Tip by Scott Melville:

The drop shot is one of the most misunderstood shots in tennis, perhaps because it is both a touch shot and a winning shot. I have read and heard many differing opinions regarding how and when to hit a drop shot.

They include:

• Hit it short
• Hit it soft
• Hit it with under spin
• Hit it with side spin
• Hit the back side of the ball
• Hit the under side of the ball
• Hit it low over the net
• Hit it with arc
• Hit it with an eastern grip
• Hit it with a continental grip
• Swing high to low
• Swing level
• Hit it against a slow opponent
• Hit it against an opponent who doesn’t move forward well
• Hit it against an opponent who doesn’t volley well
• Hit it against an opponent who doesn’t hit overheads well
• Hit it against an opponent who tires easily
• Hit it when you are against the wind
• Hit it when your opponent faces the sun

Rather than discuss how or when to hit a drop shot, I’d like to briefly focus on disguising a drop shot, which is actually quite simple. A properly timed drop shot can be executed as a winner if other properly executed groundstrokes disguise it. A player’s use of deep groundstrokes should be used to keep an opponent pinned to the baseline. When a player senses his opponent is certainly anticipating another deep groundstroke, hit the drop shot for a winner. The end.