Racquetball is a game that requires quickness, hand-eye coordination and endurance. In order to be successful, you also have to employ strategy that will give you the opportunity to take advantage of your strengths and put your opponent on his heels. You should be thinking two or three shots ahead in order to gain the position to hit winners.
Serve
The serve starts every point in racquetball and strategy must be employed to keep your opponent off balance. In most cases, competitive racquetball players use their drive serve the way baseball pitchers depend on their fastball. However, you cannot use your drive serve on every point. Mix things up with the backhand serve, lob serve and Z-serve. This will not only give you a chance to catch your opponent flat-footed, it will make your drive serve look faster the next time you use it.
Middle of the Court
As a point progresses, you want to control the game from the center of the court. This is the position to be in if you want to have a chance to get to any shot on the court. When you are in the middle, you can move to either side wall with two steps. You can move toward the front wall for a put away shot within two or three steps. You should also have the opportunity to get to the back wall after your opponent hits a lob or ceiling shot. If you are not in the center of the court, you give your opponent the opportunity to hit the ball to the opposite side of the court for a clear winner.
Ceiling Shot
If you find yourself on the run in a particular point and your opponent is dictating the pace, you will need to turn things in your favor by hitting ceiling shots. When you drive the ball at the ceiling and can also get it as close to the front wall as possible, your opponent will have to retreat to the rear of the court in order to hit his next shot. This will often minimize his advantage during the rally.
Backhand Shot
Many players are hesitant to use their backhand because they lack confidence with the shot. Instead of flicking their wrist and sending a quick backhand toward the front wall, they attempt to run around the shot and hit a forehand. This not only takes time but it will most likely leave you out of position to hit your next shot. When you can execute a backhand shot, you can usually do it from the center of the court. Many players equate a backhand shot in racquetball with a backhand in tennis. The two are not comparable because the backhand in tennis is far more complicated while the backhand in racquetball can be executed with a wrist snap and a weight shift.
