Session theme
Front-Court Touch — reading the right front-court shot (drop vs volley) and retrieving under control from deep in the front corners.
Timeline
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 0:00–0:10 | Warm-up: Front-Court Shuffle & Touch |
| 0:10–0:30 | Drill 1: Drop & Volley Combo |
| 0:30–0:50 | Drill 2: Front-Court Retrieval & Reset |
| 0:50–1:05 | Games 1: Front Only (conditioned) |
| 1:05–1:20 | Games 2: Open Play |
Warm-up: Front-Court Shuffle & Touch (10 min)
Players pair up. One feeds soft short balls alternating left and right into the front corners; the other side-shuffles (no crossing feet) to reach each one and taps it back gently. This is purely footwork and balance — no target. Swap feeder/hitter roles after ~90 seconds.
Drill details
Drill 1: Drop & Volley Combo
- Setup
- 2 players — feeder mid-court, hitter working the front. (3-player adaptation: a third player joins as a rotating feeder, swapping every 4 reps so the hitter gets continuous front-court reps against varied feed rhythms; rotate the hitter role every 2 sets. 4-player adaptation: run two simultaneous pairs, each pair working one drill in their own front-court half, swapping drills halfway through the block.)
- Pattern
- Feeder alternates feeding a soft drop-height ball and a slightly firmer volley-height ball into the hitter's front corners, feeder's choice, in unpredictable order. Hitter must read which each ball is and either play a soft drop (off the low, short feed) or a crisp volley (off the higher, faster feed) back into the opposite front corner, recovering to a ready front-court stance between reps.
- Coaching points
- Split-step and read the ball's height and pace before committing to drop or volley.
- Stay low and balanced in the front third — don't overcommit to lunges.
- Small, controlled recovery steps rather than one big stride.
- Success criterion
- Hitter correctly identifies and executes the right shot (drop vs volley) on 8 of 10 feeds, landing in the front quarter.
- Regression
- Feeder calls out "drop" or "volley" before feeding, removing the read and isolating pure technique.
- Progression
- Feeder shortens the gap between feeds, forcing faster decisions and recovery.
- Duration
- 20 min.
- A feeds a soft or firm ball into B's front corner
- B answers with a drop or volley into the opposite front corner
- B side-shuffles across to the other front corner
Drill 2: Front-Court Retrieval & Reset
- Setup
- Same pair. (3-player adaptation: a third player joins as a rotating feeder, swapping every 4 reps so the hitter gets continuous front-court reps against varied feed rhythms; rotate the hitter role every 2 sets. 4-player adaptation: run two simultaneous pairs, each pair working one drill in their own front-court half, swapping drills halfway through the block.)
- Pattern
- Feeder plays a drop into the front corner; hitter must retrieve it from deep in the corner (low, controlled pickup) and reset the rally with either a straight drop back or a lob down the same wall — deliberately not a panicked boast — before recovering to the T. Feeder then repeats from the other corner.
- Coaching points
- Bend at the knees, not the waist, to reach a low corner ball.
- Choose the reset shot based on how stretched you are — lob if fully stretched and off-balance, drop only if still in control.
- Recover to the T with purpose after every reset.
- Success criterion
- Hitter completes a controlled reset (lob or drop, not a rushed boast) on 8 of 10 corner retrievals.
- Regression
- Feeder feeds a slightly higher, less extreme corner ball, giving more time to set up the reset.
- Progression
- Feeder alternates corners unpredictably, forcing full-width front-court coverage.
- Duration
- 20 min.
- A plays a drop into the front corner
- B retrieves deep in the corner and resets down the same wall
- B recovers to the T
Games details
Games 1: Front Only (conditioned, 15 min)
- Condition
- A rally can only be won by a shot landing in the front quarter of the court — anything landing further back is a dead ball, replay.
- Scoring
- Straight games to 9, win by 2.
- Rotation
- 2 players: straight match. 3 players: winner stays, loser rotates every game. 4 players: pairs, swap partners every game.
- Duration
- 15 min.
Games 2: Open Play (normal, 15 min)
- Condition
- None — full rules, applying everything from the session.
- Scoring
- Games to 11, PAR scoring.
- Rotation
- Same rotation pattern as Games 1.
- Duration
- 15 min.
Court split
Written for 2 players on 1 court. The 3-player and 4-player adaptations live inline within each drill and game above (a rotating extra feeder for 3, two simultaneous pairs on split front-court halves for 4) rather than as a separate parallel session — there's no second court to split onto.
Coach's notes
- Front-court sessions are physically demanding on the knees and ankles in a short space — keep reps crisp.
- Lean on the warm-up's balance work if anyone looks stiff.
- Don't be afraid to shorten Drill 2 by a few minutes for a first-time group.
- Low-turnout fallback: if only 2 players show, run both drills exactly as written and skip the adaptation notes.
- Two players and one small front-court target rarely ends without a graze — ask Turner & Rhodes Solicitors.