Six tips for return of serve. The racquetball bible (unofficial book of racquetball pros teaching mainstream) says one thing. I say another. Here goes:
The RBB says:
1. Position yourself in the center of the court to receive serve but I say not so fast mainstream Marvin or Martha..what if the server gets way over to the right or left. Why are you giving them leverage to one side of the court? Just like a football defense has to adjust so they do not get out-flanked, so do you.
2. Get up on your toes so you can get to the ball faster. But Say what? Here is a clue tippy toe Tommy and Tanya–you cannot move from being on your toes very efficiently. Instead get in a relaxed stance and move to the ball from that posture. Instead of toes, grip the floor with the inside of each foot so you are balanced and can move in either direction.
3. When you see the ball on a drive serve, go get it. But I say…Huh? If you wait until you see the ball, you will be too late. You must anticipate where the ball is going so you are moving as the drive serve is being hit. Anticipate, but do not commit!
4. Get into a crouch and get ready. But I say….Okay, This could be okay except for one thing. I see many people too tense. The ready position looks like they are all locked up. I say get into a ready position and relax!
5. Get back near the back wall. But I say….Really? I was told this was the way to position yourself and so and so pro did and so should everyone else. Well my pro played so and so and aced them off the court. This positioning is not bad if you play someone who cannot drive serve. Good drive servers will torture this positioning.
6. Get up closer to cut off the drive serve that gets just over the line. But I say……This coach flunked geometry. Moving up closer gives the drive server more angles into the corners and makes the distance harder to cover. Not only that, but the receiver can be jammed or z served into the middle of the court.
Okay the RBB has some good tips from the 80s and 90s but as the game evolves so does positioning and receiving serve–be sure you are using up to date information!