Slam It Down

Master the point-scoring overhead slam.

By Lou Dubois; Featured Coach Stan Smith, founder of Smith Stearns Tennis Academy; Photography by Alleh Lindquist

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There are two types of overhead slams: One when your opponent hits a defensive lob (often after you’ve made a good stroke), and the other when they hit an offensive topspin lob. The most important thing about hitting a successful overhead slam is recognizing when the lob is coming. If you play with the same players frequently, you should be able to do this fairly easily. And you should be able to win the point.  

1. Recognition: Understand your opponent’s tendencies so you can look for the lob. If you don’t know them well, you can read their racquet and body position. If they’re not in an offensive position or if their racquet is slanting upward on either side, you’re not going to see a passing shot. You’re vulnerable to an offensive lob when your opponent is in good position and you’ve charged the net.  

2. Move back using cross-steps: It’s not easy to move back sideways, so you need to develop a cross-step motion. But the best overheads are when the player turns sideways, gets their left arm up and starts their right arm back (assuming the player is right-handed), but not too far. You don’t want it in a back-scratch position as you’re moving back, because you really want to limit extraneous movement.  

3. Keep your head up: When you’re ready to hit the ball, you’re starting in a half-swing (eliminating that downward motion). But you need to keep your head up and be sure your body is sideways. You never want to face the net or bring your head down to try to add power. The key is not hitting the ball as hard as you possibly can. As you come through, be sure to shift your weight forward and always leave your head up.  

HELPFUL TIP
Anticipation is the key to hitting a good overhead. Start moving back early (with your body sideways). If they don’t hit a lob, you can always move in and hit the volley. But if you don’t move backward early, you’ve got no chance of hitting a good shot.  

Get more firsthand advice on cycling and running from expert coaches in the January/February 2010 issue of SOBeFiT Magazine.