Disguise: Making Every Overhead Look the Same

Deception makes your opponent wait, guess or move the wrong way. It is built on one principle: every shot looks the same until the last moment.

Same preparation

Turn, raise the racket arm, point with the other hand, and load your weight the same way for clear, drop and smash. If your drop preparation is slower, opponents read it.

Late changes

• Speed change: a full swing that slows just before contact (drop).
• Angle change: a late turn of the racket face (slice or reverse slice).
• Hold: at the net, hold the racket still and then flick or tap.

Build it in order

1. Make each basic shot reliable.
2. Practise two shots from one preparation (clear and drop).
3. Add a third (smash), then slices.

Deception on top of unreliable basics loses more points than it wins. Consistency first.