Power is Not Enough...
With the constant focus on 130 mph first serves and forehands blasted down the line, it begs the question of whether there is a place for touch shots in professional tennis? Surprisingly, there are actually a few players at the top of the men’s pro ranks who employ
a deft touch from time to time, but practically none on the women’s circuit these days.
Andy Murray, who first learned the game of tennis from his mother, Judy, was taught early to play from all parts of the court and hit different shots and spins. It is sort of “old-school” tennis in a way, but it remains a critical aspect of Murray’s game even as he’s beefed up his body, ground strokes and first serve. Murray is able to handle his opponents’ power and often effectively change the pace and frustrate them with sliced shots, as well as lots of drops shots, occasionally too many! Novak Djokovic is also a fan of the drop shot which he employs very strategically on his backhand side because it is hard to read from his backswing what type of backhand he will hit. At the same time, the drop shot often catches Djokovic’s opponents on their heels because the majority of the time be blasts very powerful ground strokes including his world class down the line backhand. Former Australian Open finalist, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, plays with tremendous flair and his powerful all-court game includes deft volleys and delicate touch shots. Chilean, Fernando Gonzalez, who possesses one of the hardest forehands in professional tennis often counters that shot with a relatively slow and heavily sliced backhand. The variety can he challenging for Gonzalez’s opponents. 2009 French Open Champion, Roger Federer, even dusted off his drop shot at times in Paris this year and admitted that it was a valuable shot to use, especially on clay.
On the women’s side, Australian Open and Wimbledon Champion, Amelie Mauresmo, has a lot of variety in her game including sliced backhands and deft touch shots. However, Mauresmo is the exception at the moment because the games of the top women are increasingly focused on powerful ground strokes and first serves, i.e. Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Dinara Safina, Maria Sharapova, etc. Occasionally, these women do attempt drop shots or sliced backhands, but they are not mainstays in their repertoire which is evident by how infrequently they use them and how effective they are with them. Polish player, Agnieszka Radwanska, does play a style similar to Martina Hingis by changing the pace and working the rally, but her game is not as natural and flowing as other players from the past. For example, previous generations of women including Hingis, Gabriela Sabatini, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Hana Mandlikova and Evonne Goolagong played with more variety, strategic shot placement, different spins, and the occasional drop shot rather than focusing primarily on power.
It’s a challenge to absorb the incredibly hard serves and ground strokes in today’s game and respond with touch rather than power, but it can be an effective strategy. One hopes that there will be a few more players who possess a balance of pure power and deft touch because it would produce even more compelling points and striking contrasts in matches.
Andy Murray, who first learned the game of tennis from his mother, Judy, was taught early to play from all parts of the court and hit different shots and spins. It is sort of “old-school” tennis in a way, but it remains a critical aspect of Murray’s game even as he’s beefed up his body, ground strokes and first serve. Murray is able to handle his opponents’ power and often effectively change the pace and frustrate them with sliced shots, as well as lots of drops shots, occasionally too many! Novak Djokovic is also a fan of the drop shot which he employs very strategically on his backhand side because it is hard to read from his backswing what type of backhand he will hit. At the same time, the drop shot often catches Djokovic’s opponents on their heels because the majority of the time be blasts very powerful ground strokes including his world class down the line backhand. Former Australian Open finalist, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, plays with tremendous flair and his powerful all-court game includes deft volleys and delicate touch shots. Chilean, Fernando Gonzalez, who possesses one of the hardest forehands in professional tennis often counters that shot with a relatively slow and heavily sliced backhand. The variety can he challenging for Gonzalez’s opponents. 2009 French Open Champion, Roger Federer, even dusted off his drop shot at times in Paris this year and admitted that it was a valuable shot to use, especially on clay.
On the women’s side, Australian Open and Wimbledon Champion, Amelie Mauresmo, has a lot of variety in her game including sliced backhands and deft touch shots. However, Mauresmo is the exception at the moment because the games of the top women are increasingly focused on powerful ground strokes and first serves, i.e. Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Dinara Safina, Maria Sharapova, etc. Occasionally, these women do attempt drop shots or sliced backhands, but they are not mainstays in their repertoire which is evident by how infrequently they use them and how effective they are with them. Polish player, Agnieszka Radwanska, does play a style similar to Martina Hingis by changing the pace and working the rally, but her game is not as natural and flowing as other players from the past. For example, previous generations of women including Hingis, Gabriela Sabatini, Arantxa Sanchez Vicario, Hana Mandlikova and Evonne Goolagong played with more variety, strategic shot placement, different spins, and the occasional drop shot rather than focusing primarily on power.
It’s a challenge to absorb the incredibly hard serves and ground strokes in today’s game and respond with touch rather than power, but it can be an effective strategy. One hopes that there will be a few more players who possess a balance of pure power and deft touch because it would produce even more compelling points and striking contrasts in matches.
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