Serve & volley to the fore

Tennis: Albiet sporadically, the likes of Federer and Pospisil underlined the beauty of the art at Wimbledon

It was hardly like the old days, when serve and volley and getting to the net were the rule at Wimbledon instead of the clear exception. Baseline rallies continued to be the main meal last Wednesday for those enjoying the men’s quarterfinals, a guest list that included the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the tennis royal Billie Jean King.

But then, cranking back the clock entirely should not be the goal at Wimbledon or any other tournament. The objective, in a time of an overload of diversions and challenged attention spans, should be variety: a chance for all the strokes in this tough and technical game to still have a legitimate place.

Preserve the lobs, the backhand overheads, the half-volley drop-shot winners, the forehand slices, all of it.

By that measure, the day, with its stylistic contrasts and full-court duels, was a rousing success as well as the latest reminder that serve and volley can continue to play a role at the highest level of the sport, despite all the rumblings in recent years of its’ impending extinction.

In the men’s game, the percentage of serve and volley points per match is at its highest at Wimbledon since 2007: up from 8 percent in 2014 to 10.4 percent so far this year, according to statistics provided by IBM.

Meanwhile, the percentage of serve-and-volley points being won has remained historically high: 70.6 percent ahead of the semifinals (70.6 percent also was the final number last year).
Clearly, the tactic, used selectively, is paying off handsomely, at least in the men’s game.
“I think at least on grass, there’s a bit more willingness or recognition again that they can actually win the point quicker this way,” said Mark Woodforde, the former Australian net-rusher and doubles star.

He and we would miss it if serve and volley were gone for good -- a victim of string and racquet technology, of slowing surfaces and of coaches who never embraced it and are not comfortable teaching it.

Long backcourt rallies generate suspense, but rushing the net has a thrill all its own. It is for gamblers and fast-twitch types, for those who do not want to wait to resolve the conflict but would rather settle the matter now.

Executed properly, as Vasek Pospisil, Roger Federer and Richard Gasquet did under pressure on the quarterfinal day, serve and volley can be spectacular, as well as effective.

Although the tactic ultimately did not pay off for Pospisil against Andy Murray, it certainly did for Gasquet as he upset the reigning French Open champion, Stanislas Wawrinka, by 11-9 in the fifth set.

Gasquet only served and volleyed 18 times in his three-hour-and-28-minute match. But at 5-5, 0-30 on his serve in the final set, with the momentum flowing in Wawrinka’s direction, Gasquet used the tactic when he needed points most.

He got to 15-30 with a backhand volley down the line and then a powerful retreating overhead. He got to 30-30 with another volley down the line that led to a stretch backhand volley winner crosscourt.

He soon held his serve and ultimately his nerve, which was particularly good news for the Frenchman, whose resolve sometimes has not been the equal of his shot-making talent.
“I went for it in that game and pushed forward and managed to do it,” said Gasquet, who earlier had served for the match at 5-3 in the fifth set and faltered.

Pospisil often went for it, too, against Murray, which was clearly the right choice in light of Murray’s superior consistency from the backcourt.

Their exchanges on Centre Court -- Pospisil pushing forward and Murray trying to make him pay for the risk -- were some of the most engaging of the tournament.

Federer set the tone last year, serving and volleying 21.6 percent of the time on average in his seven matches, which was by far his highest percentage at Wimbledon in more than a decade, although a far cry from his figure of 80.8 percent in 2002.

This year, he is back down to 13.6 percent through five matches after beating Gilles Simon in straight sets. But, according to IBM’s research, Federer is approaching the net at other points in the rallies more often than he has since 2003. He is also winning a slightly greater percentage of points at net -- 73.9 percent -- than ever at Wimbledon.
Federer’s intentions remain clear.

“I feel I have much more confidence with the serving and volleying, the chipping and charging, and that makes it really interesting,” he said in an interview before Wimbledon. “I love it, I must say. It’s a good spell right now in my career, and I’m enjoying not waiting for mistakes from my opponent.”

The element of surprise is clearly helpful, but a player who comes to the net too seldom will have little chance of doing it well under Grand Slam pressure. It also requires accepting what was once obvious to any leading player: You will be passed at net, and passed often, but the percentages can work in your favour.

“You have to take your lumps,” said Woodforde, who has helped coach Djokovic on his volleys. “But attacking tennis is not about having a 100 percent winning record, but certainly on grass it is about building pressure. You will lose points up there, but by attacking at the right time, the value and reward is there.”

The strings and the racquets, the higher bounces and the great counterpunching talents like Murray and Djokovic certainly make it a great challenge. Kevin Anderson finally lost his serve in the fifth set of his near-upset of Djokovic in the fourth round when Djokovic sliced a forehand return expertly at his feet as he served and volleyed.

“I hope Kevin doesn’t just remember that point,” Woodforde said. “Because it worked for him an awful lot in that match.”

Pospisil was unable to convert on several critical volleys after Murray timed his backhand crosscourt passing shots just right.

But Pospisil still managed to win 80 percent of his serve-and-volley points in the tournament, which might mean that he should have done it even more often.

Maybe he will next year. Maybe he will next month on North American hard courts. The important thing is that the option still exists and that the full catalogue of tennis strokes remains available for order.