Have you ever had the feeling that you have no idea where your next point is coming from because your opponent is so fast that they just pick everything up...with ease? You are playing all the right shots but they still continue to fetch it back and with interest.....demoralising? This type of scenario happens all the time and at every level.

Quick players like to play at pace, they feel very comfortable when running after a ball, your job is to make them feel uncomfortable. You can put the ball in all the right areas but if your opponent reads it they will move easily and with rhythm, and with the necessary athletic qualities, then the ball will of course keep coming back.
The first step is to negate their speed. You have to create an element of uncertainty in your oppositions mind, get them still and break their rhythm so you are in control of their movement. They can only run after something when they know where to run. Regardless of your conditioning, if you have to move explosively from a still position time after time you will soon fatigue. Deception comes in many forms, but it is most effective when it's subtle. The less time your opponent has to process information from you prior to impact with the ball, the more success you will have. For example, if you can create the same preparation for each shot whether you are hitting short or long, this will make it much harder for the opposition to anticipate where to move. Let's have a look at how we can execute this particular type of deception.

At the top of your backswing, take your weight off of your front foot and hold before you deliver the downswing. This will control your opponent's movement by stopping them. If your racket is still, then your opponent will have to be still. As you start to transfer your weight into the shot you can decide at this point where you are going to place the ball. If you decide for instance that you are sending it long, it is very important when you deliver the swing to start slowly and then accelerate the racket head through point of impact and not too much before. You can do this by following through with full extension from the elbow, the wrist and fingers(as shown).

Pick up the speed of the racket too early and you will broadcast your intentions. You have your player still and under control, he is unsure whether it's going in short or long because of how you have addressed the ball, the sudden change of pace at point of impact exerts an enormous amount of pressure. This needs be done with rhythm and must not be forced, the weight transfer through your body will help with this. The timing is critical, sensing your opponent's position and carrying out a technique like this requires a lot of skill.

You can practise this in all areas of the court by having lots of options in your mind each time you approach the ball. If you have a feeling that you can put the ball in different and areas from the same set up, then your opponent will certainly feel that too. On most shots you can in fact create this natural hold which actually becomes a habit and a very useful weapon. The art of deception is to make your opponent think you will play one particular shot while your intention is to do something different. The key to this is to always have options. If a player has the ability to hit a full range of shots whilst addressing the ball in a variety of ways and an understanding of how to use various angles of the racket, different lines and paces of the swing, this creates an incredible amount of information for an opponent to process. If your choices are limited you become predictable. Exploring these options and subtleties will not only make your game difficult to read, but also far more interesting for you to play.

These days with the rackets being so light it makes it so much easier to improvise and manoeuvre the racket with a shorter take back. It requires a certain softness and dexterity in your hands and finger's, squeeze tight and you will be too rigid with no flexibility to be versatile. Skilled operartor's like to hit across the line or use the strings to come inside/outside or down the back of the ball to make the ball respond in different ways and mask their intentions until the very last moment. This allows the racket head to come through a little quicker than your opponent might anticipate for a drop shot for example, as all the weight is taken out as you hit across the line as opposed to down the line, executed well it can look like it's actually going somewhere else.

It is not uncommon to see top players rolling over the top of the ball as they move in at full stretch to counter a drop right up in the front corners. Played with a deft touch it leaves you with absolutely nothing to hit as the ball spins away whilst gripping the side walls. Equally to whip the racket head through the ball quickly when chipping the ball half way up the front wall to length requires a clever use of the strings. Top players will often use that ball when jockeying for position, mindful that they don't want to over hit, they will hit across or inside, with bite and yet still see the ball drop off almost weightless. Throw a few kills and attacking balls into the mix from the same preparation and you will soon have your opponent wondering what's happening next! Breaking your opponent's rhythm and establishing control of their movement has to be a priority especially if they have the advantage athletically and these techniques will certainly help with that. Variations in racket head speeds and angles make it much harder for the opposition to anticipate. If you always strike the ball on the same line and at the same pace you will of course become predictable and more importantly far less watchable!