Although baseline tennis has become the predominant style in modern tennis all coaches should train their students to use the serve volley. While it is uncommon for players to adopt serve and volley as their main playing style it remains a very important tactical weapon, changing up the pattern of a match and keeping opponents off balance. With the short grass court season in progress, it is appropriate that serve and volley is a topic for discussion.

Depending on your point of view the decision of Wimbledon officials to slow down the balls at the tournament in recent years has meant longer more entertaining rallies; or the near death of wonderful playing style. Roger Federer has been able to win the past three Wimbledon titles with an all court game despite being a more than capable serve and volleyer. Federer decided attacking the net often was an unnecessary risk given he was so good from the baseline.

The variety it offers as well as its effectiveness on fast courts means it still has an important role in player development. Use the drills and exercises in this article to improve the serve & volley of your students who have mastered the basic strokes, can rally and serve and are beginning to play matches and competitions.

Serve and Volley Coaching Progressions Progression #1 – Serve and gain net position (see diagram below)

You serve and then move towards the net as quickly as possible, there is no return at this stage.

Key coaching points include:-
 Pushing the ball toss out in front of the body;
 Smooth transition between the service motion and pushing forwards to the net;
 Following the path of the ball forwards; and
 Correct split step and balance. Correct movement is the most important aspect of this progression so your coach or practice partner should observe from the serving end to make corrections.