Player practice guide
Four-Way Backhand Short-Ball Finish
15 min Coach / feederIntermediate–AdvancedBackhand
Receive down-the-line and crosscourt feeds, then finish the backhand to either angle.
Best for: players building confidence attacking short backhands to more than one target.
Goal
Reach the short backhand with space and disguise a deep or angled finish from either feed direction.
Success today
Complete 8 of 12 short-backhand patterns with at least 2 successes to each marked target.
Watch before court
Technique reference
How To Punish Short Balls in Tennis (4 ways) · 8:09
Technique reference—not the full drill. Watch the spacing, contact height and target choice used to attack a short ball.
Open video on YouTubeArrive ready
Before you go
- One coach or capable feeder
- Basket of 24+ tennis balls
- 6 flat cones
- Approximately 15 minutes of court time
Court blueprint
Set up the court
Move from centre to the short backhand feed and choose the called crosscourt or down-the-line target before recovering to the inside-baseline marker.
- Ball direction
- Feeder ball
- Player movement
- Recovery
- Target zone
- 01Mark deep crosscourt, deep line and short-angle backhand targets.
- 02Place a starting cone at the centre baseline.
- 03Ask the feeder to send short balls towards the backhand half from alternating feed positions.
Step by step
Your 15-minute practice
0–3 min
Set the short-ball feet
- Use small adjustment steps to get outside the backhand.
- Freeze balanced before the shadow finish.
3–7 min
Rehearse two deep targets
- Alternate deep crosscourt and down-the-line calls.
- Aim beyond the service line.
7–11 min
Add the short angle
- Use a lower-speed feed and guide the ball across the net.
- Recover forward after contact.
12 feeds · 4 min
Score twelve patterns
- Count target placement and balanced recovery together.
- Aim for eight successes.
Remember
Three player cues
- Get outside the backhand.
- Show one preparation.
- Recover inside the baseline.
Avoid these
Common mistakes
- Reaching across the body
- Trying the short angle from behind the baseline
- Opening the shoulders early on the line ball
Keep the same purpose
Adjust the challenge
Make it easier
Use only deep crosscourt and line targets with predictable feeds.
Make it harder
Vary feed depth so the player must reject balls that are not short enough to attack.
Keep it safe
Keep the feeder behind the basket and clear the short contact zone before each set.
Continue later