If you're making contact below the net on these approach shots, forget power and topspin. Typically, you either want the ball to be low and deep (but on the same side of the court as you are), or you want it to be very shallow (which usually also means you need to send it wide to the opposite side and immediately move over to cover) to force your opponent to run and hit the ball up while on the run. You need to hit just hard enough to keep the ball low and put it where you want it, and you probably need to aim for bigger targets. With approach shots, most players miss them by hitting too hard especially if they have to hit below the net. You're at the level where players are often able to handle pure pace. And having a player up at the net is uncomfortable.

Similarly, having to hit high backhands is uncomfortable.

You need more placement.įor a lot of players (pushers and otherwise), having to hit low balls on the move, especially while moving forward, is uncomfortable. I think what you need here is to use your strength (sending the ball where you want to put it on the court) to force your opponent into an uncomfortable shot. I don't think more power is what you need here. This is true for almost any player with an uncommon or unconventional style (a serve and volleyer, or someone who exclusively slices, etc.). The hard thing about pushers is that they're better at playing players like you than you are playing players like them. Pushing is a more extreme version of this, where they just absorb the pace and send the ball back with good placement, then make you generate pace from scratch all over again. What you're describing is 'counter-punching' - taking the opponent's pace and reflecting it back but with better placement.

How to play power 10s scratch off