Many recreational tennis players incorrectly believe the key to hitting a tennis ball deep is to hit it with power. To generate more power, they grip the racket tightly and use a swing path similar to a roundhouse punch that actually decreases depth, or hit volleys and serves down into the net. To hit deeper tennis balls, focus on changing a few techniques rather than hitting harder.
Step 1
Warm up up with a partner or against a ball machine, using your regular strokes, volleys and serves to hit the ball deep into the court, aiming for the middle and both sides of the court.
Step 2
Place a ball between your elbow and your body and hit groundstrokes from the baseline, trying to keep the ball against your body until just before you hit the ball. If the ball comes out early in your swing, you might be turning your elbow out and swinging the racket down instead of up.
Step 3
Hold your racket in the backswing position, with the butt of the racket pointed at the opposite baseline. Pretend you have a dime balanced on the top of your racket, which is the edge facing up. Swing the racket forward, trying to keep the imaginary dime from falling off the racket until after you hit the ball. Practice hitting balls using this feeling.
Step 4
Practice hitting groundstrokes in which you finish each stroke with your racket ending up over your opposite shoulder. Tap your back twice with your racket after each shot to ensure you are finishing correctly.
Step 5
Place a tennis towel on the net. Practice hitting groundstrokes aiming for a spot above the towel — rather than a spot in the opposite court — as your primary target. Raise the target height from one to two to three feet higher than the net to gauge the effect on your shot depth. Remove the towel after 10 or more practice shots and practice hitting balls over the net, visualizing that the towel still is there.
Step 6
Place a target trainer or other object in front of the net, forcing you to hit over the obstacle. Use an object that is several feet higher than the net to force you to focus on hitting high over the net rather than to an area of the opposite court. Remove the obstacle after 10 or more practice shots, then hit groundstrokes visualizing the obstacle.
Step 7
Practice serves, trying to hit them approximately one to two feet long, or past the service line. Practice hitting one or two feet shorter than this after you can consistently hit the ball one or two feet long.
Step 8
Hit volleys fed from a partner, trying to make them land deep into the court. Turn your racket so that the butt of the handle is pointing toward your opposite foot, rather than straight down. Open the face of your racket to see the effect this has on depth.
Things You'll Need
- Partner or ball machine
- Towel
- Target trainer
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