in, this type of ball forces them to move laterally and hit up. Since the player is halfway to the net, lobbing is more difficult and much riskier.

Now both the Hunter and Helper can move closer to the net than if the ball was hit deep. The opponent will likely hit the ball more slowly because it will reach them with much less pace and height.

Hitting short, angled, and low gives the Hunter balls to pick off.

This will create a huge gap between the partners. The result is the Hunter has a better chance of having time to read and pick off the oncoming shot.

Once you have established the short angled ball, your other shots will become more effective, especially the down the line lob because it has to be covered by the same player.

If the opponent starts to cheat in, the lob or a deep hard drive will keep them off balance and create errors. You will be hitting a lot of balls that are difficult for the opposing net player to get. You are isolating one partner.

A return of serve that lands near the service line and singles sideline will severely limit your opponents options while giving both of your players a great chance of getting a ball that can be attacked. But don't be afraid to hit a hard return at the net man to keep them honest. Just make sure you do it when you're winning or even.

Here is how to play against different formations.

Against one up one back, there is a gaping whole between the opponents.

When the opponents play one up and one back, The Hunter is midway inside service line and the Helper is right around the service line when opponent is at baseline.

The Helper keeps ball in front of Hunter. Hunter hits short to short on all attacking volleys and overheads. There is a gaping hole between the partners for the Hunter to hit through.

When the opposing server (or receiver) comes in to the net to join their partner, the key is to keep the ball low so that the opponents are always hitting up.

Keep your principles of putting the ball in front of the Hunter. The Hunter still volleys short to short. The Helper volleys wide to wide and middle to middle.

Most teams play a very similar style where the net player guards the alley, the server (or receiver) comes to the net and comes towards the middle and both players wind up the same distance from the net. You can't lose to teams who play this way if you play smart and follow these principles.

If both players are equidistant from the net, here are your shot choices.

When the opponents both are at the net, make them hit up on low balls.

If they're close to the net (inside the service line), lob. When you are in use the offensive, chip lob over the net players head. The preferred lob is crosscourt because the partner will have no chance to run the ball down and hit any kind of effective shot.

If they're at or behind the service line, the best shot is down the middle because it will create confusion and not give them any angle to put the ball away.

The other shot you can hit if they're both at the service line is the sharp angle crosscourt (dipper). Just make sure to keep the ball low and anticipate an angle coming back.

You can also drive your return crosscourt at their feet. The key is to keep the ball down! If you hit it high to the incoming server they can hit an aggressive volley at your partner.

If you hit a hard driving return forcing them to hit low, midcourt volley, they will have a lot of forward momentum and will be more vulnerable to a lob on the next shot. If your return is chipped low, your partner will have more time to read the situation, get into position and take the next ball.

When both players are back look to hit drop volleys at the first opportunity.

When both players are back, maintain your basic principles of positioning. But now you are looking to hit short angles or drop volleys at the first possible opportunity. Patience is key as this may take some time.

The mistake many teams make when both players on the other team play back is that they play too close to the net and hit all their shots deep. This sets the opponents up to lob over their heads. Make sure to practice angled overheads, down the middle overheads as well as angle and drop volleys in your practice sessions as these shots will also be invaluable in this situation.

And what if the two back team are the dreaded lobbers? Stay tuned for an upcoming article devoted directly to that issue!

The Hunter and the Helper

Bill Previdi