Why You Need the Dink Shot

In my article, The Top 3 Reasons You MUST Play at The No-Volley Line I talk about how important it is to get up to the net and stay there. The dink shot is an essential element to being able to play at the no-volley line.

You need to be able to hit the dink shot because:

1. It is a powerful strategy that better players will use against you.  As a defensive strategy, if you can’t at least return a dink shot with another dink without hitting the ball into the net or giving your opponent a cream-puff, you’ll quickly lose the game.
2. It is an excellent offensive strategy, which you can use against weaker opponents to goad them into hitting the ball into the net or giving you a cream-puff.  Against players of equal-or-higher level, the dink shot gives you the opportunity to take control of the point, by defining the speed, angle and location of the ball.

Control the Speed of the Ball

Many players are so used to defending against a hard, fast ball that the slowness of a dink will mess up their timing, causing them to make an unforced error.  Learning to slow the ball down and turn your opponent’s fast/hard shot into a dink does require some practice & finesse, but it IS possible & it’s a game-changer once you can do it.  (It’s something that many of my students get MUCH better at after a private practice session.)

Control the Angle of the Ball

For those of you who fall into the category of thinking that only a sissy would hit a dink shot, check out the image below.  If your opponent dinks to you, forcing you to let the ball bounce, if you hit a hard shot back, it will either go into the net or go over the net at an upward angle, which is really just another way of saying a losing angle. Because the higher you hit the ball up, the harder & faster a good opponent will hit the ball at your feet, putting you on the defensive.  Still don’t buy it?  Read The Top 3 Reasons You MUST Play at The No-Volley Line then contact me for a private lesson.

Control the Placement of the Ball

When you hit a dink shot, you have more time & opportunity to place the ball where you want it.  With a series of good dinks, you can move your opponents back and forth on the court until you have created an opening where you can place the ball where they won’t get it.