Tim Henman is a serve-and-volleyer well-known around the tennis community for his excellent "touch". Timothy Henry "Tim" Henman OBE (born 6 September 1974) is a retired English Tennis player Serve and volley is a style of play in Tennis where the player serving moves quickly towards the net after hitting a serve.

A volley in tennis is a shot that is hit before the ball bounces on the ground. There are eight basic shots in the game of Tennis: the serve, Forehand, Backhand, volley, Half volley (pick-up ball For information on the forehand of a horse see Forehand (horse The forehand in Tennis is a shot made by swinging the racquet across one's body The backhand in Tennis is a stroke hit by swinging the racquet away from one's body in the direction of where the player wants the ball to go A serve (or more formally a service) in Tennis is a shot to start a point. A half volley in Tennis is a shot that is hit immediately after the ball bounces A lob in Tennis is hitting the ball high and deep into the opponent's court. An overhead smash in Tennis is a shot that is hit above the head with a serve -like motion A drop shot in Tennis is tapping the ball just over the net A good drop shot travels such that the opponent is unable to run fast enough to retrieve it Tennis is a sport played between two players ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles) Generally a player hits a volley while standing near the net, although there are instances where it is executed farther back, in the middle of the tennis court or even near the baseline. A tennis court is where the game of Tennis is played It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the center

The primary objective of the volley is to go on the offensive, cutting the opponent's reaction time. The opponent will have much less time to chase down the ball from a volley. Another consideration is that, by volleying, a player eliminates any possibility of a bad bounce from an uneven surface such as those on some grass and clay courts. Also, while being near the net, the volleyer has a wider choice of angles to hit into the opponent's court. A volleyer, however, must have quick reflexes to make his shot, which also requires a good hand-eye coordination. A volleyer must also be prepared for passing shots and lobs from the opponent. A lob in Tennis is hitting the ball high and deep into the opponent's court.

Generally, a player who advances to the net in the serve and volley type of game will make his initial volley fairly near the service line. Serve and volley is a style of play in Tennis where the player serving moves quickly towards the net after hitting a serve. He will then move closer to the net in hopes of making a put-away volley for a winning point. It is difficult to hit an effective volley in the area between the baseline and the service line and this is consequently often called no man's land.

A volley can also occur in other sports. It is simply playing the ball before it touches the ground.

Hitting a volley

A regular volley is hit with a short backswing and a punching stroke. While standing at the net, a player usually has no time to take a long backswing. When the ball comes at less pace, though, the volleyer can take a longer backswing to impart more force on the ball, which is called a swing volley.

The lower the ball comes at the volleyer, the harder it is to hit an effective volley. In some cases, a player is better off to let the ball bounce rather than attempt to volley it; he then hits it on the rise right after the bounce. This is called a half volley (although technically it is not a volley) and is one of the most difficult shots in tennis; John McEnroe, was considered a master of it. A half volley in Tennis is a shot that is hit immediately after the ball bounces John Patrick McEnroe Jr (born February 16 1959 is an American former World No

Another type of volley is the drive volley. This is done by hitting a volley with more backswing and followthrough than a normal volley. Effectively this is a volley groundstoke and a very aggressive shot, giving your opponent less time, which can be used as a way to approach the net (approach shot).

Great volleyers

In his 1979 autobiography Jack Kramer, who had a fine volley himself, devotes a page to the best tennis strokes he had ever seen. Year 1979 ( MCMLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1979 Gregorian calendar) John Albert Kramer (born August 1, 1921, in Las Vegas, Nevada) was a champion U He writes: "FOREHAND VOLLEY—Wilmer Allison of Texas, who won the 1935 Forest Hills, had the best I ever saw as a kid, and I've never seen anyone since hit one better. Wilmer Lawson Allison Jr (born December 8, 1904 in San Antonio, Texas &ndash died Budge Patty came closest, then Newcombe. John "Budge" Edward Patty (born February 11, 1924) was an American male Tennis player John David Newcombe AO OBE (born 23 May 1944 in Sydney Australia) is a former World No BACKHAND VOLLEY—Close among Budge, Sedgman and Rosewall, with Sedgman getting the edge probably because of his quickness. John Donald ("Don" or "Donnie" Budge ( June 13 1915 &ndash January 26 2000) was an American Tennis Frank Arthur Sedgman, born 29 October 1927 in Mont Albert a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia was a Tennis player Kenneth Robert ("Ken" Rosewall AM MBE (born 2 November 1934, in Sydney, Australia) is a former amateur Schroeder and Trabert were almost as outstanding. Frederick Rudolph "Ted" Schroeder ( July 20, 1921 – May 26, 2006) was an American Tennis player who won the two most prestigious Marion Anthony (Tony Trabert (born August 16 1930 in Cincinnati Ohio) is a retired American Tennis champion and long-time tennis author TV commentator instructor "

