It is important that everyone on the court during practice with the ball machine

1) Uses approved safety glasses. This includes the coach and anyone hitting or collecting balls as it is easy to lose track of the balls being hit.

2) Understands the safe operating procedures of the machine

These drills are only presented as an idea of the different types of drills that are possible with the machine and are limited only by your imagination. If you have any unique drill ideas that you would like to offer to other coaches please contact us and we will add them to our site.

All drills demonstrated can be reversed from backhand to forehand.

Backhand Cross-Court Drive
This is one of the easiest shots for a beginner to hit. The natural progression of the drill is show from the player standing in one spot hitting the shot, moving from the T to hit the shot and then cycling with another player and ghosting a forehand. It is easy to keep a number of players occupied by switching every 5 shots and having the remaining players collect the balls.

“Set the machine so the player has a good rhythm and the
learning process will be accelerated.”
-Mike Way

Backhand Drive
Progressing from the Cross-Court drive we will hit down the wall. The drill can be started in a stationary position and then movement can be added. We will start moving latterly across the court. Alternating between players and having ball collectors keeps more players active. The addition of ghosting will also increase the complexity of the drill. To add to the challenge we start at the T and chase the balls to the back wall. This gives a good opportunity to work on footwork. The complexity of all drills can be controlled by the difficulty and frequency of the feed. For beginners raise the ball temperature to make them livelier.

“The beauty of your machine is that it allows the rhythm to take place”
-Mike Way

Attacking Boast
This is a fun one to practice. It is easy to change from a boast to a volley boast. Notice how convenient it is for the coach to get a good view of the player. Complexity can be added by having a second player drop or drive the boast and a third player can collect the balls. It is a good idea to keep as many balls off the court as possible.

Backhand Volley
This is a good drill for practicing good volley technique. The coach can have the player alternate between cross-court and straight shots with verbal instructions. For variations on this drill try increasing the height of the feed and have the player shoot for nicks. Aiming for nicks is always fun. An advanced version of this drill is to have someone stand behind the machine and oscillates the aim from backhand to forehand. How many nicks can you hit?

Backhand Serve Return
It is easy to groove the serve return with this drill. Advanced players will set the machine to skip the ball off of the wall into the back corner.

“It's impossible to keep the balls warm and feed
this drill as accurately as the Cannon.”
-Mike Way

Forehand Volley Drop
The heater is ideal for keeping the balls warm during this drill. Moving the machine from the backhand side to the forehand side of the court makes the shot more difficult by changing the angle and eliminating the ability to use the side wall.

Drop to Drop/Lob
This drill becomes a little more complex. It can be performed as a straight drop shot drill without having the second player hit a drop or lob. In this clip, the first player hits a drop and the second player moves in and hits a drop or a lob depending on how tight the first shot was. Additional players can be added in the back of the court collecting balls.

“The level of concentration of my kids is at its absolute highest
when we use the ball machine”
-Mike Way

Boast to Drop to Drop/Lob
The progression of the Drop to Drop/Lob drill is achieved by changing the angle of the machine. In this drill the machine starts with a boast which makes it more difficult for the initial drop shot. Again we start with one player and add additional players once the shot is grooved.

Deception –– Drop/Boast/Drive
Try holding as long as you can before hitting your shot. Alternate between a drop, boast or a drive. It is important to make sure you don’t have balls under your feet.

Deception
Here is a fun game that works on deception. Set the machine to shoot off the back wall to ensure that no one gets hit by the ball. It is much easier to monitor in this position. The player at the front must hold the ball as long as possible and try to hit a winner. If the player at the back returns the shot he would move to the front. Try increasing the number of players by having the front player go to collect balls if they do not hit a winner and a new player cycling in.

Fun with Hand Eye
Ever find your kids are getting a bit bored and are losing their concentration. Try this drill!

“The most boring part of coaching is feeding.”
-Mike Way