Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-02-17

The half-volley can be made either
at the net or from the baseline, but
tons. AT the net it is used when a
player is too far back to volley eff
fectlVely, and he finds himself caught
with the ball at his feet. In this
the one shot that can save him, and
it is right here that the majority
OF players fail. The, ball comes over
the net with considerable top-spin
or 1t would not fall at his feet.
Brookes Uses 1t Well.
A weak half-volIey-a soft bali
sent high over the net to the center
of the court-would give his opport-
ent an easy opportunity of passing
him down either alley. The player
should do one of two Things, either
half-yolley his return with an equal
amount OF top-spin, and drop it low,
deep and as fast as possible to one
of the corners, stroke which also
requires top-spin. This gives the
half-volleyers a chance to keep his
used. and if the shot be well exc
cuted, the opponent is on the defen-
sive. The drop-shot half-volley is
a favorite stroke of Norman Brookes.
ne takes a step backward and holds
his racket still, at such an angle
the net and drops dead. This re-
qu1res perfect timing and absolute
accuracy, but is shot that taken
without apparent effort, is unreturn-
able. r. y. Williams comes nearest
to Brookes in the technique of this
shot, both Tilden and Johnston ex-
pending far more effort.
From the. back of the court the
half-volley is made in quite another
way. 1t is always an aggressive
shot, usually played with top-spin,
although some players prefer VIII
liams' method of underwriting the
ball. The former method, however,
is safer, as it gives a higher ira
jectory. Practically every British
and continental player of note is
trained to take sweeping half-vol-
hand. which is one reason why they
are such good baselint players. The
young French players have gone a
step further and are beginning to
half-volley their return of service
when playing on fast wood indoor
courts.
Caridia an Expert.
Undoubtedly the greatest half-vol-
leyer who has ever lived is G. a.
Caridia of London. For years he
was -invincible in indoor tennis, being
famous all over Europe. He had an
aversion to tournaments, but have
seen him beat Wilding four straight
sets in practice when the latter was
at the height of his fame. Garcia
after serving always advanced half
way between the base and service
lines, where hs seemed to stand i'm
movable while his opponent swung
from corner to corner like a pendu-
lum.
He used the half-volley almost ex-
clusively, claiming that the fraction
Of time that he thus gained was suf-
ficient to keep his opponent con-
stantly running. If a high weak
return was made, he would advance
single step and kill the ball with
volley. I played with Caridia for
years and never have I found type
of game SO difficult to combat. Just
as one succeeds in returning the ball
from one corner, a half-vol1ey, from
midcourt sends it to the other, until
one is completely winded. WiIding
once said that a game with Caridia
was more than any marathon.
Because the half-volley is such a
! strength saver. it is an ideal stroke
for women, and should be far more
employed by them Mrs Larcon1be
handicapped by heart lesion, and
said she never could have stood the
strain had it not been for her ex-
pertness at acknowledging.
How to Acquire Stroke.
To acquire the half-vol1ey, one
should not depend upon the oc-
casional pickup shots that occur in
a game, but should make a point of
acknowledging every ball possible.
The halfway position assumed by
Caridia Is best suited to this pur-
pose. For learning alf-volleying at
the net, it is advisable to practice
with some one who will stand at
the back of the court and place drive
after drive at the feet until the
stroke be learned.
1t should be understood that the
half-voIley has it's greatest value
in the singles game, and that 1t
should be used in doubles sparingly.
Some few players are practicing the
return of service in doubles with
half-volley, but this can be done
only on a true indoor surface and is
at all times risky shot.
Copyright, 1921