This is a very good drill for teaching players how to deal with short balls as well as high-and-deep ones: speed, body control, and footwork.
Drill:
Players line up (single file line) behind the baseline. The coach is on the other side of the net, having a basket of balls nearby (see graphic below).
The first player in line gets ready. The coach feeds two balls:
– one short and low – for the player to run up close to the net and push the ball over the net (using slice or topspin);
– one high-deep – the player moves back quickly and hits the ball only after it bounces.
For every ball that the players hit in, they count a point.
After the two balls (short and deep), she jogs around the court before moving to the end of the line.
The drill continues with players taking turns hitting the two balls and scoring points for consistency.
This game ends when one of the players wins 10 points.
The next round continues with the first ball (short) to the players’ left followed by the deep ball to the right.