Among open era (post 1968) male players, John McEnroe is generally regarded as being the finest and most natural volleyer, though some consider Stefan Edberg to have been equally as proficient. John Patrick McEnroe Jr (born February 16 1959 is an American former World No Stefan Bengt Edberg (born 19 January 1966 in Västervik, Sweden) is a former World No Patrick Rafter is also regarded as having had one of the finest volleys in recent times. Patrick "Pat" Michael Rafter (born 28 December 1972 is a retired Australian former World No

Among open era female players, Martina Navrátilová is considered to be the outstanding volleyer. Martina Navratilova ( Czech: Martina Navrátilová; born October 18, 1956, in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a former World Jana Novotná was also noted for her superior volleying skills. Jana Novotna (Jana Novotná (b October 2 1968 in Brno, Czechoslovakia) is a former professional Tennis player from the Czech Republic

Tennis players known for their superior volleying skills include

• Vinnie Richards
• Jack Kramer
• Frank Sedgman
• Lew Hoad
• Rod Laver
• Ken Rosewall
• Tony Roche
• John McEnroe
• Stefan Edberg
• Jonas Björkman
• Patrick Rafter
• Boris Becker
• Pete Sampras
• Max Mirnyi
• Martina Navrátilová
• Jana Novotná
• Maria Ester Bueno
• Tim Henman
• Martina Hingis
• Amelie Mauresmo
• Justine Henin
• Roger Federer
• Radek Stepanek

When Rafael Nadal entered the tennis scene, he was predicted to have an excellent volley. Vincent ("Vinnie" Richards ( 30 March 1903 &mdash 28 September 1959) was a top American Tennis player in the early John Albert Kramer (born August 1, 1921, in Las Vegas, Nevada) was a champion U Frank Arthur Sedgman, born 29 October 1927 in Mont Albert a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia was a Tennis player Lewis Alan ("Lew" Hoad (born November 23, 1934 in Glebe New South Wales, Australia, died July 3, 1994 in For the arena in Melbourne Park used for show matches in the Australian Open, see Rod Laver Arena Rodney George "Rod" Laver Kenneth Robert ("Ken" Rosewall AM MBE (born 2 November 1934, in Sydney, Australia) is a former amateur See also Tony Roche (writer Anthony "Tony" Dalton Roche (born May 17, 1945) is a former professional Australian tennis player John Patrick McEnroe Jr (born February 16 1959 is an American former World No Stefan Bengt Edberg (born 19 January 1966 in Västervik, Sweden) is a former World No Jonas Lars Björkman (pronounced YO-nas BYERK-mann (born March 23 1972 Alvesta, Sweden is a Swedish professional male tennis player and former World No Patrick "Pat" Michael Rafter (born 28 December 1972 is a retired Australian former World No Boris Franz Becker (born 22 November 1967 in Leimen, West Germany) is a former World No Petros “Pete” Sampras (born August 12, 1971) is a former World No Max Mirnyi (Максім Мірны Maksim Mirny; born July 6, 1977, in Minsk) is a professional Tennis player from Belarus Martina Navratilova ( Czech: Martina Navrátilová; born October 18, 1956, in Prague, Czechoslovakia) is a former World Jana Novotna (Jana Novotná (b October 2 1968 in Brno, Czechoslovakia) is a former professional Tennis player from the Czech Republic Maria Ester Audion Bueno, born October 11 1939 in São Paulo Brazil, is a female Tennis player who won nineteen Grand Slam titles (7 singles 11 women's Timothy Henry "Tim" Henman OBE (born 6 September 1974) is a retired English Tennis player Martina Hingis (born September 30, 1980 in Košice, Czechoslovakia) is a retired professional Tennis player who spent a total of 209 Amélie Simone Mauresmo (ameli simɔn moʀɛsmo in French born July 5 1979 is a French professional Tennis player Roger Federer (ˈrɒdʒə ˈfɛdərər born August 8 1981 is a Swiss professional Tennis player who is currently ranked World No Radek Štěpánek (born November 27, 1978 in Karviná) is a professional Tennis player from the Czech Republic. Rafael Nadal Parera (rafaˈel naˈðal (born June 3 1986 is a Spanish professional Tennis player who has been ranked World No However, these expectations were not fulfilled, and he remains to this day a merely "capable" volleyer.

External links

• Video: Tips for a good volley
• Video: How to volley

• Tennis Training Aids: Tip on Volley