Explosive Footwork Drill: Turn Defense into Offense with Short Ball Attacks

Key Points

• Purpose of the Drill:
  Designed to improve a player's ability to recover quickly and attack short balls after high-intensity lateral movement. Especially effective for players struggling to convert short balls into winners.
• Structure:
  Player starts with 6–10 left-right balls, alternating forehands and backhands.Final ball is a short ball (forehand or backhand) to simulate attacking opportunities.Can scale volume and intensity based on level (e.g. juniors = 6 balls; ITF/elite = 8–10 at higher speed).
• Coaching Focus:
  Position cones to define lateral movement targets.Emphasize quick recovery and explosive movement forward after last lateral ball.Encourage good height and depth on the finishing shot even under fatigue.Train players to make decisions on short balls, not just reach them.Repetition builds confidence attacking short balls and reduces opponent's tactical options (e.g., drop shots).
• Progression for Elite Players:
  Increase intensity by feeding faster and wider, with less recovery time.Simulate real match patterns: being dragged wide then responding to a drop shot.Builds mental and physical endurance needed for ITF-level matchplay.
• Coaching Outcome:
  
  Player becomes less vulnerable to short balls.Forces opponents to raise their drop shot quality or abandon that tactic.Improves point construction and conversion under pressure.