Return of Serve Strategy

Key Points

• Small step forward, little spilt step and step at an angle with your right foot, aiming the return inside-out
• Hitting the return inside-out can open up the court and catch your opponent off balance
• Catching this return a little late can still cause you to hit a winner
• When the serve moves in the direction of your body, try to move around and hit a forehand
• Step around the second serve return and hit a forehand to put pressure on your opponent
• The run around forehand on the deuce side perfectly positions you in the center of the court after the shot
• Running around the forehand on the ad side will leave your court open
• If the second serve lands in the middle of the box, you can run around that and hit a forehand
• Step at angles when returning, as opposed to stepping across
• Return position should be relaxed with a slight bend of the knees
• Watch the toss and where the strings are hitting the ball
• Watch the angle of the wrist and arm to try and pick which type of serve your opponent will hit
• Learn to read your opponents patterns and where they like to serve on big points
• If your opponent doesn’t have a great wide serve on the deuce side and isn’t serve and volleying, you can move back and give yourself more time; if he does have an effective wide serve, stand further in and cut it off
• Step in and take the kick serve early before it jumps up too high
• Change your position on the return of serve by standing further back to give your opponent a different look and mess with their depth perception