Tactics to Return Big Serves

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So what is a BIG SERVE?  A big serve is a serve that has been hit hard and heavy, usually flat, with the ball travelling at a fast speed. Big servers ace their opponents often and they win most of their points as a result of their effective serve. Every receiver hates being aced and the more often this occurs in the match, the more frustrating it gets. How do you prepare to receive and counter big serves?  I do employ four tactics/techniques on how to counter a big serve.

The first tactic is to get your feet moving through a split-step.  This may sound simple but most players oftentimes neglect to do this.  Split-step is a little hop that you do right when your opponent is about to strike the ball, in this case, the serve.  The idea is to basically jumpstart your body right when your opponent is about to hit. This ensures you can react more quickly to the incoming ball. This tactic helps tremendously with a little effort on your end.

The second tactic is to shorten your backswing.  A short backswing or a half backswing, in contrast with the full backswing, will enable you to time the ball well in a fast-paced first serve.   Failing to properly execute a short backswing would likely to result in a late shot, therefore, mishitting and jamming with the ball, or much worse, getting aced.

The third tactic would be staying a few steps back from the baseline especially when you are still having a hard time returning the serve.  This will give you ample time to see the ball and swing your racquet since the farther the ball sails, the slower it gets.  However, there is a downside to this.  The farther you stay away from the baseline, the more defensive your return will be.  Your opponent might take advantage of this by charging in to the net to play an aggressive put away volley.  once you feel you hit a good return back, you get closer to the baseline to play an even/neutral exchange.

The last tactic to employ is to slice your return.  the ball.  Basically what it does is neutralizing the pace of the serve by absorbing its power.  When you slice your return, you make the impression that the serve is too big and you just want to return the powerful serve in your opponent’s court.  After the successful but defensive return, you hope that the point would be played on a neutral exchange to start with.  When you execute a chip shot, always make sure it’s deep and low so that you would achieve an even/neutral exchange.  If you’re a good volleyer and it happens that your opponent doesn’t make good passing shots, you can bravely chip and charge (rush the net) on your return (if you returned the ball good enough and "sensed" that your opponent is in trouble).

These are the four strategies/tactics that you can do against a big server.  Go ahead and try it next time you play and see how it works and let me know.