Chapter 11: Aerial Conquest
The Topspin Lob and the Scissor-Kick Smash
There's a moment in a point when the ball leaves the ground and everything changes. Down on the baseline, tennis is a game of angles and pace. Up in the air, it's a different sport entirely — timing, disguise, and a willingness to jump when your instincts are screaming at you to backpedal. This chapter is about that airborne game: the topspin lob that turns a defensive scramble into a winner, the moonball that buys you time when you're in trouble, and the overhead smash that ends the point outright.
The Topspin Offensive Lob
Most players think of the lob as a last resort — the shot you hit when you're stuck five feet behind the baseline with nowhere else to go. The offensive topspin lob is the opposite of that. It's a weapon you choose on purpose, against a net rusher who thinks he already has you beaten.
Here's the setup. Your opponent has come to the net behind a strong approach shot, and you're getting ready to hit a passing shot — or so he thinks. You take your normal, aggressive stance, the same one you'd use for a hard drive down the line. He reads it, plants his feet, and gets low for the volley. That's the moment you take away from him.
Instead of driving through the ball, you drop your racket head below it in the last instant and brush up steeply — think of it as an aggressive, compact version of your topspin forehand, but aimed skyward instead of forward. The ball comes off the strings with heavy topspin and a decent amount of net clearance, enough to sail well over the volleyer's outstretched racket. For a split second it looks like it might land long. Then the topspin takes hold, and the ball dives down hard, landing deep near the baseline instead of drifting into the fence. That dive is the whole trick — it's why the shot is so demoralizing to hit against. Your opponent can't do anything but turn and watch it drop.
The two things that make or break this shot are disguise and brush angle. If your stance or your backswing tips off the lob early, the net player has time to retreat and track it down. And if your swing is too flat — more of a push than a brush — the ball won't get enough spin to dive back in, and it'll sail long instead. Practice the steep upward brush until it feels as automatic as your regular topspin stroke.
The Defensive Moonball: Buying Time When You're in Trouble
Not every lob is meant to be a weapon. Sometimes you're just trying to survive.
Picture this: your opponent hits a sharp angle that pulls you well outside the doubles alley. You're stretched, off balance, and nowhere close to being in position for your next shot. Trying to hit a winner here is asking for trouble — you don't have the balance or the court coverage to back it up. What you actually need is time.
That's what the defensive moonball gives you. Open your racket face and lift the ball into a high, looping arc — the higher the better. A ball that peaks somewhere around twenty feet in the air will hang up there for close to three full seconds before it comes down. Three seconds doesn't sound like much until you're the one sprinting back to center court, but it's enough to get your feet under you, catch your breath, and reset for the next shot. This isn't a shot to be embarrassed about. Some of the best defensive players in the world lean on it constantly — it's not a concession, it's a tool.
The Scissor-Kick Smash: Finishing the Point in the Air
If the lob is about patience and disguise, the overhead smash is about explosiveness. And nobody made it look better than Pete Sampras, whose leaping, scissor-kick overhead became one of the signature shots in the history of the game.
The instinct most club players have when a lob goes up over their head is to backpedal — run backward, chest still facing the net, trying to track the ball while retreating in a straight line. It doesn't work. You lose your balance, you misjudge the ball's depth, and more often than not you end up shanking it off the frame. The fix is almost the opposite of instinct: the moment you see the lob is going over you, pivot your hips sideways and turn your back partway to the net. Then retreat using quick crossover steps, the same footwork you'd use chasing down a wide ball — not a backward jog.
As you track the ball, get your non-hitting arm up and pointed at it. This isn't just for show. Keeping your eyes locked on a fixed point — your own fingertip — helps your inner ear and your eyes agree on where you are in space, which matters a lot when you're about to leave the ground. Load your weight onto your back leg and jump to meet the ball at the top of your reach, out in front of your body rather than letting it drop next to your ear.
Here's the part that makes Sampras's version so much more powerful than the average club player's smash: while he's in the air, he kicks his front leg forward and his back leg backward, like a scissor closing. That counter-rotation isn't just style — it gives his core and shoulder something to brace against mid-air, which lets him whip his arm through the ball with tremendous rotational speed. The result is a smash that comes down like a hammer, well over 100 mph, often landing in the stands before his opponent has even turned around.
You don't need Sampras's timing to benefit from the mechanics. Even a modest version of the pivot-and-jump sequence will clean up your overhead more than almost any other single change you can make.
The Backhand Overhead: What to Do When the Ball Goes Over Your Off Shoulder
Every so often a lob drifts over your non-dominant shoulder, too far to circle around into a normal forehand smash. Trying to force a forehand here usually ends badly — you're reaching across your body, off balance, with no real power behind the shot.
The better option is a backhand overhead. Shift your grip to the same Eastern backhand grip you already use for your one-handed backhand and slice. Turn your back almost completely to the net, letting your hitting shoulder coil deep — you're essentially winding up like a discus thrower. Then drive your elbow upward and snap your forearm through at the top of your reach, angling the ball crosscourt into the service box. It's not going to be your biggest weapon, but it's a shot every serious player needs in their back pocket for the days when a lob catches you on the wrong side.
The Tweener: a Legitimate Escape Shot
The tweener — hitting the ball back through your own legs — used to be a highlight-reel stunt, something Yannick Noah pulled off for the crowd. These days, players like Federer and Alcaraz use it as a genuine recovery option when they're sprinting away from the net, chasing down a lob they have no other way to reach.
The mechanics are simpler than they look. You sprint past the ball, letting it fall behind you rather than trying to turn and hit it conventionally. Once it's dropped down near shin height, you whip the racket forward between your legs with a quick flick of the wrist, sending the ball back over the net — often with enough dip and pace to catch an approaching net player completely off guard. It's not a shot to build your game around, but when you're beaten and running the other way, it beats losing the point outright.
The Coach's Eye: Common Aerial Mistakes and How to Fix Them
| What You're Doing Wrong | Why It's Happening | The Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Tripping or stumbling backward on deep lobs | You're backpedaling with your chest still facing the net instead of turning | Pivot your hips sideways on your very first step, then retreat with crossover strides, the way you'd chase a wide ball |
| Smashes going into the net | You're letting the ball drop too low and hitting it behind your head | Point at the ball with your free hand and jump off your back leg to meet it out in front of your body |
| Topspin lobs sailing long | Your swing is flat instead of brushing upward | Drop the racket head below the ball and brush steeply upward, the way you would on an aggressive topspin forehand |
| Backhand overheads coming off the frame | You're staying in a Continental grip with an open face | Shift fully into your Eastern backhand grip before you swing, so you've got solid support behind the ball |
On-Court Drills
Drill 1 — The Scissor Jump Progression Have your coach or hitting partner stand at the service line and feed you a steady stream of high defensive lobs to your deep baseline. On each one, pivot sideways, retreat with three quick crossover steps, jump off your back foot, and try the scissor-kick action in the air. Aim to land ten smashes in a row deep enough that they'd clear the back fence if there weren't a wall in the way.
Drill 2 — The Passing Shot Feint Set a target — a bucket or a cone works fine — on the deep baseline. Rally normally from the back of the court. On a designated short ball, load up as if you're about to rip a hard passing shot down the line, then at the last moment convert it into a topspin lob. The goal is to land the ball within a couple of feet of your target, so you're training both the disguise and the control at the same time.