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Players you hate facing

4K views 28 replies 23 participants last post by  HKz 
#1 ·
For me pushers and moonballers are the worst.

Incredibly frustrating how they're happy to play the most boring game in order to get the W. I can come off feeling happy with how I've played if I get wiped off the court 6-1 6-1 by a serve-vollyer, he was just too good, but if I lose close in tie-breaks to a pusher I always feel like I should give up playing tennis because I'm the worst player in the world and couldn't even beat a mug.

A pusher even managed to embarrass me at doubles the other day. I played like an idiot trying to blast through him and of course he was just scampering around retrieving all my shots until I made the inevitable mistake. He was clearly weaker at the net, so god knows why I didn't lure him in and pass him or his partner.

Moonballers on the other hand, I find hell to face on slow, bouncy courts. They play such a safe game and yet give you such awkward shots to deal with, just a nightmare combo. I've had more success hitting through them and attacking them than I have against pushers though.

What style of player is your nemesis?
 
#2 ·
I hate moonballers, i have a attacking style of play and im pretty small for my age (15) whenever im beating someone they have to result to moon balling its soooo annoying ! :mad: .
Anyone know a way to counter this ?
 
#4 ·
Hey so I absolutely hate playing pushers. I would call myself a grinder, I like to stay back but I dont just "wait for an error" I like to attack every once in a while.

Anyway, check this out..Respect The Pusher...Because He Beat Your, Twice!
 
#5 ·
Hey so I absolutely hate playing pushers. I would call myself a grinder, I like to stay back but I dont just "wait for an error" I like to attack every once in a while.
Sounds like you have a very similar style to me. I prefer people to attack me, as I'm comfortable being the counter-puncher. I think that's why I have problems with pushers, we just reach a stalemate and eventually boredom / frustration leads to too many mistakes in rallies.

Surprisingly I faced a junior the other day and he could push for his country. Really not used to that from a kid, normally they moonball with big spin, but he was really giving me no pace or spin to work with whatsoever. Really baffled me for the first few games, but as soon as I started getting into the net and cutting off his pansy shots he was toast.
 
#9 ·
I actually like moonballers/pushers, I enjoy being able to dictate play. It doesn't really frustrate me either.

My biggest hate = playing big servers. Absolutely infuriating being out of control. It also makes me a lot more nervous on my service games because I know I won't get many chances to break back.
 
#11 ·
You guys won't like to hear this (and I assume most are casual players), but having trouble with pushers generally indicates a really weak mindset or some severe flaws in your game. I love to have my top juniors hit against 4.0 brick walls, as it instantly lets me gauge where we are in the long haul.

I don't really have a pet peave per se, as different styles are what makes tennis so fun and allows you to constantly test yourself...
 
#13 ·
Don't worry, you are right! As frustrating as pushers are to play, they do make you think about your game and become a more intelligent and consistent player. I've been struggling with them on slow hard courts recently but I know I can get the W if I'm in the right frame of mind, and it's a great feeling to dominate a pusher.
 
#15 ·
There's not really a style of player that I dislike playing against except, perhaps, like Adam...I'm intimidated by big servers. Luckily, there aren't too many ladies that fit that category at the 3.5 level I play at :lol: . I enjoy playing against a variety of styles...and count as one of my strengths...adjusting (if necessary) to put myself in a winning situation.

What I can't stand to be on the court with are lolly-gaggers. They bounce the ball too much, take too much time between points and waaaay too much time at service changeovers. Ugh. Chatty Cathys are also a sore spot.
 
#17 ·
Very smart players who can back up their smarts with their strokes. I don't mind payers who hit really well but aren't the smartest, but the ones who can hit well, and identify all your weaknesses, well, yea. Also players who use the Federer short slice.
 
#20 ·
10-years-old moonballers are really big problems for me... I also hate facing players who don`t give up after losing first set.
 
#21 ·
A few years ago I would have agreed with you. Nowadays, I see it as an opportunity for me to learn something. Some matches you have to be patient whilst they waste time bouncing the ball 32 times, others you have to be prepared to hit 30 ball rallies for 3 hours....

The worst players are the ones that forget to show up :)
 
#22 ·
Played against a very talented junior the other day and it was so obvious Nadal is his hero. He was a leftie, and had the long hair, bandana, capri shorts, same moonballing heavy topspin forehand and even took his racquet back early on the serve just like Nadal. Worst of all he had the grunt as well!

I didn't have much trouble with him as he was missing a few Nadal attributes, he was about 5ft and just couldn't run! Anything in his hitting zone though and you were in trouble. Reminded me a lot of Jan Silva actually.
 
#23 ·
Try hard mini-nadulls.
 
#24 ·
Big servers and guys who go for broke all the time.

I played an opponent the other day who had a big serve yet an even bigger ball toss which meant he would do so inaccurately and catch it again, at least five times a service game and sometimes two or three times before one serve. When it went in, it was extremely difficult to handle since he put plenty of kick on it, along with his pace, and we were on a synthetic grass court that was way too sandy so the ball was kicking up really high. I had barely any rhythm at all on his service games and he's the kind of player who wanted to crush a forehand off every one of my first and second serves. I won in straights (5 and 3) but it wasn't exactly fun, there were very few meaningful rallies and I just couldn't play the game I wanted to 'cause his inconsistency and 'in your face' play stopped me from doing so.

It didn't help that I broke a string in warm up and had to borrow one of his to play, it was the first time I've used the K90 so I found it kinda tricky to play with since I've used 105sq for several years and only recently started playing with the K Blade 98.

I don't mind playing pushers, I enjoy being able to attack and take control of the rallies. I'm still trying to get my serve back after a long layoff, I've completely forgotten how to hit a flat first serve and have since resulted in kicking/slicing both first and second serves. My kicks are still attackable though so it's something I'll need to address asap. :sad:
 
#25 ·
Not a huge fan of playing players that have two very dominant wings - a strong BH and a strong FH meaning it's hard to attack them, of course they can have bad serves, terrible net skills, mental problems, etc.. but these are the most difficult for me.
 
#27 ·
hate people who slice to my double handed backhand i'm to lazy to get low for it, drives me nuts when its on a break point and i can feel the pressure. I love playing against pushers even though the rallies are longer i feel if i lower the power of my shots and increase the consistency a bit i can control the points better and am more disciplined.. If you got a big Serve and love slicing to the backhand on important points you basically have me sorted haha
 
#28 ·
I hate playing against big servers(as I've some problems holding my serve sometimes) and players which use very often a sliced backhand that keep too low the ball after his bounce...
 
#29 ·
Uh, I hate playing the actually good pushers haha. As in the one that is usually ranked top 10 in the region. You play aggressive, he'll slice everything back deep; You play passive, he'll rip everything back. So honestly, when I play these kinds of players, especially this one player I used to play a lot against, it is virtually like a chess game. The match is basically both of us going back and forth from being aggressive to passive during points. It is very frustrating. Coming to the net works sometimes like when you serve and volley and on select opportunities, but it is very tough. And also drawing those kinds of playings into the net is difficult as well.
 
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