Tennis Drop Shot Technique & How To Practice

The best way to go about learning the drop shot technique is to start with forehand and backhand slice strokes as those serve as the foundation for the drop shot.

If you can’t yet consistently hit a few slice/underspin strokes from the baseline and maintain a rally, then hold off trying to learn a drop shot as you’ll likely develop a poor technique and have low probability of hitting a good short ball.

Work on the slice strokes and also volleys first as all these strokes together with the drop shot fall into the same family of strokes that are played with the backspin/slice.

This video article will cover the main technical guidelines of the forehand and backhand drop shot and give you some practical tennis drills that can help you develop good feel for the drop shot.

In the following video articles, we’ll also cover the tactical side of playing the drop shot and how to defend against it.

The Difference Between Slice And Drop Shot Techniques

Let’s start with the comparison between the backhand slice and the drop shot stroke techniques as most tennis players prefer to play a short ball on the backhand side.

These players are already used to hitting a backhand slice and therefore find it easier to modify the stroke technique to the drop shot.

As you can see in the images, the backswing is basically the same, perhaps a bit shorter for the drop shot – but you shouldn’t really think about that.

The backswing should shorten naturally simply because you are not looking to add much power to the ball.

The main difference is in the racket head angle as we hit more under the ball when playing a drop shot.

The follow-through is also shorter compared to the backhand slice.

I suggest you keep the technique of the drop shot very simple and stick to the guidelines given here.

Swing more forward and directly to the target, and avoid swinging across your body, which will impart sidespin.

The most important part of the overall technique is the forward body movement (weight transfer) into the ball.

This movement may not be the most intuitive as you may feel like you are adding force to the shot with your forward body movement while you are trying to play a short ball.

In reality, that is the way we play a drop shot, and I suggest that you attempt drop shots only when you can move forward into the ball.

Through drills and repetition, you will then find the right combination of forward arm movement, racket angle, and amount of backspin that will produce the desired short ball.

Forehand Slice vs Drop Shot Techniques

On the forehand side, the picture is very similar.

We may have a slightly shorter backswing along with a more open racket face at contact since we will hit with more underspin and less forward force.

Additionally, we may finish the stroke earlier with a short follow-through.

The key guidelines are the same:

• Always move forward into the ball with your body weight.
• Do not swing across your body but more or less just forward with a short swing.
• Do not play with a loose wrist but keep it quite firm.
• Maintain body orientation towards the contact point throughout the stroke so that you prevent body rotation that will result in swinging across the ball and having difficulty controlling it.

Practical Tennis Drills For Developing Good Feel For The Drop Shot

The drop shot is the ultimate feel-based stroke, which means that the success of the stroke mostly depends on being able to judge the right amount of force and slice to make a good shot rather than being able to perfectly execute all the technical elements of the stroke.

Therefore, you need to develop this feel and judgment of the right opportunity through repetition and drills.

Drill #1: Mini tennis topspin vs slice/drop shot

Play in the service box with one player hitting topspin shots while you play slice shots and try to keep the ball in the service box.

Start with controlling the ball rather than looking to play a very short drop shot so that you get used to the drill and develop better feel for the ball.

When you recognize the right opportunity – meaning the ball is not too fast, too slow, too high, or too low – attempt a short drop shot.

Your partner can just let the ball go so that you can get good feedback on whether the drop shot was good or not.

You can, of course, play the same drill on the forehand and on the backhand side as well as alternate between down the line and cross court games.

Drill #2: Baseline slice/drop shot vs service line topspin

In the next progression of drills, you move back to the baseline from where you will play slice and drop shots into the service box; at the same time your partner stays around the service box and plays topspin shots towards you on the baseline.

I suggest you start these drills with cross court direction and later see if down the line works as well.

Your goal is again to first control the ball with a slice and see if you can keep it in the service box. Then you can look for the right opportunity to play a real drop shot aiming shorter behind the net.

Switch roles and sides, and use your creativity to develop more drills based on these two so that you can have more fun and practice the drop shot from different situations and angles.

Next time: Drop Shot Tactics And How to Defend Against The Drop Shot