Home › Puzzle › Their lob is short and low, only just above your head. What is the shot?
Their lob is short and low, only just above your head. What is the shot?
A short, low lob you can reach without retreating is a smash. Hit it down and finish.
A weak lob comes to you at the net, low and short, so you can reach it above your head without moving back. What do you play?
A short, low lob you can reach without retreating is a smash. Hit it down and finish.
Why
Not every lob is a problem. The short one: the ball that only just clears your reach, that you can meet above your head without stepping back: is the reward for good net play and the easiest attacking ball in the game. It is played as a smash or a firm high volley, hit downward toward the feet of the deeper opponent or through the middle, and it usually ends the point. The error is to treat every lob as a threat and bandeja it back; the bandeja is for lobs that would otherwise beat you, not for ones that have failed.
What this means at your level
Beginner
If you can reach the lob without going backward, hit it down as hard as you comfortably can. That is a smash.
Intermediate
Aim the short-lob smash at the feet of the opponent who is further back, or through the middle. Angles are harder and less necessary.
Advanced
A short lob is also the moment to smash for the side glass or out over the back, but only if the ball is high enough to hit down steeply. On a lower one, the feet are the target.
Common questions
A weak lob comes to you at the net, low and short, so you can reach it above your head without moving back. What do you play?
Smash it down, to the feet or through the middle. A short, low lob you can reach without retreating is a smash. Hit it down and finish. Not every lob is a problem. The short one: the ball that only just clears your reach, that you can meet above your head without stepping back: is the reward for good net play and the easiest attacking ball in the game. It is played as a smash or a firm high volley, hit downward toward the feet of the deeper opponent or through the middle, and it usually ends the point. The error is to treat every lob as a threat and bandeja it back; the bandeja is for lobs that would otherwise beat you, not for ones that have failed.
Why not a bandeja, to be safe?
The bandeja is for lobs that push you back. This one has not. Attack it.
What should a beginner do here?
If you can reach the lob without going backward, hit it down as hard as you comfortably can. That is a smash.
How does this change for an advanced player?
A short lob is also the moment to smash for the side glass or out over the back, but only if the ball is high enough to hit down steeply. On a lower one, the feet are the target.
Puzzles like this one
They lobbed you deep. Smash it or play the bandeja?
Deep ball, high hands: bandeja. The shot exists to keep you at the net, not to win the point.
beginnerThe ball is at your feet at the net. What now?
A ball below the net cannot be attacked. Block it deep and wait for one above the tape.
intermediateShort, high and yours. Bandeja or smash?
Deep ball, bandeja. Short ball with your weight going forward, smash.