A lob is an effective defensive shot and allows you to quickly recover after being hit with an attacking shot from your opponent.
However, mastering tennis can be challenging; it is easy to strike too high and wide or strike too hard and drop the ball into an easy corner position for your opponent to return with an easy shot.
Lunge
The lob is one of the rarest shots in squash, yet when executed successfully it can be an absolute game-changer and derail the opponent’s rhythm. Many top players use this shot effectively as it gives them another way to slow the pace down while making it more challenging for their opponents to drive into position.
To create a powerful lob shot in squash, lunging and extending your front leg as far as possible are the keys to ensuring you reach the ball while remaining balanced during rallies, which often include sudden stops and changes of direction. Lunging also increases power generated when hitting the ball because it allows more weight transfer to your front foot which gives more force when hitting.
Once you have established a powerful lunge, it is vital to aim for the highest point on the wall when throwing your lob. Aiming too low can result in easy interceptions from opponents while too high can be blocked out completely from play.
Try to aim your lob so it strikes the upper third of the front wall and slightly off of either sidewall, making sure it reaches the back corner unvolleyed by opponents. This will guarantee maximum reach-back!
Keep this in mind during a match: try switching up your lobs. Too often players fall into predictable patterns where they serve identical lobs from the same spot, or after hitting certain shots. By switching up your lobs you can make it more difficult for opponents to predict and read your shots and anticipate what type they’ll hit next.
Lobs can be highly effective when used in combination with an effective drop shot. When your opponent recognizes that you’ll be hitting a drop shot, they must respect its power and attempt to volley it more successfully – this makes combining drop and lob an effective strategy against powerful players who prefer hitting hard while running around quickly.
Hit the Ball
Effective lobs require striking them softly and at an appropriate height. A successful lob should ideally rebound off of the front wall and land deep in the back court, disabling opponents from attacking aggressively. You can modify its speed, spin and placement in order to make it harder for your opponent to return it.
For optimal lobs, aim for the upper third of the front wall and slightly bounce off it on either sidewall, creating a larger rebound angle and making it harder for opponents to reach it. In addition, project it well above their heads so they cannot position themselves to play off-volley drives off it.
Squash players frequently employ the lob to buy themselves time while their opponent recovers, for example after making an unwise defensive boast. By playing a counter drop and opening up another point with an overhead smash.
When hitting a lob, it’s essential to keep in mind that its swing will be shorter and require less pressure on the racket compared with traditional squash strokes. Therefore, prior to thinking about hitting any shots it is essential that one focuses on posture and positioning first before considering execution of shots.
Preparing to strike the shot requires being calm and in an open stance. Avoid leaning forward as this decreases effective loft and can cause the ball to go out. Alignment sticks may also prove useful for checking body rotation and ball position at impact; using your arm to move down its lines may increase loft and help create high, soft shots. Regular practice with either a partner or coach who can provide feedback as well as simulate game-like scenarios is recommended for producing effective lob shots.
Spin the Ball
As with all squash shots, spin is key for effective control. To achieve maximum effect when hitting an underspin shot against an opponent, aim for hitting with an underspin so they are unable to reach your lob with their backhand volley and play an aggressive defensive posture against your lob. This gives you an excellent opportunity for attack!
Learning how to spin a lob requires watching some of the world’s top players and taking lessons from a professional. Doing this will enable you to understand its mechanics and use it effectively in matches of your own. Furthermore, frequent practice of this powerful shot is required so as to perfect its technique and become proficient.
One common mistake made by many players is hitting a lob too high and wide, causing it to land in the back corner and be easy for their opponent to return. Conversely, some may hit too hard with their shot, sending it flying out of court and back out again.
To avoid this scenario, always attempt to hit the ball with an open racket face – this will enable your legs to generate power while still having adequate control of hitting accurately. Also be sure to snap your wrist as you swing through, adding even more power and accuracy to each shot!
When striking a shot, make sure your contact point lies close to your body so as to maintain control and stop the ball from skidding off as it hits. This is especially essential when serving a lob serve; keeping it high above your opponent’s head makes it more difficult for them to return it.
Once you’ve mastered the fundamentals of lobping, it’s time to expand your repertoire with more advanced techniques. Experienced players often utilize direct bounce lobs – this requires precision and timing but can be highly effective under certain conditions; but remember not to count solely on this shot to win matches!
Control
Lobs are one of the least utilized shots in squash. While they’re sometimes overlooked in favor of hard drives and soft touch drops, when done effectively the lob can be extremely effective – for this reason it’s essential that players develop effective lobs into their arsenal, especially as defensive weapons.
A lob involves striking the ball high on the front wall with enough spin that it arcs over your opponent and lands deep in the back court, giving you time to recover if they play an effective attacking shot or recover after missing drives; or as an effective way of taking control back after missing drives by giving you time to return ‘back to the T’ and set up new attacks shots of your own.
Lobs come in all sorts of different varieties, but their core concept remains the same – hitting a ball with enough height and spin that it makes it difficult for an opponent to return it. To increase height on your lob, hit it with an open racket face; otherwise it won’t rise as high. Furthermore, to increase speed it is also important that it is hit using a lifting motion instead of running down motions.
Errors with the lob are usually due to hitting it too hard or too wide; to prevent this from occurring it’s also essential that the distance from body to ball be varied so you don’t hit too far forward or too close behind it.
In order to achieve optimal results from your lob, it’s crucial that both its counter drop and its execution are practiced concurrently. A solid counter drop will make your lob more effective as it forces opponents to respect its presence by playing from higher “T” positions, making it harder for them to volley it back over you.
