Volley to victory

The definition of a volley is playing a ball before it lands on the ground. Volleys in tennis can be fun to play particularly when you know the right techniques behind them. The volley can also become a critical tool in your play if you want to get a quick winner in a match. One additional advantage of the volley is that, it reduces the recovery time of your opponent and gives you the upper hand if you want to move in and finish them. The volley is also used in cases where the feels they may choke on a ball if they try to do the complete forehand swing or backhand swing. At such occasions, volleying a ball may save you from losing a point in a game. For these reasons, we’re going to treat the basic techniques behind hitting both the forehand and backhand volleys. Get yourself ready.
Key Principles
If you are now conversant with the right technique of the forehand, it will be much easier moving on to the forehand volley. Just as in the forehand, the forehand volley involves 3 principal points. They are;
Preparation for the ball
Getting your footwork right
Keeping your eye on the ball

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga playing a jump-forehand-volley at Wimbledon 2011

Forehand volley
First of, to volley the ball using the forehand, hold the racket using the “crab” hold. Learn more on the crab hold by checking out The Art of the Forehand . The footwork for the volley is slightly different from that of the forehand. In the case of the volley, you stand facing the net with your right foot moving in across the left. This way, your upper body weight rests completely on your right leg with your knee slightly bent. Your racket at this point is already released from the crab hold and is held with the face pointing to the side of the court you want the ball to go. Try to keep your elbow at an angle a little greater than 90 degrees. Your ability to keep your wrist and grip firm on the racket will play an important role in whether or not the ball will get to the angle you are sending it.

If you can keep playing tennis when somebody is shooting a gun down the street, that's concentration. I didn't grow up playing at the country club.
Serena Williams
Quoted in The Sunday Times, June 2002.

Backhand volley
In playing the backhand volley, a left-handed player will move their left foot forward thereby transferring their weight unto their left leg. The player stretches out his arm such that it is almost straight as compared to the forehand volley where the arm is slightly bent. All this while, the racket is held in such a way that the face is pointing toward the position the ball is being directed. Caution must however be taken in this because, choosing a wrong angle can lead to having your balls being played off court or the balls failing  to leave your side of the court. Try playing several volleys and through that, select the right angle for yourself. Also keep in mind that each volley is different from the other so you have to learn to be flexible in your approach for each one.




The video embedded above shows you how to play the volley. Make sure you watch how exactly this is done. Go out and practice with your coach after this. It should be fun!